Bing Crosby: The Television Specials Volume 2- The Christmas Specials

Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby died on October 14, 1977, at age 74, less than two months after Elvis Presley died (August 16, 1977; age 42). While Elvis' birthday and death are remembered every year, particularly at five-year intervals, few people remember Crosby today. As the late Rosemary Clooney once wrote, "Only aficionados remember Bing." Oddly enough, Bing was one of Elvis' idols and early influences. Whether the two of them actually met, I have no idea; if they did, it was probably in Las Vegas or in Hollywood. John Lennon was also a Crosby fan; Bing's rendition of "Please" inspired The Beatles' "Please Please Me." And according to Crosby biographer Gary Giddins, Lennon had a jukebox of nothing but Crosby records at The Dakota.This two-DVD set is the second volume of Bing Crosby television specials, released by his widow Kathryn and Bing Crosby Enterprises, and produced by Robert S. Bader. Four of Bing's Christmas specials are included in this set.Disc 1 contains two shows that I was too young to remember, so this DVD was my introduction to them. They are not really Christmas shows per se, but Bing sings "White Christmas" at the end of both shows, and "The Little Drummer Boy" in the second show. The first show, which aired in December 1961 on ABC, was taped in England and features an all-British cast, including Ron Moody, Terry-Thomas, and the gorgeous Shirley Bassey, plus a cameo by British-born Bob Hope (in drag). The second show was Bing's first color special, sponsored by Clairol, and aired on Christmas Eve, 1962, also on ABC; it features Broadway legend Mary Martin, André Previn (who was still a jazz musician, not yet a symphony conductor and film composer), and the United Nations Children's Choir. Bonus material on Disc 1 includes a rare episode of ABC's THE FRANK SINATRA SHOW from 1957, entitled "Happy Holidays With Bing and Frank." Although normally broadcast in black-and-white, this particular episode was shot in color for showing in theaters, which never materialized. The film was discovered in the Sinatra vaults decades later. Also included are a few outtakes from the 1962 Clairol special, including one Mary Martin number that did not make the final cut.Disc 2 features two shows from the '70s, which I vaguely remember. The first one, which aired on NBC in December 1971, was titled "Bing Crosby and the Sounds of Christmas," and featured Bing's "second family," his wife Kathryn, sons Harry and Nathaniel, and daughter Mary Frances (who would get her 15 minutes of fame later, in 1980, when she played villain Kristin Shepard, who shot the evil J.R. Ewing, played by the recently deceased Larry Hagman, on DALLAS). Other guests included Robert Goulet, the Mitchell Boys Choir, and a long-forgotten opera singer named Mary Costa. The second special, which was taped five weeks before Bing's death, and which aired on November 30, 1977 on CBS, was titled "Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas," and in addition to the Crosby family, featured Twiggy, Ron Moody, Stanley Baxter, the Trinity Boys Choir, and David Bowie, who performed the legendary "Peace On Earth/The Little Drummer Boy" duet with Bing. I hadn't seen this footage in years, and thought that Bing and Bowie were not comfortable together; their banter seemed forced, although they sang the duet very well. Bowie also performs his then-current hit "Heroes," but it seems out of place on a Bing Crosby Christmas special. I'm not sure why Bowie was chosen; perhaps Crosby's kids lobbied for his inclusion, or maybe the "network suits" at CBS told Bing, "You gotta put a rock star on, Bing, so that the kids will watch!" UPDATE: According to the 2014 PBS documentary  American Masters: Bing Crosby - Rediscovered , Bowie balked at singing "The Little Drummer Boy" because he hated the song; he agreed to do the special only because his mother was a Crosby fan, so to appease him, the show's musical director wrote the "Peace On Earth" counter-melody for Bowie to sing. Bing was VERY comfortable with Twiggy, though. And of course, Bing closes the show, as always, with "White Christmas"; sadly, it was his last television performance. His final public concert was held at England's Brighton Centre just four days before his death on a golf course in Spain. Oddly enough, his last U.S. concert was held on August 16, 1977 - the same day that Elvis passed away.Bonus material on Disc 2 includes a 1965 Toys for Tots PSA, filmed on the set of Bing's movie "Stagecoach," and a 1976 tourism travelogue, "Bing's Britain." Picture and sound quality are as good as it gets; the Crosby estate did a marvelous job storing and restoring these shows, which is no surprise, as Bing invested in cutting-edge technology firms (e.g., the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing (3M) Company) throughout his life.If Bing Crosby were still alive, and making Christmas (or non-Christmas) specials today, who would he be performing with? I'm sure he would had loved working with Diana Krall, Michael Bublé (who has used archival Crosby footage in all of his NBC Christmas specials to date), Kristin Chenoweth, Natalie Cole (Bing was a close friend of her dad's), country stars such as Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Martina McBride, and Carrie Underwood, Mariah Carey, or maybe even Lady Gaga (now that, thanks to Tony Bennett, she has reinvented herself as a jazz singer). But Bing with Beyoncé, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Jay-Z, Katy Perry, Kanye West, Miley Cyrus, or the cast from GLEE? Not on your life.Now that David Bowie has passed on (January 10, 2016), will he and Bing duet again in Heaven?I hope that the Crosby estate makes more specials available, if demand warrants it.

