Editing Bing Crosby (section)

===Success as a solo singer===
[[File:Bing Crosby - Modern Screen, September 1932.jpg|thumb|upright=.8|left|Crosby in 1932]]

On September 2, 1931, ''[[15 Minutes with Bing Crosby]]'', his nationwide solo radio debut, began broadcasting.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.radiohalloffame.com/bing-crosby |title=Bing Crosby |publisher=Radio Hall of Fame |access-date=September 2, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080923002631/http://www.radiohof.org/musicvariety/bingcrosby.html |archive-date=September 23, 2008}}</ref> The weekly broadcast made Crosby a hit.<ref name="kl">{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p3094/biography}}</ref> Before the end of the year, he {{clarify|text=signed|reason=separate recording contracts? or one recording and the other broadcasting?|date=February 2022}} with both [[Brunswick Records]] and [[CBS Radio]]. "[[Out of Nowhere (Johnny Green song)|Out of Nowhere]]", "Just One More Chance", "[[At Your Command]]", and "[[I Found a Million Dollar Baby (in a Five and Ten Cent Store)]]" were among the best-selling songs of 1931.<ref name="kl"/>

Ten of the top 50 songs of 1931 included Crosby with others or as a solo act. A "Battle of the Baritones" with singer [[Russ Columbo]] proved short-lived, replaced with the slogan "Bing Was King". Crosby played the lead in a series of [[I Surrender Dear (1931 film)|musical comedy short films]] for Mack Sennett, signed with Paramount, and starred in his first full-length film, 1932's ''[[The Big Broadcast]]'' (1932), the first of 55 films in which he received top billing. Crosby would appear in almost 80 pictures. He signed a contract with [[Jack Kapp]]'s new record company, [[Decca Records|Decca]], in late 1934.

Crosby's first commercial sponsor on radio was [[15 Minutes with Bing Crosby#Bing Crosby – The Cremo Singer|Cremo Cigars]] and his fame spread nationwide. After a long run in New York, Crosby went back to Hollywood to film ''[[The Big Broadcast]]''. His appearances, records, and radio work substantially increased his impact. The success of his first film brought Crosby a contract with Paramount, and he began a pattern of making three films a year. Crosby led his radio show for Woodbury Soap for two seasons while his live appearances dwindled. Crosby's records produced hits during the Depression when sales were down. Audio engineer [[Steve Hoffman (audio engineer)|Steve Hoffman]] stated, "By the way, Bing actually saved the record business in 1934 when he agreed to support Decca founder Jack Kapp's crazy idea of lowering the price of singles from a dollar to 35 cents and getting a royalty for records sold instead of a flat fee. Bing's name and his artistry saved the recording industry. All the other artists signed to Decca after Bing did. Without him, Jack Kapp wouldn't have had a chance in hell of making Decca work and the Great Depression would have wiped out phonograph records for good."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/bing-crosby-bing-his-legendary-years-hows-the-sound.153459/ |title=Bing Crosby- Bing! His Legendary Years How's the sound? &#124; Steve Hoffman Music Forums |website=Forums.stevehoffman.tv |access-date=November 19, 2016}}</ref>

His first son [[Gary Crosby (actor)|Gary]] was born in 1933 with twin boys following in 1934. By 1936, Crosby replaced his former boss, Paul Whiteman, as host of the weekly NBC radio program ''[[Kraft Music Hall]]'', where he remained for the next decade. "[[Where the Blue of the Night (Meets the Gold of the Day)]]", with his trademark whistling, became his theme song and signature tune.

Crosby's vocal style helped take popular singing beyond the "[[belt (music)|belting]]" associated with [[Al Jolson]] and [[Billy Murray (singer)|Billy Murray]], who had been obligated to reach the back seats in New York theaters without the aid of a microphone. As music critic [[Henry Pleasants (music critic)|Henry Pleasants]] noted in ''The Great American Popular Singers'', something new had entered American music, a style that might be called "singing in American" with conversational ease. This new sound led to the popular epithet ''[[crooner]]''.

