John Blackburn, of Newport, wrote the words to one of America's most popular standards, "Moonlight in Vermont." Each verse is a haiku. He traveled with a puppet theater that brought him to Vermont, inspiring the lyrics. The music was composed by Karl Suessdorf. It was introduced by Margaret Whiting in 1944 and also recorded by Willie Nelson in 1978, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong in 1956, and Frank Sinatra in 1957.