Bing Crosby: swinging on a star, the war years, 1940-1946

Description

Intro; Title Page; Copyright; Table of Contents; Dedication; Epigraph; Introduction; Prelude; Part One TIME OUT; 1 Meanwhile; 2 Independence; 3 Ghosts; 4 Prewar Air War; 5 Right All the Way; 6 Coventry; 7 South America, Take It Away; 8 Happy Holiday; Part Two METAMORPHOSIS; 9 Keep Away from Eunuchs; 10 Caravan; 11 Friends; 12 Home Fires; 13 Divertissement; 14 Just an Old Cowhand; 15 The Leo McCarey Way; 16 Padres; 17 Swinging on a Star; 18 Put It There, Pal; Part Three DER BINGLE; 19 Heer Shpreekht Bing CROS-by; 20 Somewhere in France; 21 A Little Touch of Harry in the Day.;Bing Crosby dominated American popular culture in a way that few artists ever have. From the dizzy era of Prohibition through the dark days of the Second World War, he was a desperate nation's most beloved entertainer. But he was more than just a charismatic crooner: Bing Crosby redefined the very foundations of modern music, from the way it was recorded to the way it was orchestrated and performed. In this much-anticipated follow-up to the universally acclaimed first volume, NBCC Winner and preeminent cultural critic Gary Giddins now focuses on Crosby's most memorable period, the war years and the origin story of White Christmas. Set against the backdrop of a Europe on the brink of collapse, this groundbreaking work traces Crosby's skyrocketing career as he fully inhabits a new era of American entertainment and culture. While he would go on to reshape both popular music and cinema more comprehensively than any other artist, Crosby's legacy would be forever intertwined with his impact on the home front, a unifying voice for a nation at war. Over a decade in the making and drawing on hundreds of interviews and unprecedented access to numerous archives, Giddins brings Bing Crosby, his work, and his world to vivid life--firmly reclaiming Crosby's central role in American cultural history. Intro Title Page Copyright Table of Contents Dedication Epigraph Introduction Prelude Part One TIME OUT 1 Meanwhile 2 Independence 3 Ghosts 4 Prewar Air War 5 Right All the Way 6 Coventry 7 South America, Take It Away 8 Happy Holiday Part Two METAMORPHOSIS 9 Keep Away from Eunuchs 10 Caravan 11 Friends 12 Home Fires 13 Divertissement 14 Just an Old Cowhand 15 The Leo McCarey Way 16 Padres 17 Swinging on a Star 18 Put It There, Pal Part Three DER BINGLE 19 Heer Shpreekht Bing CROS-by 20 Somewhere in France 21 A Little Touch of Harry in the Day. 22 Dial O for O'Malley23 Nothing but Bluebirds 24 A Long, Long Time Photos Acknowledgments Discover More Gary Giddins About the Author Also by Gary Giddins Bing Crosby Wartime Discography Bing Crosby Wartime Filmography Interviews and Bibliography Notes and Sources.