| Show The Salt Lake Tribune Sunday September 2 1990 T5 On the road to Gonzaga University with Bing Crosby Story and photos by Dick Alexander SPOKANE Wash — On May 3 d statue 1981 a handsome of Bing Crosby was placed in front of the Crosby Library at Gonzaga University The work of Spokane artist Deborah Copenhaver the statue is a faithful construction of the Crosby image g portraying the late singer in a position with right forearm resting on right knee On his head is the familiar jaunty hat a golf bag with clubs rests on the ground behind him Copenhaver did an exceptionally detailed job on the statue dressing Crosby to the teeth even to the familiar pipe clenched in the right corner of the mouth Visitors to the Gon- Picture Daily awards as "Best Popular Male Vocalist" a Government of the United States citation for outstanding service entertaining the troops in World War II others from the American Red Cross American Cancer Society Radio Mirror magazine and Boys Clubs of America And an unlikely Downyflake Donut Award to Bing on April 27 1949 "as the radio star whose face is most conducive to dunking" I wanted to learn more about Bing the university student so I wandered over to the old Crosby home at 508 East Sharp St adjacent to the campus and a block or so from the Webster grade school that Bing attended In Bing Crosby the Hollow Man an unflattering biography of "The Groaner" as Bing called himself Donald Shepherd and Robert F Slatzer describe the house the family bought in July 1913: structure "It was a fine with a formal dining room and a built-ibuffet two bathrooms four bedrooms and a second-storsleeping porch" "The door's open" a male voice said when we knocked at the entrance to the Sharp Street residence "Come on in" Inside we met Martin J Pujolar executive director of the life-size- semi-standin- where zaga campus Crosby the early 1920s are matriculated in not likely to find the pipe in place however The original and its replacements have been stolen over the years by college pranksters Undoubtedly Gonzaga's most famous alumnus Crosby was born on May 3 in Tacoma Wash the second son of Harry Lowe and Katherine Harrigan Crosby In 1906 the family moved to Spokane which throughout his life Bing would consider his hometown In his junior year at Gonzaga an Roman Catholic complex operated by the Jesuit order Crosby switched his studies to law and worked part-tim- e in the law offices of the legal counsel for the Great Northern Railway At the same time he was making as much money on the side singing and playing the drums "My mother had just about given up on me as a law student" Bing says in his autobiography Call Me Lucky "She faced the fact that I had a bug to go into show business She knew I'd be unhappy and restless unless I had a whirl at it and while she didn't say so I think she was confident I'd soon be home looking for three squares again" A bare three months before graduation he did indeed leave the university to pursue a show business career in Hollywood traveling south by "tin lizzie" with his musician buddy Al Rinker Mementos of his subsequent success in radio recordings and motion pictures are displayed in a second-floor room of the Crosby Library he donated and dedicated to the university on Nov 3 1957 The Crosbyana Room which is open to the public when not in use as a meeting room has on display Bing's "Oscar" for his role in the movie "Going My Way" gold records of such Crosby hits as "White Christmas" "Silent Night" "Simple Melody" (with Grace Kelly) and others There are racks of citations given to Bing over the years: five Motion two-stor- ':'r '''' ' ) it '' ' '45"7 '''?1 ' ' ' 4:k - 1:e: ys44:"' eii 104-- 4 I -— - -- i''' K it ' '!71"46"'-vT ' -- V V 17 1- t t 17-vovw- :1 1:""Np ' ::''' t 4t 4Sr "---- z::e '') ' ':13-a- t - r ': 'iv 1 - 't 4' - ' v7t i : o i'!" kr 44-i- ±"0 - t - 14 '''' ''' Nt:7--J :7' 44: te t 'f' t- " 1 - '- '1 4 ti 7 '' p ' 1 ( p ' -' -44: k ts l':: - MP r "')' ''''''' :1'': 1 :0 Oe e i 1 t 1y -'-- ' ' I I ' '"'''V''14ir - ' - II II PI ''' 01' i 4104tio400tA40 ' !:: ' !t04 Agents gather for show II 8 3-- 5 " ' Running Statues in Spokane's Riverfront Park commemorate Bloomsday Race run yearly age of the transaction — can add an ' 0 - y C s- - Y e '1111---4"- i 1 MaV- 1 $1600 Savings Papeete to Sydney This inp per couple 14 up day cruise to slO00 sav- tikes in the ot Papeete Moorea Bora Bora Pago Pago fia Auidand Ray itt Isiani and Sydnev Departs 0: RoundtTip airfare included January l1: pArts ' London to Amsterdam Copenhagen up to $15)0 