Bing Crosby

Bing was the first performer ever to pre-record a radio show on magnetic tape, and was instrumental in the development of taped programming. After choosing to record his radio show for delayed broadcast, he had to find a better way to record than on discs. Bing hired a company that was pioneering an advanced recording techonology and invested $50,000 of his own money in the new Ampax tape recorders.

After announcing that he wanted to pre-record his radio program, NBC sued Bing Crosby. Bing won the suit and quit radio for a year before taking his program to ABC.

At the end of World War II a poll voted Bing Crosby as the person who did the most to boost wartime morale.

Bing left his CBS radio program to host the Kraft Music Hall radio program for NBC.

Bing never learned to read music, but he could memorize a song after hearing it only once.

Bing won many medals in swimming competitions during his school days.

According to the US Census, as of 2008 Bing's recording of White Christmas is the biggest selling single of all time.

Bing sang with the Paul Witeman Orchestra for a few years, beginning in 1927.

Between his two marriages Bing had romantic relationships with actresses Grace Kelly and Inger Stevens.

In December, 2006, the Met Theater in Crosby's hometown of Spokane, Washington, was renamed the Bing Crosby Theater.

Bing was the first recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented to him in 1962.

Bing hosted a Christmas special nearly every year from 1931 through 1977--first on radio, later on television. His last Christmas special, in 1977, aired 6 1/2 weeks after his death.

Bing got his famous nickname at age six when a neighbor called him Bingo after a character in a comic strip called The Bingville Bugle. The last vowel was eventually dropped, and the nickname Bing stuck.

Bing attended Gonzaga University, a Catholic University in Spokane, Washington. To honor their most famous alumni the school has a Crosbyana room in their library housing many Bing Crosby artifacts, including his Academy Award.

Frequent Crosby co-star Dorothy Lamour was unable to attend his funeral because her husband was hospitalized with a terminal illness and she didn't want to leave his side.

Bing was part owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team for about 20 years.

Bing has 38 number one hit singles on the radio and was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1998.

In most of Bing's performances he had his ears pinned back until he appeared on She Loves Me Not in 1934 when his ears became unpinned half way through the show.

Bing had four children with his first wife, Dixie: Gary, twins Phillip, and Dennis, and Lindsay. With second wife, Kathryn, Bing had three children: Harry , Nathaniel and Mary.

Bing's son Gary died of Lung Cancer in 1995. Sons Lindsay and Dennis both shot themselves: Lindsay in 1989 and Dennis in 1991.

Bing had many heartaches in his life. One was when his oldest son Gary wrote a book about Bing accusing him of being a "Daddy Dearest". His other children, Lindsay, Dennis and Mary were in conflict over the book.

Bing was married to Dixie Lee from September 29, 1930 until her death on November 1. 1952. Bing married Kathryn Grant on October 24, 1957. They were married until his death in 1977.

Bing's first recording was broadcast for 20 weeks in 1932 over national radio.

Bing credits his brother Everett for his beginning success. It was Everett who sent a copy of Bing's recording, "I Surrender, Dear," to the president of CBS.

In the beginning Bing studied law at Gonzaga University in Spokane, but Bing found himself gravitating to the love of playing drums and singing, and joined a local band. Bing dropped out of school in 1925, during his senior year, two months before graduating from Gonzaga when his band left Spokane for Los Angeles to pursue a career in music.

Bing's parents were named Harry Lowe and Kate Harringan Crosby.

Bing had 6 siblings and he was the fourth born of them.

Bing has 2 other names, nicknames as they were, that his friends referred to him by. They were Der Bingle and The Old Groaner.