11/11/2025
Folks, gather ‘round for a Spokane story that swings! December 6!
[Bing Crosby Advocates have worked extra hard this year to make this day-long event affordable. It's just $15.00 (all fees & taxes included) online or at the door. Children 17 and under are free with accompanying adult. Come by any time during the day. Stay for one, two three or all four shows!]
Harry Lillis Crosby — that’s right, our own Bing! — grew up right here in Spokane's Logan Neighborhood. From crooning at Gonzaga High School to lighting up clubs and theaters, young Bing was already setting the stage for super-stardom. He’d go on to shape the sounds of the century — influencing Sinatra, Elvis, even The Beatles!
We start the day's festivities at 12 noon with the 1954 seasonal favorite, "White Christmas", starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen, and Rosemary Clooney
Now, picture this: October 13, 1957 — "The Ford Edsel Show" hits CBS! Bing brings pals Louis Armstrong, Rosemary Clooney, Frank Sinatra, and son Lindsay for a dazzling night of music and laughter. The show raised a whopping $250,000 — nearly $2.3 million today — funding one-third of the Crosby Memorial Library at Gonzaga. It was also the first-ever TV program recorded on videotape for replay later! The Edsel may have flopped, but Bing? After decades headlining radio, recording and movies, he launched into TV stardom — two annual specials with ABC, his own sitcom (The Bing Crosby Show), and legendary Christmas specials that still warm hearts today.
This 2:30 performance marks the first public screening of The Ford Edsel Show since 1957 — a true television treasure!
And the music lives on! At 4:30, Spokane’s own North Central High School Jazz Band, led by Tim Blaydon, takes the stage. Fun fact: Bing’s buddy Al Rinker—a proud NC alum—once jammed in a teenage combo called The Musicaladers. Bing joined in on drums, and before heading to Hollywood in 1925, the duo performed live on stage at the Clemmer Theater — now, of course, the Bing Crosby Theater!
And that’s not all, folks! Gonzaga alum Don Maloney, class of ’58 and a devoted Bing fan, has created six special renditions of Bing’s beloved Christmas tunes. You’ll catch two during each intermission — a perfect dash of holiday spirit from one fan to another!
And we finish with an evening showing of "White Christmas" at 6:00 pm.
✨ Stay tuned, swing back, and let the legend of Bing Crosby shine on! ✨