If you're a baby boomer you likely grew up watching Bing Crosby on television at least once a year, in his annual and much anticipated Christmas specials. They may have even been the only things you knew him for, if you were too young to remember the astonishing career that preceded those festive end-of-year broadcasts. Bing's holiday shows with his family, which began in the 1960s when he hosted the Hollywood Palace's (ABC's answer to the Ed Sullivan Show) Christmas programs, and continued into the 1970s when he and his family starred in their own Christmas specials, were practically an institution back in the 3-channel, pre-cable days. If you were born prior to the Second World War you likely remember Bing as the most beloved entertainer of the 20th century, with the TV Christmas shows serving as an endearing coda to a legendary performer's long career. In either case, this set of four vintage Crosby specials (plus a bonus show, outtakes and TV spots), not seen in more than three decades, should be a warm and welcome sight to your world weary eyes. This is "comfort television" of the highest order.Bing's first two holiday TV specials--which weren't entirely devoted to a Christmas theme--comprise the first of the two discs. 1961's "Bing Crosby Show," which was filmed in England and aired on December 11th, features Terry-Thomas and Shirley Bassey, with a surprise appearance by one of Bing's old buddies. "The Bing Crosby Show for Clairol," from December 24th, 1962, was Bing's first color special, and his guests are broadway star (and two-time movie co-star with Bing) Mary Martin and pianist-conductor-composer André Previn. Filling out disc 1 are outtakes from the Clairol Special and the half-hour "Happy Holidays with Bing and Frank" (Dec. 20, 1957), in which Frank Sinatra shares a "toddy for the body" with guest Bing, in Frank's faux late-`50s swingin' bachelor pad.Disc two features a pair of the best of Bing's 1970s Christmas shows with his wife Kathryn and children Harry, Mary Frances and Nathaniel. The first, "Bing Crosby and the Sounds of Christmas" (December 14, 1971), is truly a feast for the eyes and ears, and a rare example of just how appealing that oft-denigrated genre, the variety show, could be, with bravura comedy and musical performances by Robert Goulet and Mary Costa, and sublime caroling by the Mitchell Singing Boys choir. Finally, perhaps the best-remembered and most beloved Christmas special of them all, "Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas," taped just weeks before Bing's death and aired posthumously on November 30, 1977, closes out this delightful set. Shot in England, it of course features Bing's now legendary--but at the time surprising and anomalous--duet with David Bowie, "Little Drummer Boy"/"Peace on Earth," as well as engaging performances by supermodel pioneer Twiggy, Brit comedians Stanley Baxter and Ron Moody, and The Trinity Boys Choir.Produced by veteran DVD maven Robert S. Bader ("The Dick Cavett Show - Hollywood Greats," "Groucho Marx: You Bet Your Life - The Best Episodes"), the visual and audio quality of these 33- to 53-year-old shows has been beautifully restored. In fact, they look and sound better than they did when they first aired--whether your television set had rabbit ears or a rooftop antenna!Accompanying the deluxe edition is a wonderful 10-track bonus CD containing holiday songs from Bing's 1950's radio shows. He was in tremendous voice on all of these tracks, to the point on some that one wonders if they might even be superior to the "official" recordings made for commercial release. One such track is a magnificent rendition of "White Christmas," in which Bing trades lines with the legendary Ella Fitzgerald. The audio version of Bing and Bowie's "Little Drummer Boy"/"Peace on Earth" is also included.

Nice sentimental program content but poor picture quality and again the price was far too high! The estate of Bing needs to reconsider its marketing strategy. Some nice extras though.

While this product is advertised as being for all regions of DVD, upon unwrapping it I discovered it is actually a region one only DVD. It it therefore useless to me as we do not have a region one compatible player. Thank you amazon for ruining a Christmas present for me.

This is a region 1 DVD not all region as in the description on the website I was very disappointed and am returning mine for refund so beware