Bing Crosby was the fourth of seven children of Tacoma, Washington, brewery bookkeeper Harry Lowe Crosby and Kate Harrigan Crosby. He studied law at Gonzaga University in Spokane but was more interested in playing the drums and singing with a local band. Bing and the band's piano player, Al Rinker, left Spokane for Los Angeles in 1925. In the early 1930s Bing's brother Everett sent a record of Bing singing "I Surrender, Dear" to the president of CBS. His live performances from New York were carried over the national radio network for 20 consecutive weeks in 1932. His radio success led Paramount Pictures to include him in The Big Broadcast, a film featuring radio favorites. His songs about not needing a bundle of money to make life happy was the right message for the decade of the Great Depression. His relaxed, low-key style carried over into the series of "Road" comedies he made with pal Bob Hope. He won the best actor Oscar for playing an easygoing priest in Going My Way. He showed that he was indeed an actor as well as a performer when he played an alcoholic actor down on his luck opposite Grace Kelly in The Country Girl. Playing golf was what he liked to do best. He died at age 74 playing golf at a course outside Madrid, Spain, after completing a tour of England that had included a sold-out engagement at the London Palladium.
My Favorite Brunette (1947): $25,000

His eldest son Gary Crosby was vocal in criticizing his violent ways as a father. He wrote a sensationalist tell-all biography entitled "Going My Own Way" in 1983 which was touted as a "Daddy Dearest" about Bing. Though Lindsay and Dennis agreed with many of Gary's criticisms of their father, Philip defended Bing after the book was published. Two of the sons suffered bouts of depression throughout their lives and shot themselves in the head (Lindsay Crosby and Dennis Crosby, in 1989 and 1991, respectively). Gary Crosby died of lung cancer in 1995. Phillip Crosby died of a heart attack in 2004, having defended his father to the end. Bing's children from his second marriage, including daughter and actress Mary Crosby , praised him as a kind/loving father in later life. It is believed Bing's regret over the way he treated his first wife and children, and his regret over the affair with Grace Kelly, encouraged him to be a better father to the children from his second marriage. Father, with singer Dixie Lee, of sons Gary Crosby, Phillip Crosby & Dennis Crosby (twins) and Lindsay Crosby. Father, with actress Kathryn Grant, of sons Harry Crosby and Nathaniel Crosby, and of actress Mary Crosby. Grandfather of Denise Crosby Brother of bandleader Bob Crosby. His large ears were pinned back during his early films, until partway through She Loves Me Not. From the 1940s to the 1960s, owned 15 percent of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team. His cameo in Angels in the Outfield was as part- owner of the team. Three things about Bing were frequent sources of jokes in Hollywood: His inability to sire a daughter, prior to the birth of Mary Crosby; his investment in racehorses that rarely won; and his rather bad, almost colorblind, taste in casual clothes. These jokes often made their way into radio and TV shows, movies and, most often, into the comedy routines of Bob Hope. Interred at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California, USA, in the Grotto section, L119, #1. Left a clause in his will stating that his sons could not collect their inheritance money until they were in their 80s. They had already been amply taken care of by a trust fund set up by their mother, Dixie Lee. All four sons continued to collect monies from that fund until their deaths. Was nicknamed "Bing" after a character named "Bingo" in a comic strip titled "Bingville Bugle." Was the first choice of "Columbo" creators Richard Levinson and William Link to portray the famed detective. Opened the Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, California in 1937 and collected tickets at the turnstile on opening day. Before the start of every day of racing his song "Where the Turf Meets the Surf" is played. This song was written for Del Mar and never sold commercially. Inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1998. He was the 20th century's first multi-media entertainer: a star on radio, in movies and in chart-topping recordings. He had 38 No. 1 singles, which surpassed even Elvis Presley and The Beatles. When he married his first wife actress/singer Dixie Lee in 1930, her fame at the time was greater than his. One headline actually read: "Well Known Fox Movie Star Marries Bing Croveny." Dixie eventually retired to raise four sons. One of his early inspirations was Louis Armstrong, who returned the admiration. Louis once described Bing's mellow voice as "like gold being poured out of a cup." Sang on radio at least once a week from 1931 to 1962. As a young adult he enjoyed carousing and drinking and actually received another nickname: "Binge" Crosby. He once spent two months in jail for DUI after a minor car accident, and surprised and shocked interviewers by advocating that pot be decriminalized. The balding actor hated having to wear a toupee during filming and specifically looked for scripts that had outdoor scenes where he could wear a hat or bed scenes in which he could wear a nightcap. For more than 20 years he was part owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team. "White Christmas" became the bestselling single for more than 50 years until overtaken in 1997 by "Candle in the Wind", Elton John's tribute to the late Princess Diana. During the Vietnam War, a secret code was to have been broadcast informing all US personnel that an immediate evacuation had been ordered. The code was the playing of Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" twice on the Armed Forces Vietnam Network (AFVN), followed by the announcement "The temperature in Hanoi is 105 and rising." Star of NBC Radio's "Kraft Music Hall" (1935-1946). Star of ABC Radio's "Philco Radio Time" (1946-1949). Star of CBS Radio's "The Bing Crosby Show" (1954-1956). In March of 1950, he had his appendix removed. Star of CBS Radio's "The Bing Crosby Chesterfield Show" (1949-1952). When Chesterfield left, General Electric took over as sponsor for 1953 and 1954. Refused the role of Columbo due to the fact that he felt that it would interfere with his golf game. He and his second wife and younger children did TV commercials for Minute Maid orange juice, because he owned the company. On October 13, 1977, the day before Crosby's death, independent producer Lord Lew Grade announced that he was reuniting Crosby, 'Bob Hope' and Dorothy Lamour onscreen for the film "The Road to the Fountain of Youth," ending several years of speculation at to whether the trio would reunite professionally or not. Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith, pg. 122-124. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387 Phil Crosby, Jr., Bing's grandson, formed a jazz quartet in the Los Angeles area and is bringing a semi-resurgence of interest in Bing and his music. Grandfather of L. Chip Crosby Jr. Through the electronics lab he funded, he was heavily involved in the initial development of both audio and video tape recording in the late '40s and early '50s, primarily for use on his own TV and radio projects. One of the very first commercial uses of audio tape in the USA, in fact, was the recording and editing of his radio program on the ABC network around 1946-48. His early videotape format, however, was quickly obscured by Ampex's industry-standard Quadruplex format. The first performer to receive Oscar nominations for the same role in two different films: as Father Chuck O'Malley in "Going My Way (1944 - he won) and again in "The Bells of St. Mary's" (1945). From 1944 to 1948, he was five times the #1 top money-making star at the box office in Quigley Publications annual poll of movie exhibitors, a record later equalled by Burt Reynolds and then surpassed by Tom Cruise, who has been #1 six times. Clint Eastwood alsp has been #1 five times. Pictured on a 29 cent U.S. commemorative postage stamp in the "Legends of American Music" series, issued September 1st 1994. Became seriously ill around Christmas 1973, with chest pains and respiratory problems. Both Bing and Kathryn thought he had lung cancer. In January 1974, he felt so ill he consented to be hospitalized, where a large benign tumor was found in his left lung. The tumor and three-fifths of the lung were removed, and over the next months he slowly recovered. At the time of his death in 1977, he was the biggest selling recording artist of all time. Uncle of Chris Crosby and Cathy Crosby He is only one of four actors to be nominated for an Oscar twice for playing the same role in two separate films. He played Father O'Malley in Going My Way and The Bells of St. Mary's. The others are Paul Newman as Fast Eddie Felson in The Hustler and The Color of Money, Peter O'Toole as Henry II in Becket and The Lion in Winter and Al Pacino as Michael Corleone for The Godfather and The Godfather: Part II His mother was of Irish and Finnish descent, while his father's family was English. Until the late 1970s he had been listed in the Guinness Book Of World Records as having sold more recordings than any other entertainer. Is one of only five actors/actresses to have a number one single and an Oscar for best actor/actress. The others are Barbara Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Cher and Jamie Foxx. He received 23 gold records and was awarded platinum discs for his two biggest selling singles, "White Christmas" in 1960 and "Silent Night" in 1970. According to the Guinness Book of Records, Crosby's White Christmas has "sold over 100 million copies around the world, with at least 50 million sales as singles." According to ticket sales Crosby is, at 1,077,900,000 tickets sold, the third most popular actor of all-time after Clark Gable and John Wayne. He is also, according to Quigley Publishing Company's International Motion Picture Almanac, tied for second on the "All Time Number One Stars List" with three other actors - Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks and Burt Reynolds. Crosby was the number one box office attraction for five years, beaten only by Tom Cruise who was number one for seven years. In 1960 he received a platinum record as First Citizen of the Record Industry for having sold 200 million discs, a number that doubled by 1980. Between 1915 and 1980 he was the only motion-picture star to rank as the number one box-office attraction five times (1944-48). Between 1934 and 1954 he scored in the top ten fifteen times. On the day of his death, Bing played a full eighteen holes of golf, where he scored a respectable 85 and won the match. Walking off the eighteenth green of the La Moraleja Golf Club, in a suburb of Madrid, Crosby suffered a massive heart attack. His last words were reported as, "That was a great game of golf, fellas." However, according to the Summer 2001 issue of Club Crosby's BINGANG magazine, he then said, "Let's go have a Coca-Cola." He appeared on approximately 4,000 radio broadcasts, nearly 3,400 of them his own programs, and single-handedly changed radio from a live-performance to a canned or recorded medium by presenting, in 1946, the first transcribed network show on ABC, thereby making that also-ran network a major force. In a great many of his films, he played lighthearted comedy and musical roles as a singer or songwriter. His usual casual approach belied the fact that Crosby was a fine dramatic actor, as witnessed by his portrayals in Little Boy Lost, The Country Girl, Man on Fire, and his last major film Stagecoach. He also starred in the television movie Dr. Cook's Garden and won much critical acclaim for his performance. His last television appearance was in "Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas" which was taped in England and shown in the United States on 30 November 1977, and in the United Kingdom on 24 December 1977. This final show has also been made available on commercial video. He sang on 4,000 radio shows from 1931 to 1962 and was the top-rated radio star for eighteen of those years. A longtime supporter of the Republican Party, Crosby campaigned for Wendell Willkie in the 1940 Presidential election, because he strongly believed President Franklin Delano Roosevelt should only serve two terms of office. When Roosevelt was easily re-elected, Crosby vowed never to become publicly involved in partisan politics again. Mary Carlisle, who worked with him in films, noticed he was self-conscious about his height, and he wore lifts. Crosby once told Alan Ladd how pleased he was that Ladd was shorter than him at 5'5". Bing maintained he was 5'9", but an office secretary named Nancy Briggs, recalled a visit to his home when he wore slippers and she realized he was her height - 5'7". He is estimated to have sold more than 500 million albums worldwide. In 1962 Crosby was the first recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Is one of only five actors/actresses to have both a number one single and an Oscar for acting. The others are Frank Sinatra, Cher, Jamie Foxx, and Barbra Streisand. Was the first person to sing "White Christmas". Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1978. Delayed his marriage to Kathryn Grant until 1957 due to his long affair with Grace Kelly. Four songs Crosby sang in movies - "Sweet Leilani" (1937), "White Christmas" (1942), "Swinging on a Star" (1944), and "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" (1951) - won Oscars.