RUSC MAILING

Written by Ned Norris

By the early ’60s, television had the limelight, but Bing Crosby’s Christmas Eve special kept radio’s hearth glowing. I’ve just revisited the seventh annual Christmas Sing with Bing (broadcast Christmas Eve 1961, sponsored by Insurance Company of North America), and it’s exactly the sort of hour that turns a living room into a little community.

From the first notes of Joy to the World, Bing sets that “gang singing” mood—come along, don’t just listen. Ken Carpenter keeps things smooth as ever, a touch of sponsor sparkle without losing the Christmas glow.

A few highlights I loved:

•  Jo Stafford in velvet voice on Winter Wonderland and The Christmas Song, then a breezy medley with Bing: Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town, Silver Bells, Here Comes Santa Claus.
• Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, gently needling the sponsor and sneaking in a callback to a 1955 bit where Candy Bergen and Charlie “improve” on The Night Before Christmas.
• Kathryn Crosby joining Bing for a cozy Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer—pure nursery-window warmth.
• The big ones done simply and sincerely: White Christmas as a modern carol, and a closing Silent Night with choir that lands like a benediction.

There’s sweet context, too—Bing as young dad in ’61, with Harry (“Tex”), Mary Frances, and new baby Nathaniel, musing about bringing the little ones on next year. And the sign-off line that gets me every time: “There’s so little magic in the world, let us encourage it in our children just as long as we can.”

If you’re in the mood to feel your room get a notch warmer, give this one a spin and sing along. Listen here

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P.S. How’s your White Christmas IQ? Take my quick quiz here. When you’re done, pass it along and see who in your circle can match Bing-level savvy. Also look out for our New quiz out soon. And I hope you are enjoying our daily Christmas Quotes inside RUSC.com.

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