Editing Irving Berlin (section)

====World War I====
On April 1, 1917, after President [[Woodrow Wilson]] declared that America would enter [[World War I]], Berlin felt that [[Tin Pan Alley]] should do its duty and support the war with inspirational songs. Berlin wrote the song "For Your Country and My Country", stating that "we must speak with the sword not the pen to show our appreciation to America for opening up her heart and welcoming every immigrant group." He also co-wrote a song aimed at ending ethnic conflict, "Let's All Be Americans Now".<ref name=Whitcomb/>{{rp|197}}

=====''Yip Yip Yaphank''=====
{{quote box|align=right|width=25em|bgcolor = Cornsilk|quote=At the grand finale... Sergeant Berlin led the entire 300-person cast off the stage, marching them down the theater's aisles, singing 'We're on Our Way to France,' all to tumultuous applause. The cast carried off their little producer like he was victor ludorum ... Tin Pan Alley had joined hands with real life|source= — biographer [[Ian Whitcomb]].<ref name=Whitcomb/>{{rp|199}}<ref>video:[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34m5SPPZXQc Irving Berlin's "We're on our way to France"], from ''This is the Army'' (1943)</ref>}}

In 1917, Berlin was drafted into the [[United States Army]], and his induction became headline news, with one paper headline reading, "Army Takes Berlin!" But the Army wanted Berlin, now aged 30, to do what he knew best: write songs. While stationed with the [[152nd Depot Brigade]] at [[Camp Upton]], he then composed an all-soldier musical revue titled ''[[Yip Yip Yaphank]]'', written as a patriotic tribute to the [[United States Army]]. The show was taken to Broadway where it also included a number of hits, including "[[Mandy (Irving Berlin song)|Mandy]]" and "[[Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning]]", which Berlin performed himself.<ref name="NYT-obit" />

The shows earned $150,000 for a camp service center. One song he wrote for the show but decided not to use, he would introduce 20 years later: "God Bless America".<ref name=Corliss/><ref name=Smith/>