"Dear Old Donegal" is an Irish-American song popularised by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

singer

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

and written by Steve Graham. The song has an 'upbeat' rhythm and is meant to be the words of an Irishman returning to his native

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

after becoming successful in the United States. ''Dear Old Donegal'' was also performed by

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...

Zina Bethune Zina Bianca Bethune (February 17, 1945 – February 12, 2012) was an American actress, dancer, and choreographer. She was the daughter of actress Ivy Bethune. Early years Bethune was born on Staten Island, the daughter of Ivy ( Vigder), a Russi ...

, and

Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop music, pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit "You're Breaking My ...

as part of the ''All-Purpose Holiday Medley'' on ''

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'' in 1963. It was parodied by

Allan Sherman Allan Sherman (born Allan Copelon or Allan Gerald Copelon; November 30, 1924 – November 20, 1973) was an American musician, satirist, and television producer who became known as a song parodist in the early 1960s. His first album, '' M ...

on his 1962 album ''

My Son, the Folk Singer My or MY may refer to: Arts and entertainment * My (radio station), a Malaysian radio station * Little My, a fictional character in the Moomins universe * ''My'' (album), by Edyta Górniak * ''My'' (EP), by Cho Mi-yeon Business * Marke ...

'', as "Shake Hands With Your Uncle Max", using Jewish references rather than Irish. The tune of the song was used in the US comedy ''

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...

'' for the song "Drunken Irish Dad", which was sung by Peter Griffin in the episode "

Peter's Two Dads "Peter's Two Dads" is the tenth episode in the fifth season of the American animated television series ''Family Guy''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 11, 2007. The episode was written by Danny Smith an ...

". The song was even nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics at the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards.

Film appearances

*'' Gentleman Jim'' (1942) - (sung and danced by Alan Hale and others)

Recordings

, recorded December 6, 1945 with

Bob Haggart Robert Sherwood Haggart (March 13, 1914 – December 2, 1998) was an American dixieland jazz double bass player, composer, and arranger. Although he is associated with dixieland, he was one of the finest rhythm bassists of the Swing Era. Music ...

and his Orchestra with The Jesters. *

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, whose version appeared on an episode of ''

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'' *

Shirley Ross Shirley Ross (born Bernice Maude Gaunt, January 7, 1913 – March 9, 1975) was an American actress and singer, notable for her duet with Bob Hope, " Thanks for the Memory" from ''The Big Broadcast of 1938''. She appeared in 25 feature films be ...

, performed on Command Performance in 1943 *

Dennis Morgan Dennis Morgan (born Earl Stanley Morner; December 20, 1908 – September 7, 1994) was an American actor-singer. He used the acting pseudonym Richard Stanley before adopting the name under which he gained his greatest fame. According to one ob ...

, performs it in the film ''

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'' (1947) *

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included in her album ''

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'' (1962) *

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sang a portion of the song in his role as Sergeant Morgan O'Rourke in an episode of the television series ''

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'' (Season 1, Episode 25, "Reunion For O'Rourke"). It was also sung by

Don Knotts Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on the 1960s sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show'', for which he earned five Emmy Awards. He als ...

as "

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" in an episode of ''

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'' (when he was dressed up like a woman to show what a pushover the Mayberry Bank was). Its latest incarnation is a comedic version about an evil capitalist arriving in Hell, where he meets all his role models in the trade, by Mikhail Horowitz and Gilles Malkine, parodists from Woodstock, NY, on their 2007 CD "Poor, On Tour, & Over 54".

Lyrics

Many versions of the lyrics exist. Some have the singer's 'sister Kate' and the girl at the garden gate as separate people, different lengths of time since the singer left Ireland, and multiple versions of the names sung in the body of the song.

References

{{authority control Irish folk songs Songs about Ireland Songs of the Irish diaspora Year of song unknown Songs with unknown songwriters