Everybody is familiar with the chorus to "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Although there is no definitive way to tell, it is reputed to be the third-most popular song in the United States behind "Happy Birthday" and "The Star Spangled Banner." Very few people, however, are familiar with its verses. In its original entirety the song tells the story of Katie Casey, a young woman who was "baseball mad." Her boyfriend offers to take her to a show, but she instead demands to see a baseball game.
Norworth and Von Tilzer
The original lyrics to "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" were written in 1908 by New York songwriter Jack Norworth. The music itself was composed by Albert von Tilzer. The lilting tune soon caught on in vaudeville and its popularity spread. Various performers recorded the song within the year and it became a major hit. Naturally, of course, it soon made its way into baseball games.
According to Norworth he was riding the New York subway one day and noticed a sign advertising a game at the Polo Grounds. Inspired, he scribbled the lyrics onto the back of an envelope in just a few minutes. That envelope is now on display in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Norworth re-wrote the verses and released a new version in 1927. The story essentially remained the same, only the character's name had changed from Katie Casey to Nelly Kelly. Though the 1908 version is under public domain, this 1927 version still retains its copyright.
Ironically neither Norworth nor von Tilzer had ever attended a baseball game up to that point. Norworth would attend his first game in 1940 and be presented with a lifetime pass from Major League Baseball in 1958 on the song's 50th anniversary. Von Tilzer attended his first game in 1928.
Harry Caray
Today every Major League stadium blares the chorus to "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch over the public address system, and fans are all too happy to sing along. But where did this tradition come from?
It was Harry Caray who rejuvenated the song's popularity in the early 1970s. As announcer for the Chicago White Sox at Comisky Park he would often bellow the tune while those sitting nearby sang along. As the story goes, one day in 1976 Sox owner Bill Veeck snuck the public address microphone into the booth during one of these spur-of-the-moment performances. From then on it became a tradition to include the entire stadium in these rousing (and often off-key) renditions. Caray would take that tradition with him across town when he became the Cubs' announcer in 1982. Following Caray's passing in 1998 Wrigley Field has featured "guest singers" to lead the fans during every Chicago home game.
References
A Brief History of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game'
