By The Light of The Silvery Moon

Yesterday, I was biking on the 102nd Street transverse from the West Side to the East Side. A friend called, I stopped, we spoke for 30 minutes and twilight set in. The full moon lit up the Fifth Avenue sky over the park.

This reminded me of my favorite film, The Producers with Zero Mostel & Gene Wilder.

Boating in Central Park, they plotted their plan for the worst play ever. Opening night, they retired to the tavern across the street from the theatre where there was only one other customer, Willam Hickey, deeply drunk.

Figuring the flop is in the bag, Zero Mostel said to Frank Campanella, the bartender, "Barkeep, Barkeep, another drink for myself, my associate, Mr. Bloom, and don't forget our good natured inebriate over here."

Their initial toast, " "Here's to failure!"

Hickey, the good natured inebriate down the bar answers the toast, "Oh, thank you. It's very kind of you."

After the toast, Max Bailystock dropped a dime in the juke box and the three of them launched into a dancing rendition of By The Light of the Silvery Moon.

By the light, of the silvery moon,

I want to spoon,

To my honey I'll croon love's tune.

Honey moon, keep a-shinin' in June.

Your silv'ry beams will bring love's dreams,

We'll be cuddlin' soon,

By the silvery moon.

By the light (not the dark but the light)

Of the silvery moon (not the sun but the moon)

I wanna spoon (not croon, but spoon)

To my honey I'll croon love's tune

Honey moon, honey moon, honey moon

Keep a-shinin' in June

Your silv'ry beams will bring love's dreams

We'll be cuddlin' soon

By the silvery moon

The silv'ry moon...

The music was written by Gus Edwards, the lyrics by Edward Madden. The song was published in 1909. It was one of a series of moonrelated Tin Pan Alley songs of the era.