Home must have seemed far away to French soldiers listening to Bing Crosby sing “White Christmas” in December 1944.
The legendary singer, who first sang this song that reminded him of the snowy Christmases of his childhood, once told his nephew Howard Crosby that he sang “White Christmas” in front of teary-eyed troops before the Battle of the Bulge. He said it was the most painful moment of his life. professional life.
“I once asked Uncle Bing, 'What's the most difficult thing you've ever done in your career?' One day we were out playing golf, and he said, 'What's the most difficult thing you've ever done in your career?' I didn't know what it was,” Howard told FOX News Digital. “I didn't know if he was going to say, 'Well, it was to learn lines for a movie or to work with a difficult director.'”
“He didn't have to think about it at all. He said, '1944, the USO troupe is over,'” he continued. And he said, “We held an open-air concert in an open-air square in France for 15,000 GIs and British Tommys.”
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Bing Crosby once told his nephew Howard Crosby that the most painful moment in his professional life was singing “White Christmas” to teary-eyed troops before the Battle of the Bulge. (Getty Images)
His uncle said Dinah Shore and the Andrews Sisters were at the show, “and we laughed a lot and the kids had a great time and had a lot of fun.” But at the end of the show he said, “I had to sing 'White Christmas' and I had to go through it with 15,000 men in tears. And I had to keep myself from disbanding.”
“And many of those boys died in the Battle of the Bulge the following week,” Howard added.
WATCH: Bing Crosby said singing 'White Christmas' in front of World War II troops in 1944 was the most difficult moment of his career
He said his uncle loved entertaining service members and considered it a patriotic duty.
The “High Society” star once tried to join the military, but was told he was too old.
Howard said that Gen. George C. Marshall, then the Army Chief of Staff, told him, “Listen, Bing, we don't need you on the front lines. We want you to raise money for the war effort.'' He said that he had suffered. ”So I think he saw it as a patriotic duty and I think he had a special affinity for the boys we were serving. ”
Howard said Bing refused to wear a wig when he performed for troops.
“”[W]There were lots of laughs and the boys had a great time and had a lot of fun. “But at the end of the show, he said, “I got to sing 'White Christmas.' And I had to go through this song with 15,000 men in tears, but I didn't tear myself down. ”
“He hated it,” he said. “He called it a scalp doily, and he never wore it unless absolutely necessary. But he said, 'If you're entertaining troops, don't wear something as fake as a wig.' Forget it.'' So he went on stage without a military wig, but the front row of the show was reserved for enlisted men, and only officers and seniors sat in the front row. He claimed not to.
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Bing Crosby performs in New York after returning from a military tour of England and France in 1944. (Getty Images)
WATCH: Bing Crosby felt it was his 'patriotic duty' to entertain troops at USO
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Starr's story of singing in front of troops echoes the opening scene of the 1954 film White Christmas, in which Crosby, playing a soldier, sings in front of the troops on Christmas Eve in 1944, exhausted while listening to explosions. Sing this song for your friends.
The film, starring Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen, celebrates its 70th anniversary this year and will be briefly re-released in select theaters this month.
The song that gave the film its title was originally released in 1942, and Crosby sang it on “Holiday Inn.”
Howard said his uncle knew the song would be an instant hit, even if songwriter Irving Berlin didn't.
He told Fox News Digital that Berlin has performed songs written for 1942's “Holiday Inn,” including “Easter Parade,” “I've Got Plenty to Be Thankful For,” and “Song of Freedom.” He said that when he was considering all of the holiday songs, everyone thought it was his song. The Valentine's Day song “Be Careful It's My Heart” will be a huge hit.
“But when they became “White Christmas,'' and Irving Berlin played it, Bing probably told him — because Irving didn't care if the song was successful or not, he didn't want people to like it. 'Cause I was always so nervous about whether I was going to get it or not — apparently Bing told him, 'Don.''' Don't worry about that, Irving, the song will work. ”
Bing Crosby signs autographs for American infantry in France, circa 1944. (COBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
Of course, not even Bing Crosby could have imagined that this song would become the best-selling single of all time.
