Bing Crosby American film actor and singer Date of Birth: 03.05.1903 Country: USA

Biography of Bing Crosby

Bing Crosby was an American actor and singer who gained his nickname as a child for his hobby of collecting newspaper and magazine clippings (Bingo is a variety of lotto). He first started performing as a vocalist and drummer with a school jazz band. While he was a university student, he sang in a duet with his friend Al Rinker, whose sister, Mildred Bailey, helped them find work in nightclubs. As part of this duet, they traveled along the Pacific coast and gained some recognition.

At the suggestion of Paul Whiteman, Crosby organized the vocal trio Rhythm Boys (with Al Rinker and Harry Barris) and soon became a regular participant in Whiteman's concert ventures (1926-1930). The success of the ensemble was aided by recordings (Mississippi Mud, I'm Coming Virginia) and their appearance in the movie "The King Of Jazz" about the Whiteman Orchestra (1930), which marked the beginning of Crosby's career as a solo singer and actor. By the end of the 1920s, he had developed a unique individual style of crooning, which made him immensely popular with a wide audience.

Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Crosby regularly and consistently recorded hit records, performed on radio and television, and appeared in movies (such as "The Birth of the Blues" in 1941 with Jack Teagarden, "Holiday Inn" in 1942 and "Blue Skies" in 1946 with Fred Astaire, "High Society" in 1956, and more). He also collaborated closely with many American entertainment stars, such as Al Jolson, Connie Boswell, Dinah Shore, Judy Garland, Louis Armstrong, and Bob Hope, as well as jazz musicians including his brother, bandleader and vocalist Bob Crosby, Bix Beiderbecke, Count Basie, and more. In 1953, he published his autobiography "Call Me Lucky."

By the mid-1960s, Crosby had reduced his concert activities and focused more on individual studio work. By the end of that decade, his stardom gradually faded, although he occasionally made recordings that sold well. He dedicated most of his time to playing golf. While playing golf, he suffered a heart attack, which ultimately led to his death in a suburb of Madrid. Crosby left behind a multitude of recordings, including collaborations with Paul Whiteman's orchestra, the Mills Brothers, Frank Sinatra, Hoagy Carmichael, Judy Garland, Rosemary Clooney, and more. He also collaborated with jazz musicians such as Bix Beiderbecke, Eddie Condon, and Count Basie, among others.

Bing Crosby was a highly significant figure in American popular music and the music film industry. He influenced songwriting trends for several decades (1930s-1950s) and his charm, sincerity, and openness attracted a broad audience. His vocal style was uniquely individual and gradually became a standard in American popular music, spawning numerous imitators. Some of his best-selling songs include Pennies From Heaven, Blue Skies, White Christmas, The Bells Of St Mary's, Moonlight Becomes You, Love In Bloom, How Deep Is The Ocean, The Blue Of The Night, Temptation, as well as his own compositions A Ghost of a Chance and When the Blue of the Night. As one of the first crooner singers, he can be considered one of the pioneers of the American popular music culture and the vocal performance style associated with intimate and lyrical singing, cantabile melodies, softened swing rhythms, and a transparent orchestral sound with the typical use of a "singing" string section (sweet sound). The influence of this style on all spheres of American music (popular, jazz, symphonic) is evident. In turn, thanks to Crosby's close collaborations with jazz musicians, he brought various elements of jazz stylistics into popular music (which many popular singers in the US and Europe later followed), opening new possibilities for its development and renewal.