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The Fountain in the Park


"The Fountain in the Park", also known as "While Strolling Through (or Thru') the Park One Day", is a song by Ed Haley (1862–1932), published in 1884 by Willis Woodward & Co. of New York, but dating from about 1880. It is best known for the being the source of the tune that contains the lyric "While strolling through the park one day, in the merry merry month of May," and has been featured in numerous films, including Strike Up the Band (1940), in which it was sung by Judy Garland.

A few bars of The Fountain in the Park were sung on the Moon by NASA Astronauts Harrison Schmitt and Eugene Cernan on the Apollo 17 mission. Schmitt started by singing "I was strolling on the Moon one day..." when Cernan joined in. Cernan kept with the original "merry month of May", however, while Schmitt sang "December", which was the actual date at the time. After a brief debate, Schmitt resumed, singing "When much to my surprise, a pair of bonny eyes..." until he could no longer remember the lyrics and began vocalizing the notes instead. Moments later, Capsule Communicator Robert A. Parker cut in from Houston, saying "sorry about that, guys, but today may be December."



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