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American singer, actor and cultural icon who revolutionized popular music and dominated entertainment media for decades.Born in Tacoma, Washington, Crosby rose to fame in the 1930s as a pioneering crooner whose relaxed baritone voice and innovative microphone techniques transformed vocal performance. He recorded over 1,600 songs – including the best-selling single ever, 'White Christmas' – starred in 70+ films (winning an Oscar for 'Going My Way'), and popularized the 'Road to...' comedy series with Bob Hope. His pre-recorded radio shows and embrace of magnetic tape technology reshaped media production.

• Pioneered the use of magnetic tape recording, allowing unprecedented editing of performances – a technique he discovered from German engineers post-WWII.
• His first wife, Dixie Lee, died of ovarian cancer in 1952 after years of struggling with Crosby's infidelities and alcoholism during their marriage.
• Survived a near-fatal fall through rotten stage flooring in 1943 that fractured his spine and left him with chronic pain requiring spinal fusion surgery.
• Died suddenly of a heart attack after playing 18 holes of golf near Madrid, Spain; collapsed while walking to the clubhouse murmuring 'That was a great game of golf.'