Crosby admired [[Louis Armstrong]] for his musical ability, and the trumpet maestro was a formative influence on Crosby's singing style. When the two met, they became friends. In 1936, Crosby exercised an option in his Paramount contract to regularly star in an out-of-house film. Signing an agreement with [[Columbia Pictures|Columbia]] for a single motion picture, Crosby wanted Armstrong to appear in a screen adaptation of ''The Peacock Feather'' that eventually became ''[[Pennies from Heaven (1936 film)|Pennies from Heaven]]''. Crosby asked [[Harry Cohn]], but Cohn had no desire to pay for the flight or to meet Armstrong's "crude, mob-linked but devoted manager, [[Joe Glaser]]". Crosby threatened to leave the film and refused to discuss the matter. Cohn gave in; Armstrong's musical scenes and comic dialogue extended his influence to the silver screen, creating more opportunities for him and other African Americans to appear in future films. Crosby also ensured behind the scenes that Armstrong received equal billing with his white co-stars. Armstrong appreciated Crosby's progressive attitudes on race, and often expressed gratitude for the role in later years.<ref name="Pennies">{{cite web |title=Pennies from Heaven (1936) |url=https://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/111410 |website=Turner Classic Movies |access-date=July 5, 2018}}</ref>

During [[World War II]], Crosby made live appearances before American troops who had been fighting in the [[European Theater of Operations|European Theater]]. He learned how to pronounce German from written scripts and read propaganda broadcasts intended for German forces. The nickname "Der Bingle" was common among Crosby's German listeners and came to be used by his English-speaking fans. In a poll of U.S. troops at the close of World War II, Crosby topped the list as the person who had done the most for G.I. morale, ahead of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], General [[Dwight Eisenhower]], and [[Bob Hope]].

The June 18, 1945, issue of ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' magazine stated, "America's number one star, Bing Crosby, has won more fans, made more money than any entertainer in history. Today he is a kind of national institution."<ref name="Barnett">{{cite web |last1=Barnett |first1=Lincoln |title=Bing Inc. |url=http://stevenlewis.info/crosby/LIFE%20OVERSEAS6-18-45.htm |website=Stevenlewis.info |access-date=July 5, 2018 |date=June 18, 1945}}</ref> "In all, 60,000,000 Crosby discs have been marketed since he made his first record in 1931. His biggest best seller is 'White Christmas', 2,000,000 impressions of which have been sold in the U.S. and 250,000 in Great Britain."<ref name="Barnett"/> "Nine out of ten singers and bandleaders listen to Crosby's broadcasts each Thursday night and follow his lead. The day after he sings a song over the air—any song—some 50,000 copies of it are sold throughout the U.S. Time and again Crosby has taken some new or unknown ballad, has given it what is known in trade circles as the 'big goose' and made it a hit single-handed and overnight{{nbsp}}... Precisely what the future holds for Crosby neither his family nor his friends can conjecture. He has achieved greater popularity, made more money, attracted vaster audiences than any other entertainer in history. And his star is still in the ascendant. His contract with Decca runs until 1955. His contract with Paramount runs until 1954. Records which he made ten years ago are selling better than ever before. The nation's appetite for Crosby's voice and personality appears insatiable. To soldiers overseas and to foreigners he has become a kind of symbol of America, of the amiable, humorous citizen of a free land. Crosby, however, seldom bothers to contemplate his future. For one thing, he enjoys hearing himself sing, and if ever a day should dawn when the public wearies of him, he will complacently go right on singing—to himself."<ref name="Barnett"/><ref name="Inc1945">{{cite book |author=Time Inc |title=Life |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dUgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA17 |access-date=November 19, 2016 |date=June 18, 1945 |pages=17–}}</ref>

====White Christmas====
{{Main|White Christmas (song)}}

[[File:Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye in White Christmas trailer.jpg|upright|thumb|''[[White Christmas (film)|White Christmas]]'' (1954)]]

The biggest hit song of Crosby's career was his recording of [[Irving Berlin]]'s "[[White Christmas (song)|White Christmas]]", which Crosby introduced on a Christmas Day radio broadcast in 1941. A copy of the recording from the radio program is owned by the estate of Bing Crosby and was loaned to ''[[CBS Sunday Morning]]'' for their December 25, 2011, program. The song appeared in his films ''[[Holiday Inn (film)|Holiday Inn]]'' (1942), and—a decade later—in ''White Christmas'' (1954). Crosby's record hit the charts on October 3, 1942, and rose to number 1 on October 31, where it stayed for 11 weeks. A holiday perennial, the song was repeatedly re-released by Decca, charting another 16 times. It topped the charts again in 1945 and a third time in January 1947. The song remains the bestselling single of all time.<ref name="kl"/> Crosby's recording of "White Christmas" has sold over 50 million copies worldwide. His recording was so popular that Crosby was obliged to re-record it in 1947 using the same musicians and backup singers; the original 1942 master had become damaged due to its frequent use in pressing additional singles. In 1977, after Crosby died, the song was re-released and reached No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart.<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book |title=British Hit Singles & Albums |publisher=Guinness |isbn=1-904994-00-8 |page=126 |edition=2005 |date=May 2005}}</ref> Crosby was dismissive of his role in the song's success, saying "a jackdaw with a cleft palate could have sung it successfully".<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/66577714/bing-crosby/ Radio & TV] York Daily Record. December 19, 1958. p. 56.</ref>