“Out in San Francisco, where the Islam Temple lives, Ev’ry body’s singing, all the bells are ringing” (Official Shrine Song)

“Islam Greets You (The Official Shrine Song)” was written by Fanchon and Marco and published by Sherman, Clay & Company in San Francisco in 1922. The sheet music is available through the San Francisco Library’s Dorothy Starr Sheet Music Collection.

The song was the result of a 1922 contest organized and sponsored by the Islam Temple and the San Francisco Chronicle. “The Chronicle will pay a $100 cash prize to the writer of the best Islam temple march song to greet visitors to the Shriners’ golden jubilee convention… It is an open field to all. Musical reputations don’t count. What Islam temple wants is a great march song,” declared the city paper.

“Miss Fanchon” & Marco Wolff were a brother and sister team of producers, who ran a robust entertainment operation in Hollywood from the early 1930s to the 1940s. In the world of theater, Fanchon and Marco (as they were usually listed) were known for their spectacular, excessive productions. Miss Fanchon, in fact, directed Shipstad and Johnson’s Ice Follies for the 1939 World’s Fair in San Francisco.