Crosby’s ‘heartfelt’ letters to US troops revealed
HE WAS on Hollywood’s front line during the Second World War, visiting US troops stationed around the world.
But the cache of letters exchanged between Bing Crosby and the families of the men he met have only now come to light.
The notes, along with pictures of Crosby’s tours, have been shared by his estate, after being discovered in an attic by its vice president, Robert S Bader.
In one letter typed on paper headed “Bing Crosby, Hollywood” and dated April 10, 1945, the star wrote: “It was a pleasure working for the boys in France and Belgium, in fact, one of the richest experiences of my life.”
Some of the letters Crosby authored were to let people know he had met their loved ones.
There are also notes from the soldiers’ relatives, thanking him for bringing joy and hope to their sons, husbands and brothers.
In one dated March 5, 1944, a woman named Beth Du Bois wrote: “It gives me a strangely comforting feeling to know that someone whose voice I can hear has so recently talked with my son whom I have not seen for almost two years. It brings them nearer somehow.”
The images show Crosby singing to crowds of soldiers in England, France and Belgium, on outdoor stages and in hospitals, perched on the edge of wounded soldiers’ beds. Mr Bader said: “He kept these deeply personal letters in a safe place apart from everything else. “The letters from the soldiers’ family members are often heartbreaking. These people felt such a deep connection to this man they only knew as a famous entertainer. He lived up to their faith in him with equally heartfelt letters back to them.” A new album of Crosby’s music is being released today.
He kept these deeply personal letters in a safe place. Robert S Bader, vice president of the Bing Crosby estate.