RSSAmplifier

Blog

THE BING CROSBY NEWS ARCHIVE

This is a one stop place to find news and stories about the greatest singer of all-time, Bing Crosby. From his days with Paul Whiteman to his final performances in 1977, we will examine this remarkable entertainer's life and times!

bingfan03.blogspot.comRSS feed ↗25 posts

Latest posts

A SEASON TO HIS VOICE: BING'S SUMMER SONGS

There’s a certain kind of summer that doesn’t come from a thermometer or a calendar—it arrives on a breeze carrying music. And if you happen to wander into that golden, memory-lit season, chances are you’ll hear Bing Crosby somewhere in the distance, his voice drifting like warm air through an open window. Bing Crosby wasn’t known as “the voice of summer” the way he was for Christmas, but listen a…

BING'S HITS: 1931

In the depths of the Great Depression, American households turned to radio and phonographs for escape, reassurance, and a sense of connection. In 1931, no voice offered those comforts more consistently or more successfully than Bing Crosby’s. That year marked the moment Crosby stepped fully into the spotlight as a solo artist and emerged as the most dominant recording star in the country. More…

BING AND HIS MOST SUCCESSFUL MOVIES

Long before box-office weekends were measured in superhero billions, success in Hollywood meant something a little different. It meant longevity, audience devotion, and the rare ability to make moviegoers feel at home the moment you appeared on screen. Few actors embodied that kind of success more completely than Bing Crosby—a relaxed, warm, velvet-voiced star whose films defined popular…

REMEMBERING ANN BLYTH (1928-2006)

This past week Ann Blyth died at the age of 97. She starred with Bing Crosby in the 1949 film Top O' The Morning. Her greatest role though was came a few years earlier in Mildred Pierce (1945). RIP Ann Blyth...

BING AND GRACE KELLY: A HOLLYWOOD ROMANCE

Hollywood has always thrived on the electricity between its stars—the glances that linger a second too long, the chemistry that feels almost too real. Few pairings embodied that quiet spark more intriguingly than Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly, whose connection in the mid‑1950s existed somewhere between rumor, respect, and a fleeting moment in time. Their story is not one of grand scandal or…

THE VOICES BEHIND THE VOICE: BING CROSBY'S MUSICAL IDOLS

Before Bing Crosby became one of the most influential and beloved voices of the 20th century, he was simply Harry Lillis Crosby of Spokane, Washington—a young man with wide‑open ears and an instinctive attraction to music. His rise from a college student dabbling in performance to a global icon was shaped not only by his natural charm and vocal gifts but also by the artists he idolized along the…

THE MAKING OF RHYTHM ON THE RIVER

In the summer of 1940, Paramount Pictures was buzzing with excitement. The studio had a new musical comedy in the works—Rhythm on the River—and at its heart were two rising stars: Bing Crosby, already America’s favorite crooner, and Mary Martin, the Broadway sensation with a voice as bright as her smile. The story was lighthearted: a ghostwriter for a famous composer meets a lyricist, and together…

THE BIRTH OF BING AND A VOICE THAT WOULD CHANGE MUSIC FOREVER

On May 3, 1903, in the quiet city of Tacoma, Washington, a baby boy was born who would one day become the most influential voice in American popular music. His name was Harry Lillis Crosby—though the world would come to know him simply as Bing. Harry was the fourth of seven children in a close-knit Irish-American family. His father, Harry Lowe Crosby, worked as a bookkeeper, while his mother,…

GARY CROSBY: GROWING UP IN THE SPOTLIGHT

G ary Crosby was born on June 27, 1933, in Los Angeles, the first son of Bing Crosby and Dixie Lee. From the very beginning, music was woven into his life. While other kids grew up with bedtime stories, Gary grew up with jam sessions—his father’s voice drifting through the house, rehearsals echoing from the living room, and visits from stars who defined an era. By the time Gary was a teenager, it…

BING CROSBY - THE BRUNSWICK YEARS

BING AT BRUNSWICK

In the early 1930s, Bing Crosby was standing at the edge of something big. He had already made waves as part of Paul Whiteman’s Rhythm Boys, but the world was about to hear him in a way it never had before. The stage for this transformation? Brunswick Records. It was 1931 when Bing walked into the Brunswick studios, a young man with a voice that felt like velvet and a style that broke all the…

BING & CONNEE BOSWELL: A HARMONY BEYOND TIME

The year was 1937, and the airwaves were alive with the sound of swing. Bing Crosby, already a household name with his warm, easygoing baritone, was redefining popular singing. Across the country, Connee Boswell—formerly the heart of the Boswell Sisters—was stepping into her own spotlight. Her voice carried a jazz-inflected elegance, a playful lilt that could turn even the simplest melody into…

