News Release from Bing Crosby Advocates
News Release from Bing Crosby Advocates
September 18, 2024
Contact: Dave Reynolds (509) 216-2611, BingCrosbyAdvocates@gmail.com
BING CROSBY HOLIDAY FILM FESTIVAL IS SATURDAY, DEC. 7, 2024
11:00 a.m. White Christmas
1:30 p.m. Here Comes The Groom
4:00 p.m. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
7:00 p.m. White Christmas
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The films will be introduced by Spokane historian and narrator Tom McArthur, along with BCA’s own Carol Capra.
The 2024 Annual Bing Crosby Holiday Film Festival will be held on Saturday, Dec 7, 2024, featuring some of the best loved, family-friendly films of Spokane’s famous son Bing Crosby, two of which are celebrating special milestones.
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The non-profit Bing Crosby Advocates (BCA) is presenting its 17th annual festival at the Bing Crosby Theater at 901 W. Sprague Avenue in downtown Spokane as part of the community’s yearly celebration of the holiday season. It was on the stage of this theater, known in 1924 as the Clemmer, that young Harry L. “Bing” Crosby began his career by singing and performing skits in between silent films shown there. BCA led the effort to rename the theater for Bing in 2006.
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Doors open at 10:30 a.m. The festival begins with the 11:00 a.m. showing of Bing Crosby’s traditional beloved holiday film White Christmas. This year is the 70th anniversary of the release of the musical starring Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen. (The song, “White Christmas”, was released in 1942 and is the number one selling single record of all time.)
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At 1:30, we screen the Frank Capra musical romantic comedy “Here Comes the Groom” starring Bing and Jayne Wyman. This 1951 release will be introduced by Carol Capra, who was married to the director’s son Tom Capra. Frank Capra made such noted films as It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), It Happened One Night (1934) and Arsenic and Old Lace (1944).
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At 4:00, we celebrate the 75th anniversary of “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court”, starring Bing Crosby and Rhonda Fleming. This fantastical romp has a New England auto mechanic who finds himself transported to the time and place of Britain’s mythical King Arthur. The 1949 musical comedy was based on the popular humorous novel by Mark Twain. Watch for the name of an Eastern Washington city in one of Bing’s incantations!
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At 7:00 p.m. the festival concludes with a repeat showing of White Christmas.
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“It’s such an honor to present these treasures in the place where Bing launched his career nearly 100 years ago,” said Dave Reynolds, President of Bing Crosby Advocates. “The smiles we see from film-goers at the festivals show us how Bing still brings joy to all ages.”
Tickets for the festival are $20 each (along with fees) and are good for the entire day’s events. Tickets are available at https://bingcrosbytheater.com/ or at the door on the day of the event. Minors age 17 and under will be admitted at no charge.
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More information is available at www.BingCrosbyAdvocates.org.
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Bing Crosby Advocates is a 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to celebrating the life and legacy of Bing Crosby while spotlighting his connections to his hometown – Spokane. We do this by presenting the annual Bing Crosby Holiday Film Festival and providing volunteer docents at Bing’s childhood home, the Bing Crosby House Museum at 508 E. Sharp Ave. For information, visit www.BingCrosbyAdvocates.org
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