Kenny Baker introduced “Love Is Here to Stay” in the 1938 United Artists film The Goldwyn Follies, Samuel Goldwyn’s attempt to become the Ziegfeld of the Silver Screen.

The song was given very little attention in the film and was almost relegated to background music with Baker’s performance partly covered by dialogue. Despite its on-screen treatment, “Love Is Here to Stay” went on to become a hit twice in 1938. Larry Clinton and His Orchestra (Bea Wain, vocal) took it to number 15 on the pop charts, and Red Norvo and His Orchestra (Mildred Bailey, vocal) leveled at number 16. It was not until Gene Kelly sang it in An American in Paris (1952), however, that the song became a standard.

In addition to Baker, The Goldwyn Follies starred Vera Zorina, the Ritz Brothers, Adolphe Menjou, and Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy in their film debut. The film also featured The American Ballet under the direction of George Balanchine. The song and dance numbers hung loosely upon the story of a movie producer who hires a girl (“Miss Humanity”) to evaluate his films from the perspective of an ordinary person.

Although the film was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Score and Best Interior Decoration, it is considered an overblown extravaganza, interesting only for its production numbers. Other all-Gershwin songs in the score were “I Was Doing All Right,” “Love Walked In,” and “Love to Rhyme.” Vernon Duke composed “Spring Again” with lyrics by Ira.

According to Ira Gershwin in his book, Lyrics on Several Occasions, he and George finished five songs in the first six weeks of their Goldwyn Follies contract. Those were also the last six weeks of George’s work before his death on July 11, 1937. The fifth song, referred to by Ira and not mentioned above, was “Just Another Rhumba” which was not used in the film. “Love Is Here to Stay” was the last song George composed.

Ira was not pleased with the film’s treatment of the song saying,

So little footage was given to “Love Is Here to Stay”—I think only one refrain—that it meant little in The Goldwyn Follies. Beautifully presented in An American in Paris, it became better known.

George Gershwin would often perform his new songs for friends, interested to hear their impressions. Never at a loss for words or opinions, Oscar Levant was always happy to oblige. In Levant’s book, A Smattering of Ignorance, he says,

[“Love Is Here to Stay”] has a curiously continuous line, a rather complex pattern. After first hearing it I complained of its lack of breathing space in the second eight bars, its too-long contours, uttering some very cogent—so I thought—reasons for my opinion. George spent two days trying to rephrase the melody and simplify the line, eventually returning to the original form of it. Ira was quite annoyed with me, and rightly.

Not long after, Levant would have an opportunity to utilize his legendary memory and redeem himself. Although George had played the verses to “Love Is Here to Stay,” “Love Walked In,” and “I Was Doing Alright,” he had not written them down. When Goldwyn requested they hire a composer to complete George’s work, Ira chose Vernon Duke who would later say in his autobiography Passport to Paris,

… fortunately, Oscar Levant remembered the harmonies from George’s frequent piano performances of the song and I was able faithfully to reconstruct it.

“Love Is Here to Stay” is often referred to as “Our Love Is Here to Stay.” The original working title was “It’s Here to Stay” which soon became “Our Love Is Here to Stay” and then “Love Is Here to Stay.” According to Philip Furia in his biography Ira Gershwin: The Art of the Lyricist, for years Ira wanted to change the title back to his original idea, “Our Love Is Here to Stay,” but felt it would not be right as the song had become a standard. However, he did make the change in 1960 with the publication of The George and Ira Gershwin Songbook.