KEN TWISS AND THE BING CROSBY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

In the decades following Bing Crosby’s death in 1977, few individuals have done more to preserve his legacy than Ken Twiss, founder and president of the Bing Crosby Historical Society (BCHS). Established in 1978 in Tacoma, Washington, the BCHS began as a passionate fan club but quickly evolved into a vital institution dedicated to chronicling the life and career of one of the 20th century’s most…

WHY BING CROSBY IS NOT REMEMBERED MORE TODAY

In the pantheon of American entertainment, few figures loom as large as Bing Crosby. He was the first multimedia superstar—dominating radio, film, and music for decades. His smooth baritone voice, relaxed charm, and pioneering use of technology made him a household name from the 1930s through the 1950s. Yet today, Crosby is often reduced to a seasonal footnote, remembered primarily for his…

CROONING THROUGH LOVE: THE ROMANTIC SIDE OF BING

Bing Crosby’s voice was velvet—smooth, warm, and timeless. It drifted through radios and movie screens, comforting a nation through war, winter, and wistful longing. But behind the crooner’s calm exterior was a romantic life filled with devotion, heartbreak, and quiet complexity. In 1930, Bing met Dixie Lee, a beautiful and talented nightclub singer. Their whirlwind romance led to marriage, and…

PHOTOS OF THE DAY: BING AND ANIMALS

Bing Crosby had a love of many things, and one of his great loves was his love of animals. He was especially found of horses and dogs as these photos show...

SWINGING INTO STARDOM - THE EARLY YEARS OF BING CROSBY

Here is a radio documentary I created called Swinging Into Stardom: The Early Years Of Bing Crosby. It's been almost 100 years now since Bing made his first record I've Got The Girl, and I hope this documentary captures and honors those early years...

SNOWFALL AND SENTIMENT: BING'S WINTERTIME MELODIES

There’s something about winter that invites reflection. The hush of falling snow, the long shadows of January afternoons, the way the world seems to slow down and listen. And if winter had a voice, it might very well sound like Bing Crosby’s—smooth, steady, and full of quiet emotion. Though most people associate Crosby with Christmas, his musical embrace of the season extended far beyond December…

DIXIE LEE: HOLLYWOOD STAR

Dixie Lee, born Wilma Winifred Wyatt on November 4, 1911, in Harriman, Tennessee, was an American actress, singer, and dancer best known for her marriage to legendary crooner Bing Crosby. However, before becoming Mrs. Crosby, Dixie Lee carved out a notable—albeit brief—career in Hollywood during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Dixie Lee began her entertainment career as a singer and dancer in…

AUDIO ASPIRIN: WHITE CHRISTMAS (1977)

BING, IRVING BERLIN, AND WHITE CHRISTMAS

Irving Berlin was a Jewish immigrant who loved America. As his 1938 song “God Bless America” suggests, he believed deeply in the nation’s potential for goodness, unity and global leadership. In 1940, he wrote another quintessential American song, “White Christmas,” which the popular entertainer Bing Crosby eventually made famous. But this was a profoundly sad time for humanity. World War II – what…

AUDIO ASPIRIN: WHITE CHRISTMAS (1943)

BING'S DISCOGRAPHY: DECEMBER 12, 1938

On this date, Bing did not record any Christmas songs, but he died go into the Decca studio to make some great records... Date: 12/12/38 Location: Los Angeles, Calif Label: DECCA (US) a. DLA1633-A My Melancholy Baby (George A Norton, Ernie Burnett) - 2:58 b. DLA1634-B I Cried For You (Arthur Freed, Gus Arnheim, Abe Lyman) - 3:06 c. DLA1634-C I Cried For You (Arthur Freed, Gus Arnheim, Abe Lyman) -…

SPOTLIGHT ON LOUISE CAMPBELL

Louise Campbell is just a footnote in Hollywood history. She made films for just a short 10 year period, and her most famous work was probably with Bing Crosby. Louise Campbell Weisbecker was born on May 30, 1911 in Chicago. Despite her success in Hollywood, she made it clear she preferred the stage. Campbell attended St. Michael's School.and DePaul University, studying dramatic arts at the…

COMING SOON - NEW BING CROSBY RECORD

Last year, UME celebrated the holidays with a selection on 7” vinyl. This year, they’re continuing the series, complete with a new snow white-colored 7” of Bing Crosby’s beloved “White Christmas.” The 2024 collection included pressings of The Beach Boys’ “Little Saint Nick,” Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree,” Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” Chuck Berry’s “Run Rudolph Run,”…