Howard said the song was “very well written.”
“It's a great song. It doesn't have a very wide range, so you think everyone can sing it, right?” Howard, who is also a singer, said his voice is a lot like his uncle's. “It's not like 'The Star-Spangled Banner,' where no one can sing it, right? And in Bing's version, you know, he had a very rich baritone. And in the lower notes, what he called the money notes. He said, as you know, if you can sing well in the bass, you can earn a lot of money.
Crosby certainly made his fortune with his rich baritone, but Howard said it was never important to him.
Howard said Crosby was a devout Catholic who went to Mass every day with his mother as a child, and even sang religious songs like “Silent Night” and “Holy Night” for money. He never refused to accept it.
The “Going My Way” star was also humble and preferred hanging out with ordinary people rather than the rich and famous.
“He was much more comfortable with caddies and bellboys and waiters than with society people,” he said. “He was very, very uncomfortable with people fawning over him and treating him like he was some kind of celebrity or something. And he didn't have an entourage.”
Bing Crosby appears in press shots for the movie “White Christmas” (George Linhart/Corbis via Getty Images)
The star also enjoyed receiving “backhanded compliments,” Howard revealed, recalling the time his uncle played his records.
“He said, 'Hey, Howard, have you heard that record?' And I said, 'Yes, I did.' He said, “So, what did you think?” Of course, I thought it was really great, and it was really great in every way, but I knew better than to tell him, “Well, as an old man who's way beyond him.'' I did. Prime, it wasn't half bad. And he laughed. He liked backhanded compliments. But if I came out loud, he couldn't accept that. It made him very uncomfortable. ”
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Crosby had ranches in Northern California, Elko, Nevada, and Baja California, where he was able to get away from Hollywood and enjoy the outdoors.
Howard noted that he was also incredibly generous.
Around 1942, entertainers Bob Hope and Bing Crosby performed for the U.S. military on a USO tour. (Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images)
Howard said he first played golf with his uncle when he was about 15 years old, and Crosby gave him a sand wedge, which he still keeps in his golf bag.
He recalled a time they went golfing together, and Crosby asked if any caddies played well when no one else was on the course. So he and his uncle teamed up to play against two people while the other two caddied for them.
“We're playing for 10 cents a point. The other two caddies carry the bags,” he explained. “And it all ended on the 18th. I think we beat them for about 40 cents apiece. So we collected the 10 cents and Bing gave everyone a $100 bill as a tip. The two people who played, The two people who carried it. But I thought To me at the time, there were hundreds of rich and famous people here in Pebble Beach who would cut their teeth to become the other two members of that quartet, and Bing was 20 years old. I went to pick up a couple. It was typical that a caddy joined our group. ”
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Howard said Crosby was very humble and told Barbara Walters in an interview several months before his death that he didn't think he would leave anything behind.
“And she said, 'Well, you're clearly one of the greatest popular singers of all time, definitely a male vocalist.' 'No, Barbara, no, there's no better singer than me. There’s a lot of them,” Howard reportedly told Crosby. “But, you know, he couldn't stand the idea of being admired. So he never thought he could leave any legacy behind. And he said, 'You know what? People will just forget about me.'' After I'm gone for a few years, no one will remember what I did.''
Bing Crosby's nephew said he was very humble and “didn't feel comfortable” being treated like a celebrity. (Jean Lester/Getty Images)
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Howard said he recently saw his uncle reach No. 1 on iTunes' worldwide singles chart, ahead of stars such as Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga, and Crosby said he has enjoyed success years after his uncle's death. He said he believed he would be completely shocked to see him continue.
“He would be stunned if he believed that his song would be number one in the second week of December 2024. He would be completely stunned. He could never have imagined that. .”
