Irving Berlin was born on May 11, 1888 as Israel Isidore Baline in Tyumen, Siberia, which is part of Russia. His parents were Leah and Moses Baline, a Jewish couple. Israel Baline was the youngest of eight children. During this time in Russia there were pogroms, which are a massacre of an ethnic group, meaning Jews in Russia. Because of the pogroms, Leah and Moses Baline and their children left Russia. When Isreal was three his parents immagrated to the United States. His family settled in Lower East side of New York. In New York, his father was both a cantor and a shochet, a person who kills kosher animals. At the age of eight, Moses Baline died. In order to support his family, Israel Baline took odd jobs in the Lower East Side of New York City. He sold newspapers, did live performances, and other jobs to earn money. Israel sung around popular cafes and restaurants. He was hired to sing in Callahan's café. When he turned eighteen, in 1906, he was hired to be a singing waiter at Pelham Café in Chinatown. Getting the job at Pelham Café changed Israel Baline’s life. Isreal Baline was asked to write a song with the piano player, Nick Nicholson. They wrote Marie Of Sunny Italy and it was published. He got thirty-seven cents, but the publisher misprinted Israel Baline as Irving Berlin.
He wrote many famous songs such as The Hostess with the Mostes' on the Ball, Steppen’ Out With My Baby, Mandy, I Got The Sun In The Morning, Blue Skies,