Harry Lillis “Bing” Crosby was an American popular singer and Academy Award-winning actor whose career lasted from 1926 until his death in 1977. One of the first multimedia stars, from 1934 to 1954 Bing Crosby held a nearly unrivaled command of record sales, radio ratings, and motion picture grosses. He is cited among the most popular musical acts in history and is currently the most electronically recorded human voice in history. Crosby is also credited as being the major inspiration for most of the male singers of the era that followed him, including Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. In 1962, Crosby was the first person to receive the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Shortly after 6:00 p.m. on October 14, Crosby died suddenly from a massive heart attack after a round of eighteen holes of golf near Madrid where he and his Spanish golfing partner had just defeated their two opponents.