Crosby, Bing, 1903-77, American singer and film actor, b. Tacoma, Wash., as Harry Lillis Crosby. He sang with dance bands from 1925 to 1930 and in 1931 began work in radio and films. Crosby gained enormous popularity for his "crooning" style and was an important influence on the development of American popular singing. In 1944 he won an Academy Award for his performance in Going My Way. Crosby's other notable films include numerous "Road" movies costarring Bob Hope, The Country Girl (1955), High Society (1956), and Stagecoach (1966).

Bing, Rudolf, 1902-97, Austrian operatic manager. Naturalized a British subject in 1946, he was general manager of the Glyndebourne operatic festivals (1934-49) and artistic manager of the Edinburgh International Festival (1947-49). He became general manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York in 1950. Bing was knighted in 1971 and retired the following year.

orig. Harry Lillis Crosby

(born May 3, 1903, Tacoma, Wash., U.S.—died Oct. 14, 1977, near Madrid, Spain) U.S. singer and actor. Crosby began to sing and play drums while studying law in Spokane, Wash. As a singer with the Paul Whiteman orchestra in 1927, he exhibited a mellow “crooning” style and casual stage manner that proved highly popular. He appeared in the early sound film King of Jazz (1931), and he later had his own radio program. By the late 1930s his records had sold millions of copies. His recordings of “White Christmas” and “Silent Night” were among the most popular songs of the 20th century. In the 1940s he starred in a popular radio variety show. His film career included the seven Road comedies with Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour, beginning with The Road to Singapore (1940); Going My Way (1944, Academy Award); The Bells of St. Mary's (1945); and White Christmas (1954). More than 300 million of his records have been sold, a total surpassed only by Elvis Presley among solo artists.

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orig. Harry Lillis Crosby

(born May 3, 1903, Tacoma, Wash., U.S.—died Oct. 14, 1977, near Madrid, Spain) U.S. singer and actor. Crosby began to sing and play drums while studying law in Spokane, Wash. As a singer with the Paul Whiteman orchestra in 1927, he exhibited a mellow “crooning” style and casual stage manner that proved highly popular. He appeared in the early sound film King of Jazz (1931), and he later had his own radio program. By the late 1930s his records had sold millions of copies. His recordings of “White Christmas” and “Silent Night” were among the most popular songs of the 20th century. In the 1940s he starred in a popular radio variety show. His film career included the seven Road comedies with Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour, beginning with The Road to Singapore (1940); Going My Way (1944, Academy Award); The Bells of St. Mary's (1945); and White Christmas (1954). More than 300 million of his records have been sold, a total surpassed only by Elvis Presley among solo artists.

Learn more about Crosby, Bing with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Bing may mean:

• Bada Bing aka BiNG! graffiti writer based in Miami, Florida.
• bing Technologies (company)
• Bing (company)
• Bing (soft drink)
• Bing (surname)
• Bing (Chinese flatbread)
• Bing cherry, variety of cherry
• Bing (mining), Scottish term for mine tailings
• Bing, (British) agricultural dialect term for area where feed, especially hay, is stored before being shaken out into livestock's rack/ trough.
• Bing (program), a Unix program to measure network throughput between two hosts
• Twin Bing, a cherry nougat candy bar
• Bada Bing, a fictional mob-controlled go-go bar where mobster Tony Soprano conducts business on the HBO TV show The Sopranos

People:

• Bing Crosby, American singer
• Brett Lee, Australian cricketer nicknamed "Bing"
• Carmella Bing, American pornographic actress
• Chandler Bing, a fictional character from the American sitcom, Friends.
• Dave Bing, former professional Basketball player
• Jonathan Bing, a New York Assemblyman
• RH Bing, topologist
• Rudolf Bing, General manager of the Metropolitan Opera, 1950-1972
• Steve Bing, American real estate developer, film producer, and philanthropist.
• Samuel Bing, an art nouveau dealer.

As an abbreviation:

• Barbershop in Germany (BinG), the German barbershop music organization
• Binghamton University
• The city of Binghamton, NY

See also:

• Byng (disambiguation)