posted 04/23/06 10:16 AM Central Time (US)     contact the author directly

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Bing is mentioned quite extensively in Peggy's Autobiography, "Miss Peggy Lee ~ An Autobiography", published in 1991. On Page 125 she writes:

"By now my work with Bing and Durante was going full force, and my love for them both brightened my life. Years earlier I had literally saved pennies to go see Bing's movies. Tears rolled down my cheeks if the leading lady didn't treat him right. In the film "Mississippi" I was emotionally spent when the brokenhearted Bing sang "Down By The River"

Through the several years I sang on Bing's program, I met the most fantastic stars, like Al Jolson, whom I also sang with, and Bing was always finding ways to help give me confidence. In fact, everyone connected with him was funny and nice and talented.

Bing and I were always the first to arrive for rehearsals -- that was something that always impressed me, his promptness. And I always felt you could count on his honesty. Bing maintained a certain modesty, even diffidence, about himself, although he didn't wear it on his sleeve. I remember his saying, "I wish I could really make something of my life...". That amazed me, that he could feel so humble. I tried, in a stumbling sort of way, to tell him what the world thought of him, but I don't think I ever convinced him.

...one evening in San Francisco, Bing asked me to go to dinner with him.

For dinner he took me to one of San Francisco's great restaurants, during which I told him about my emotional experience with his movies, especially "Mississippi" when he sang "Down By The River". We then cruised all over that wonderful city until we found a pianist who could play the song in Bing's key, and he actually sang it to me at our table. Once again, all those years later, the tears rolled. A whole river of them....

Bing was also so protective of me. Once he found me standing rigid outside the studio at NBC and asked what he could do to help me. He was so sensitive to my early days of nerves and self-consciousness. This was just before air time on one of Bing's many Kraft programs. I managed to say something like: "When you introduce me, would you please not leave me out there on the stage alone? Would you stand where I can see your feet?" He agreed and always sort of casually leaned on a speaker or piano to give me the support and time I needed to learn about being at ease onstage.

You have to love a man like that. He offered everything -- money, cars, his own blood, and even volunteered to personally babysit with our little daughter, Nicki, while David was so sick in the hospital.

The last time I saw Bing, we were both doing a benefit performance. It was beautiful, if brief. He called to me, "Hello, baby! So good to see you."

I was grateful I got to see him one more time.

Yes, once we walked alone, Bing -- down by the river...."

posted 04/24/06 08:54 AM Central Time (US)     contact the author directly

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A quote of Peggy´s admiration to Bing:

"He didn´t really know what great things his singing did for others or what a wonderful influence his personality had on people. There is a certain security just thinking about Bing."

Peggy told the story of Mississippi too to Gord Atkinson:

"Going out to dinner with Bing was really quite an occasion.He was always so punctual that I was determined to be totally ready and I probably started dressing in the morning, to be ready. However,on one occasion,as usual,he arrived on time. Just before the doorbell rang I thought I´d apply a little more hair spray. It turned out to be one of those horrible floral room deodorants.I had picked up the wrong spray can. I didn´t know what to do whether to put my head out of the window,jump or what!However,we went to dinner as planned and during the evening I told him about having seen the movie "Mississippi" where the girl had cheated on him rather shabbuly. The story really hurt me. I thought no one should ever treat Bing Crosby that way,not even in a movie. The song that he sang in the movie was "Down By The River" and so after dinner we were wandering around San Francisco looking in here and there. I didn´t realize he was keeping an eye out for a pianist who knew the song.Looking for some little unobtrussive place.Well he found one. After we had been sitting there for a while.he went over and spoke to the piano player.The pianist then played "Down By The River" and Bing sang it to me personally, can you imagine that kind of dream coming true? It was memorable."

About Peggy: "Like brandy, she gets better every year, one of the greatest magicians a good song could ever wish for."...and that´s really right!

posted 04/25/06 11:27 AM Central Time (US)     contact the author directly

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Must be the radio output and the duets not at least similiar with Miss Clooney.Bing and Rosie began their broadcast teamwork with a Chesterfield Show, following about 18 GE-Shows and about 24 Ford Road Shows and 675 Crosby-Clooney Shows +3 Christmas Sings? Certainly on the last two show serials the Buddy Cole numbers were prerecorded and were used many times again and again-but there must be a lot of duets.

Unfortunately Bing and Peggy recorded only 7 songs commercially (two of them were taken from their radio shows). Merry-Go-Runaround with Bob and Bing together have a great appeal with Peggy´s voice instead of Dorothy Lamour´s. On the other side the White Christmas soundtrack would be better with Rosie (but there was the difficulties with the record companies!). Some of my dreams are, that Peggy and Bing would have recorded at least one concept album in the late 50th or early 60th, when Peggy´s voice was on a peak and Bing´s bass-baritone was ever very fine when he have got the right inspiration. The other dreams are a duet LP with Ella and a late teamwork album with Rosie and Bing in his late "Sunset Years".

Curious it is that Peggy and Bing didn´t record Life Is So Peculiar that they sung together in Mr Music - The Andrews got this honour.

In When The World Was Young also Bing shows his fine talent for the French section. I ever like it when Bing sings chanson material (my personal favorite is Piaf´s If You Love Me, I Won´t Care - one of Bing´s peak songs of the early 50S!).