Bing Crosby

Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian and actor. The first multimedia star, Crosby was a leader in record sales, radio ratings, and motion picture grosses from 1930 to 1954. He made over seventy feature films and has sold 1 billion records world wide.

• My two sons, Harry and Nathaniel, my father and my father-in-law and many of my friends idolized Roberto Clemente and so did I. I called him a double superstar.
  • As quoted in “Bing Crosby: He Was Always a Pirate Fan” by Les Biederman, in Baseball Digest (April 1978), p. 91

• He was the only musician who ever lived, who can't be replaced by someone.
  • On Louis Armstrong, as quoted in The Big Band Almanac (1989) by Leo Walker, p. 12

Pop Chronicles Interviews #133, interviewed by John Gilliland recorded 1971 July 8.

• [Crooning] started with Vallee, Rudy Vallée, didn't it? ... I was glad to be classified [as] anything, just to be working.

• [ Frank Sinatra was] another singer, and a good one.

• Cole Porter, he never missed, that fellow.

• I don't think I ever did pick a hit song, unless it was "Sweet Leilani". ... Some of the songs that Jack [Kapp] picked didn't work, but 99% of them did.

• I just played Bing Crosby. ... Sometimes I had a priest's collar; sometimes I dressed some way else.

• Louis Armstrong ... was marvelous to be with. He had tremendous warmth, appeal. And I idolized him, not only for how great he was singing and playing, but for himself. ... I used to get postcards from him [from] all over the world. ... He went to every accessible place in the world.

• Encyclopedic article on Bing Crosby on Wikipedia
• Media related to Bing Crosby on Wikimedia Commons
• Official website