Festival to celebrate Crosby

One of Spokane’s most famous sons is getting his own annual event, now that he has his own theater.

The city hasn’t made a big deal over Bing Crosby until recently, even though it’s believed he’s the most recorded voice in history and helped shape American entertainment. Gonzaga University – where Bing attended law school until he dropped out two months before graduation – has had tributes to the crooner for years. Bing’s boyhood home is the school’s alumni center, and there is a statue of him sometimes with his pipe, sometimes without, on the school’s campus.

Last year, the old Metropolitan Theatre was officially christened as the Bing Crosby Theater, 901 W. Sprague Ave., which was a nice fit, since he used to perform there during his early career when it was known as the Clemmer Theater.

The celebration of that dedication included a film festival, and Crosby’s widow, Kathryn, spoke about her life with Bing.

The Advocates for the Bing Crosby Theater have decided to make the festival an annual event. If you’ve ever wanted to see the “Bells of St. Mary’s” or “White Christmas” on the big screen, this is your chance.

This year’s Bing Crosby Holiday Film Festival will be held Friday starting at 10 a.m. in the theater.

Bill Stimson, chair of the Advocates and a journalism professor at Eastern Washington University, said that seeing those films in the old movie house is much like a trip through time – for a couple of hours you are back in the 1930s or 40s or 50s.

The group managed to raise the money to change the name of the theater, but they are still active in keeping Bing’s memory alive.

“There are still a lot of things to be done,” Stimson said.

The group was recently decorating the theater for Christmas.

Many of the classic Christmas songs that are played were sung by Bing, and it just wouldn’t feel like Christmas without him.

“Everyone in the world knows the ‘White Christmas’ song,” Stimson said.

The event will also provide the opportunity to honor veterans of World War II. The festival will be held on the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, and since the plot of the movie “White Christmas,” revolves around a couple of soldiers trying to help their former commanding general save his failing Vermont inn.

Before the 7 p.m. screening of the movie, there will be a salute to Bing and America’s veterans.

In fact, Crosby was known during his lifetime of a major supporter of the military. Yank Magazine once named him as the person who supported the troops more than anyone else in the years surrounding the war.

School children from St. Mary’s Catholic School will also attend the festival to see the movie, “The Bells of St. Mary’s,” and learn about Bing’s music and films.

The Advocates for the Bing Crosby Theater will also record oral histories of Bing. Anyone with a memory of Bing can come down and talk to interviewers about him.

There will also be a performance by the Big Bing Theory, a singing group from Gonzaga which will sing classic Bing Crosby holiday tunes.

Another highlight of the event will be a talk and book signing by Bing’s niece, Carolyn Schneider, the author of the book, “Me and Uncle Bing.”

Bing took Schneider, the daughter of Bing’s sister Rose Mary, under his wing when she became a single mother. He even paid for her college education.

Stimson, who grew up near Bing’s old neighborhood, became interested in Crosby’s history after listening to his mother’s stories about him.

He hopes that someday, Spokane will celebrate Bing much like Hoboken, N.J., celebrates its famous son, Frank Sinatra. He said there are many streets, restaurants and shops named for Old Blue Eyes, and he would like to see Spokane pay tribute to Bing in the same way, since Crosby made such an impact on American culture.

He was one of the first teen idols, before Elvis and before the Beatles. He appeared in more than 80 films.

“I haven’t seen probably most of them,” Stimson said.

He also invested in companies that were developing the technology of recording music on tape and was one of the first radio performers to pre-record his shows.

The Advocates have decided to make this a yearly event, and hope in the future to show more of his films.