Categories
Oddities Science Fiction and Fantasy

Daisy Daisy

Why does HAL sing “Daisy, Daisy” in 2001: A Space Odyssey? (kottke.org)

In 1962, Arthur C. Clarke was touring Bell Labs when he heard a demonstration of a song sung by an IBM 704 computer programmed by physicist John L. Kelly. The song, the first ever performed by a computer, was called “Daisy Bell”, more commonly known as “Bicycle Built for Two” or “Daisy, Daisy”. When Clarke collaborated with Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey, they had HAL sing it while Dave powered him down.

He links to a page with the relevant recording.