100 years ago today in Coeur d’Alene: Boy killed by groom in wedding night tragedy

A charivari (also called shivaree) party turned tragic in Coeur d’Alene.

A shivaree is defined as a noisy mock serenade performed by a group to celebrate a marriage. It usually involved standing outside the window of a just-married couple and chanting or singing.

In this case, a group of 16 boys age 15 to 20 stood outside of the home of Henry Voss, 20, at about 9 p.m. He had just married Evelyn Kast, 17.

Henry Voss “resented the attentions of the boys and came out on the front porch to drive them away.” To emphasize the point, he fired one shot from a .38 into the ground. Then he “went back into the house and to bed.”

Shortly before 10 p.m., the boys returned. Voss, ”lying in bed, fired another shot through an open window.”

The bullet struck Glen Miles, 16, in the right temple. He was carried into the Voss home and placed on a couch. Then he was taken to the Coeur d’Alene hospital, where he died without regaining consciousness.

Voss gave himself up to police. He said it was an accident, and he fired merely to scare the boys. Voss was being held pending an investigation.

From the Crosby beat: The Spokane Daily Chronicle ran photos of 12 Gonzaga High School debaters who were set to clash in an “elocution” meet at the school.

One of the debaters exhibited a pair of distinctive big ears. The caption identified the big-eared kid as “Harry Crosby.” We know him today as Harry Lillis “Bing” Crosby.

Those ears would soon become legendary. When he first went to Hollywood, he was told that there was no future for him in the movies, because his ears stuck out too far. They even tried to glue his ears back with spirit gum.

He rebelled and insisted on letting his ears flap freely “like a taxi with two doors open.” He would go on to become Hollywood’s biggest draw.