saving per day cruise begirus or in Rio mi Hawaii This unique 16 dav Round trip Trans-Can- coupk CAkapuko Savings 6 Tahiti Lrp $900 Savings Mexico Crum for Ziluatarkplxwa LiCaT arid La davs Vt Puerto Aimpako Mazatlan Angties Rouridrip airfare Vallarta Cixi l al valid V' savalp - 2 11 Amsterdam $689 Frankfurt $749 Paris $729 UV an ciiiiiiii Glasgow $719 London $669 Airfare not included Tashart tiiimitn animas plus tat Sutler Sect re a aziabilliv isms mai be tate ark travel conceit were' Alders bawd fres LO kettles Thomw and San Juan airfare - - - I: antis git- o- tititttiiig 7 44"61114htmw ntrt 1!"4 Pnces mtbeeet rninctioas le chade kirpart - - -- - ma gip 4 : 111- - 0 Mgr Mlle 1111' 000 - Departs included I A Ile00111141 16 ' o n1115 riamitik lb Patt we mum ME6 elgove in::'771”"MPPRoltotwar0 ' t!::---::- i7 g :r I'll a ILITi- PA- 1i:it-- '11i A ti VA trdlist141 i i 6-- pot -- 2 jib ittfi--tto -- Ow t4--' ' - - to ti ‘tii1 i Call - - NM v 1 mir per day mine vsits L O6 Angelek CANta Ra Transa Canal Aruba St Th Si up to 51 riduik airfare unks othewts trkkated kr °Deplete detaL San - i Atoe Pncs are per perm bawd on ckubk ocSome festricoons scply Pncs do oil currancv up to P00 saving per couple 10 - STAY Auckland $779 Sydney S''29 - airfare included BA7) to $1200 savinp Kauai Lahana Hih per ample Ass HorKialu Christmai Island Bora Bora Korea and Papeete Depa't March al 14Q1 Roundmp airfare rid Litider- KILN 3 September 23 14:1 Roundrrip $1200 Et PURCHASE-N- a : bean islands of Nassau dnd Salt Cay a 7 dav rerral 4 nights hotel accommodations and to $90C sac up VNT Nawu St C1rolx St lhomalamaka Grand Cavmen and Co:umvi Roundtnp aviary Lnludel Departs aPtober 22 144S' $1300 Savings up to ports of London Helsinki Leningrad Stockholm and Amsterdam airtare included 14 day trahr Nt) ADVANICI additional ports in Bral Aiso visit Decirs Island Trinidad Barbados and San Juan with - $1400 Savings 51400 savings per couple cruise takes in the Ing per 10 coupie One Way favonte lay pay to the ‘X'ALT DISNEY A'()RLD Magi( Kmgdom park Package also a i night craw which ‘asits the Carib- Lentr and lie Rio de Janeiro Roundinp - Western Caribbean $1500 Savings Utah's This hriation beiaue of both the value cacation xid tht cishrianort txpenence for yourself the - DbriCV with a I ot day pass to EPCOT "magi- $900 Savings is DENVER $89 t 6 Walt Disney Premier Cniise World trim ')15 included airfare Roundmp Barbados Martinique St Thorna and San Juan Roundrrip airfare included Ls $515 up to $900 10 savings per couple Rich in island beauty this day cruise vlsits such ports as l's:&ssau Barbadm Mamau St Maarten Si Thom& & Martiraqut to the ports of Manaus Boca Do Valeno Alter Do Chao and Santarem Brazil and Devil's Island YOUT mit ca Caribbean Eastern up to $1600 savinp frt wupk Expenence the unspoiled native culture of the Amazon wilderness This IIII day cruise takes vou E - $900 Savings Amazon couple ''- - $1600 Savings the leader in offering exceptional values on cruises Call today and we'll arrange will put a smile on your face your cruise at prices that MorrisAsk Mr Foster Travel itntsti :at - - -4 S A L - - SO ' :1- — N Air Lines and the Department of Mexican Tourism will be among more than 200 exhibitors at the Salt Palace According to Richard Gilliland vice president of Convention Sales and Marketing for the Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau the Travel Age Travel Show is a rare opportunity for Utah travel agents "For a $5 registration fee agents can attend the trade shows and seminars on Friday and Saturday The benefits offered are worth a fortune to agents who take advantage of the new ideas and concepts which will be introduced at the Salt Palace" he said More than 1800 travel agents from across the country are expected to attend the Travel Age Trade Show in the Salt scheduled for Oct 26-2Palace Convention Center It is the first time in years that the popular trade show has been held outside of Southern California The gathering has been arranged with the support of the local travel industry Utah Travel Council and the Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau A keynote speaker will be Paul Besse 11 president of the Association of Retail Travel Agents (ARTA) Giants in the travel industry will tout new adventures and ideas in leisure group corporate and incentive travel Cunard Cruise Lines Delta eler's checks at a bank exchange counter you'll get a retail rate that is often percent less favorable At many banks an additional fee — per transaction per check or a percent- It ing plastic through the slots of foreign bank machines their use hasn't affected the sale of traveler's checks says Kevin Sullivan a spokesman for American Express closed" "We've seen no impact of ATM The Cirrus and Plus ATM machines overseas work exactly the cards on our traveler's check busisame as at home the newsletter ness the industry continues to grow each year" Sullivan says "The pripoints out benefit of our traveler's checks Cardholders punch in their per- mary is the of the consumer to consonal identification number or PIN tinue aability vacation even if travel funds in amount withdrawal of the and the are lost or stolen The cash withlocal currency "The only possible drawn from an ATM is long gone if a extra is a per-us- e fee your bank may traveler is robbed or loses his or her impose for using an ATM elsewhere wallet" on the network" Sullivan says that in many foreign destinations there is no charge for However the newsletter cautions don't go zipping off to a foreign des- cashing his company's traveler's tination clutching your ATM plastic cheques at American Express ofwithout checking some things out fices However he says in some countries a certain percentage or first charge is required by law You had better be sure that the per-iteon each exchange transaction Plus and Cirrus networks are availHe suggests that travelers contact able in the countries you plan to visforeign country's consulate beit You can find this out from the the fore leaving home to determine if worldwide directories that both netthat government has a charge policy works have available Ask your bank He also warns that when exchanging to Also to sure how be ask traveler's checks or get one currency touryour bank if your PIN will be good at ists should "beware of institutions the foreign ATM outlets It may have that do not post their exchange rates to be changed — that's usually an indication that While more tourists may be push they're not proud of their rates" "If you exchange currency or trav- ' II II- - lt 2-- 5 financial transactions large-scal- e ' - I other percent to your cost The expense can be even worsc if you exchange at hotels and nonbank exchange counters when the banks are '''' I a ' hard-currenc- y ''''''''' It bOOSSNINèil ktk 7 NEW YORK — Plastic is fast becoming the currency of choice among many American travelers to foreign destinations They've discovered that instead of exchanging traveler's checks or dollars they often can get a better rate by using their automatic teller machine card or by getting a cash advance with their credit card The August Consumer Report Travel Letter notes that the ATM card "has quickly become a major player in an optimum foreign-exchang- e strategy" It suggests travelcountries can ers to usually minimize foreign exchange costs by following these guidelines: Use a charge card for major expenditures — tickets hotels rental cars and the like You get a decent exchange rate the protection of the card's chargeback provisions and (often) an extra guarantee on your purchases Whenever possible use an ATM card for incidental cash As a backup carry a small amount of money in traveler's checks — checks preferably foreign-currenc- y "When you convert dollars to foreign currency steep fees and bad exchange rates can cost you more than 10 percent of your transaction" the newsletter says "But in many countries you can now sidestep such expenses If your ATM card works in the Cirrus or Plus network at home you can use it abroad to withdraw cash from foreign bank ATMs that belong to the same network Your withdrawal will be converted at the interbank exchange rate — the "wholesale" rate that banks use for - t — Newhouse News Service ''''' ew-a-r- i I4 —n--- By Joel Steed 1 ' II II t f ? Plastic becoming choice currency for those who travel overseas ' t It '' Minus the pipe which has been stolen by pranksters Is statue of Bing Crosby at Gonzaga t 3 !fr 0 0 V' 1 0k ' :0 '1"41 '0 i N - i ' e t '1 “ 0 1 t rl IV si4 '""' x - ! x - ' :kt40 v - ‘ ''' T J 1it r - ' "I '' ' - ' ' ' ' -- k'- A 7 Nr 1Tr'"A ::: i -- 114 ' Vt k A j1 ' - 't i' -' '- t - - i 400) t-: 1 e 1'1441 : ' ' : ' ' 'i 's f - I r :':ft ' ‘t :kr - ' ft ' 1 i1!'" ):iitit ' ) 4 re'll14"'01A : I wite eyti 4:':l 1 free-lanc- ¶ - as '' lifr"- 3i'v Ar eeI 4 ': ovr IA ' - e ' e-:c1:raiwit- - 'NiI'47-4'7- -- dip ' tF "li - at '4- i ik At 1" !' ''-'- '41Slet 44A4114 Y y ' r A ::'4 ' " 3" t it t 1 if !: 't 4' rl : 41 ' f''TI:14 ft$J t? '' '-- 'tl "' 0 IP lowtH' ' - ''' 1:raili010140:' iL714k 4 '1k' po -' priest-moderat- broad-shouldere- d t Dick Alexander is a writer and travel columnist for the San Francisco Examiner o What about his singing? "We knew Bing could sing not necessarily very well but pretty good I think his first solo was in our chapel '0 Lord I am not worthy" e comBing belonged to a bo called the Musicaladers whose engagements included a dance at the public library Dussault told of the time Bing sneaked a set of drums from the university Crosby recalled the event in his autobiography: "It was a dance and when I asked permission to use the Gonzaga drums the in charge of the music department said the drums could be used only at Gonzaga functions After all that was merely his opinion To me it seemed much more important that a Gonzaga boy who'd made an engagement should keep it So I decided to spirit those instruments out of a basement window with a rope "We Musicaladers hauled them through a window so we wouldn't be seen carrying them through the halls We got them back the same way However the whole thing was a lesson to me I saved up a little monhouse and ey wrote to a mail-ordbought my own set a beauty" Pictures of Bing Crosby and Art Dussault hang in the Gonzaga University Athletic Hall of Fame in the Charlotte Y Martin Centre on campus In the building I found these words that Bing spoke when the university awarded him an honorary doctor of laws degree in 1937: "If I have been successful I think it is due to what I learned here My good mother of course will say it's directly due to her prayers and she pur- - Madrid's La Moraleja course in Spain In his illustrated book The One and Only Bing Associated Press Hollywood reporter Bob center" chased the house a few years ago for around $55000 The house is sparsely furnished with donated items and some furniture from the Pujolar home in San Francisco In the entranceway are Christmas cards of Bing's first and second families In one downstairs room: a pipe straw hat and Pittsburgh Pirates' baseball cap that belonged to Bing If we wanted to talk to someone who knew Bing as a student we should talk to Father Dussault said Pujolar who was graduated from San Francisco's St Ignatius High School in 1967 and from Gonzaga in 1971 We walked across campus to the Administration Building where we found Dussault "Father Art" to Gonzaga students in the main hall working on the "Rogues' Gallery" with some underclassmen The pictures included Bing with the basketball squad in 1920 with the varsity baseball team in 1921 snapshots of the singer overseas a still shot from "Going My Way" and a photo of his last public appearance at the London Palladium on Oct 10 1977 Dressed in khaki sports shirt and blue-chec- k slacks Dussault was well over 6 feet tall rangy with white hair long straight nose blue eyes and a handsome face that belied his 86 years He would be glad to see us in his office after lunch The sign over Father Art's office door said "Senior Vice President" vt' MO ''''F717Pliw- - ' m!- '' t 4 "kt SK: yrra ' '!' f 0 ” a Palladium concert Bing Crosby fell by house on Sharp Street in Spokane another memento is attached to a door It is the yellow flag from the 17th hole on the Spanish golf course where Bing Crosby died While he talked Father Art y which Thomas paid him this tribute: "On Friday October 14 1977 a heart may have stopped a voice stilled But the real melody Bing Crosby sang will linger as long as there's a phonograph to be played and a heart to be lifted" In Bing's bedroom at the old Cros dead while playing a round of golf at brought out some presents that Bing had given him over the years: pipes a wallet inscribed cigarette lighters 3 toupees ("Scalp doilies" that Crosby said he wore for screen purposes) "He played baseball" said Dussault who has logged nearly 60 years with the university "The outfield and third base He was a great swimmer people didn't know that He had nine medals for diving and swimming He wasn't braggadocio but I've seen him dive 50 feet from the rafters into the pool lie was small but played a little football I played y Alumni Association may be right and invited us to be seated "What was Bing like as a student?" I asked "Mischievous" he said obviously pleased to talk about his old school chum "Bing was an easygoing fellow not important in his own mind His father wanted him to be a golfer his mother wanted him to go to college" n all-ma- I would never want to dispute that" Four days after his 1977 London Now clad in priestly cassock he greeted us with a smile and a twinkle - - 1- ' - & ii '-) orris arch edam : |
