From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Harry Lillis Bing Crosby Jr May 3 1903 October 14 1977 was an American singer comedian and actor The first multimedia star Crosby was a leader in record sales radio ratings and motion picture grosses from 1931 to 1954 His early career coincided with recording innovations that allowed him to develop an intimate singing style that influenced many male singers who followed him including Perry Como Frank Sinatra Dick Haymes and Dean Martin Yank magazine said that he was the person who had done the most for the morale of overseas servicemen during World War II In 1948 American polls declared him the most admired man alive ahead of Jackie Robinson and Pope Pius XII Also in 1948 Music Digest estimated that his recordings filled more than half of the 80000 weekly hours allocated to recorded radio music Crosby won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role as Father Chuck OMalley in the 1944 motion picture Going My Way and was nominated for his reprise of the role in The Bells of St Marys opposite Ingrid Bergman the next year becoming the first of six actors to be nominated twice for playing the same character In 1963 Crosby received the first Grammy Global Achievement Award He is one of 33 people to have three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the categories of motion pictures radio and audio recording He was also known for his collaborations with longtime friend Bob Hope starring in the Road to films from 1940 to 1962 Crosby influenced the development of the postwar recording industry After seeing a demonstration of a German broadcast quality reeltoreel tape recorder brought to America by John T Mullin he invested 50000 in a California electronics company called Ampex to build copies He then convinced ABC to allow him to tape his shows He became the first performer to prerecord his radio shows and master his commercial recordings onto magnetic tape Through the medium of recording he constructed his radio programs with the same directorial tools and craftsmanship editing retaking rehearsal time shifting used in motion picture production a practice that became an industry standard In addition to his work with early audio tape recording he helped to finance the development of videotape bought television stations bred racehorses and coowned the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team
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