Regis Philbin Returns as Special Guest Host of Bing Crosby Christmas Radio

Sirius XM Radio announced that legendary entertainer Regis Philbin will return as the special guest host of "Bing Crosby Christmas Radio," a limited-run holiday channel devoted to classic Bing Crosby radio broadcasts from 1944 -1962 from Crosby's personal vault, brimming with comedy skits and musical performances from celebrity guests, as well as a rare recording of Crosby reciting the iconic poem "The Night Before Christmas."

“Bing Crosby Christmas Radio” will air from December 19 through December 26 at 3:00 am ET on SiriusXM channel 146, online on SiriusXM Internet Radio channel 814 and through the SiriusXM Internet Radio App on smartphones and mobile devices on Limited Engagements 4.

Bing's wife Kathryn Crosby, daughter Mary Crosby and sons Harry and Nathaniel share memories, introduce songs and shows and reflect on Crosby's life and work on “Bing Crosby Christmas Radio.”

In addition, citing passages from the chapter devoted to Crosby in his new book How I Got This Way, Philbin shares with listeners why Crosby’s songs mean so much to him as he plays his favorite Bing Crosby Christmas records.

“I must have been 6 or 7 years old at the time…every night at 9:30 I sat beside my little radio in the kitchen and listened to a half-hour of Bing’s records regularly… his voice was so clear, so pure and so warm, that after a while I thought of him as my good friend,” said Regis Philbin. “Even though he was out in faraway, glamorous Hollywood and I was in the humble little Bronx, in my mind, I truly thought we were friends and we’d always spend that special half-hour together—just the two of us.”

“Once again, we are thrilled to work with Regis and the Crosby family this holiday season to bring Bing’s extraordinary music and broadcasts to millions of listeners across the country on ‘Bing Crosby Christmas Radio’” said Scott Greenstein, President and Chief Content Officer, SiriusXM.
“Bing Crosby Christmas Radio” features Crosby with special guests including Rosemary Clooney, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Bob Hope, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, The Andrews Sisters, Jimmy Stewart, Phil Silvers, Jimmy Durante, and Edgar Bergen and his daughter, a young Candice Bergen. The channel also features his most popular recording ever, "White Christmas," as well as multiple Christmas radio specials hosted by Bing over the years including "Christmas Sing with Bing," "The Bing Crosby Show," "Philco Radio Time" and “Kraft Music Hall.” “Bing Crosby Christmas Radio” also features a recently discovered rare recording of Crosby reciting the classic poem “The Night Before Christmas.”

Crosby was a major radio star from 1931 to 1962. He appeared on approximately 4,000 radio broadcasts, nearly 3,400 of them his own programs.

Philbin is the recipient of five Emmy® Awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, a Broadcasting & Cable Lifetime Achievement Award, the Walter Camp Distinguished American Award at Yale University and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2006, he was inducted into both the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the Television Academy’s Hall of Fame.

Visit www.siriusxm.com/holiday and www.bingcrosby.com for more information.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos