Anna Sten … ever at sea.
So, Sam Goldwyn solicits Cole Porter to write two songs for Anna Sten in Nana. (But icebergs are not easily transformed into songbirds.) Mr. Porter regrets – but does include Ms. Sten in a refrain from Anything Goes.
A note: A. Scott Berg has an excellent account of the Goldwyn/Sten relationship in his Goldwyn: a Biography. And he covers the Porter connection. I remember singing this refrain when young -- there was a time when smart lyrics found their way into the mouths of children on the streets.
An afterword: Click here to listen to Cole Porter singing the lyrics to Anything Goes. The Anna Sten reference occurs near the end -- at about 2:17.
