A Rose Is Not A Rose

"A Rose Is Not A Rose" is a song from the 1978 musical film, The Magic of Lassie. It is sung by 1950's icon Pat Boone whose daughter Debbie Boone sang the Academy Award nominated song "When You're Loved" from the same film. The song was written by Richard & Robert Sherman.

Trivia

• The song title finds its origins as a play on the famous Shakespearen quote: "A Rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet.", Modern writers subsequently encapsulated the sentiment, cobbling Shakespeare's phrase into the more accessible, "A rose is a rose is a rose." This song's title states the opposite: "A Rose is not a rose". The catch is in the parenthetical statement which follows the title line: ("without the thorns...")

• The Sherman Brothers often write songs with the word "Rose" included in the title. This may be due to "Rose" having been their mother's name. Some Sherman Brothers titles include the following:

1. "The Roses Of Success" from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
2. "A Rose In A Bible" from Huckleberry Finn
3. "The Slipper and the Rose Waltz" from The Slipper and the Rose
4. "A Rose Is Not A Rose" from The Magic of Lassie

Literary Sources

• Sherman, Robert B. Walt's Time: from before to beyond, Santa Clarita: Camphor Tree Publishers, 1998.