New book by Bing's niece

Me and Uncle Bing

NAME	MESSAGE
Malcolm Macfarlane, BING magazine	posted 10/04/05 03:45 AM Central Time (US) contact the author directly Carolyn Schneider (the daughter of Bing's sister, Mary Rose) was the star guest at the Leeds meeting recently and during her talk we learned that she has written a book. She showed us an advance copy of "Me and Uncle Bing" and it looks to be a very interesting book. There are over 100 photos.
Ben Weaver	posted 10/06/05 03:06 PM Central Time (US) contact the author directly I met Carolyn in April, 1991 at Tacoma, Washington when she attended the Bing Crosby Historical Society's 14th. Annual Tribute dinner as a guest. Carolyn attended the dinner with her daughter, Mollie. During the dinner Carolyn gave a most interesting talk about her relationship with her famous uncle. She also graciously answered several questions from the audience. I think her new book should be of interest to Bing's fans and I hope it does well.
Carolyn Schneider	posted 05/19/06 11:34 AM Central Time (US) contact the author directly I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who bought a copy of "Me and Uncle Bing". While it is not a great literary work of art, it seems to have renewed some pleasant memories for many people. Some Club members have even sent me a note saying "thank you" for writing the book. I have received many kind and positive remarks, a wonderful book review, and a couple of "bravos". Quite a few people sent me notes or e-mails saying: "I throughly enjoyed your book" and "it was a pleasure to read", "I found it immensely satisfying - warm hearted and entertaining", "I highly recommend it", and finally, "it brought a tear to my eye". It has all been very gratifying, thank you so much, and to those skeptics who think the book is fiction, or that I have ignored uncle Bing's shortcomings, I can only tell you about my own personal relationship with the man, as the title indicates.
Dave Duncan	posted 05/21/06 07:05 AM Central Time (US) contact the author directly Hi Carolyn. I can only say that I enjoyed being allowed to hear about your personal memories of your uncle Bing and if there is any criticism it would be that it wasn't longer or more detailed (I would have loved to hear more about the Academy Awards you went to etc!). The main point the book gets across clearly is what a caring and considerate man Bing was to the people he loved. It re-inforced the fact he didn't like or tolerate 'artificial people' but only responded to those who were genuine and weren't 'users'. It also showed how much he enjoyed his family - both immediate and extended - and regardless of his busy schedule, made time for them. Thanks for writing it and hope you have a lot of success with it. Cheers, Dave Duncan P.S. The only factual mistake I found (which I'm sure has already been pointed out to you) is with the song titles Bing recorded with Dixie. They were "A Fine Romance" and "The way you look tonight" not "Let's call the whole thing off" as mentioned. (Sorry - I shouldn't be so picky!)
Jim Kukura	posted 05/22/06 11:10 AM Central Time (US) no email address given I, too, have just finished my copy of "Me And Uncle Bing", and found it thoroughly enjoyable and informative. I can't wait until Father's Day to give my dad his copy. A wonderful side benefit are the stories and observations about Dixie Lee Crosby that have given more insight into this woman than I have ever had, and have been longing for for. I found Carolyn's deduction that most people who now have a low opinion of Bing, did not read Gary Crosby's book, but read or heard about the book. Someone in work recently mentioned to someone else that I was a big Bing Crosby fan. She responded, "Oh, the child and wife beater". Where did wife beater come from? That just goes to show you how these accusations get expanded with each retelling without any basis in fact. Of course, I quickly told her that she was the only person I had ever met, or read, that accused Bing of being a wife beater, including son, Gary. My only disappointment in "Me And Uncle Bing" was the quality of the photograph reproductions in the book. That not withstanding, I unreservedly recommend this book to any true Bing Crosby fan as a must have.
John Walton	posted 05/22/06 04:22 PM Central Time (US) contact the author directly Carolyn Schneider's book, 'Me and Uncle Bing' is a pleasing complement to 'Troubadour', Norman Wolfe's well researched, mainly objective examination of Bing's life and work. In contrast, Carolyn simply recalls her memories of an uncle for whom she clearly felt much affection. Through her stories, she does more to dispel the image of Bing the villain than any amount of rationale and debate could achieve. I found the book a very satisfying read and would strongly recommend it to anyone interested in discovering Bing's 'real personality'.
Arne	posted 05/22/06 05:13 PM Central Time (US) contact the author directly To the best of my knowledge, the "Wife-beater" rep came courtesy of Joan Rivers, during her talk-show period, who (with the usual sensitivity and care that she's become noted for) made the crack during one of her shows or monologues, and just tossed it off as if it was a "given". I don't know what happened to Rivers; she used to be a brilliant monologist in the 60s, along the lines of an early Woody Allen. Somewhere during the 80s she turned into something quite different, and Bing became one of her scatter-shot victims at that point. Carolyn - I loved your book! It's a delightful, poignant look at Bing and your whole family. Somehow, you HAVE to contact the folks at AMAZON and get them to arrange to have your book turn up during a search for books about Bing, as I'm sure it will increase your sales considerably! Right now, it doesn't come up when you search "Bing Crosby" in "books", while that Goran novel "Bing Crosby's Last Song" for instance, comes up, and THAT book isn't even about Bing! I hope you get that done, as it was really a very enjoyable read, and something that casual Crosby searchers on the internet shouldn't have to miss out on, just because of an AMAZON.COM glitch.
Sue Horn	posted 05/23/06 08:09 AM Central Time (US) contact the author directly Bill, isn't that a nice birthday to have! I share it with you, Bob, and President Kennedy as well. Nicest birthday I can remember is when I was in Ireland at a Bing-bash with Malcolm, Michael, George, Jane, and Mary, raising a toast to Bob and Bing in the Guinness factory inn Dublin. That was a Bingday birthday for me too.
Jane FitzGerald	posted 05/24/06 09:06 AM Central Time (US) contact the author directly Sue, That was a great half-birthday Bingday for Mary too - and brings back fond memories for me! A very happy upcoming birhday to you and Bill (and Bob who's probably with Bing right now)! Carolyn, I can only add my thanks to you for writing your book. I feel like I want to loan my copy to scores of people who still have misconceptions about Bing, the man. Bless you for sharing your memories.