The decade which was drawing to a close had consolidated Crosby's position as the world's most popular singer and in comparison to periods of a similar duration, was his most productive in terms of feature films, records, radio time and personal appearances.

In addition to Bing Crosby, they had also acquired the services of Perry Como and Arthur Godfrey and were later to add, if only briefly, Bob Hope and Martin & Lewis.

[5] The network premiered The Bing Crosby Show for Chesterfield on Wednesday September 21, 1949 at 9:30 pm (Eastern) which was the time slot that series would remain in for its entire three-year run.

Sparked by the crooner’s mellow mike manners and a showmanly assist from guest stars Peggy Lee and Abe Burrows, the preem show sailed along effortlessly in the warm, relaxed groove so characteristic of the groaner.

The ratings were now being collected by the AC Nielsen company which used the audiometer, a mechanical black box inserted into a radio set to record stations being listened.

[5] This season of the program was known for its list of guest stars, including Bob Hope, Dorothy Kirsten, Burl Ives, Dick Powell, Ella Fitzgerald, Hopalong Cassidy, Louis Armstrong, Fred Astaire, The Andrews Sisters, Dinah Shore and Nat King Cole.

The December 20, 1950 broadcast of the program featured Crosby's then wife Dixie Lee and their four boys Gary, Dennis, Phillip and Lindsay.

Depressed and broke, and having recently attempted suicide, Judy was invited to become a semi-regular on the program, appearing eight times during the season, until she secured a concert engagement at the London Palladium in April 1951.

On January 7, the Liberty Broadcasting System from its Los Angeles affiliate KMPC broadcast an hour-long tribute to Crosby hosted by Ross Mulholland and featuring interviews with Paul Whiteman, Tommy Dorsey, Russ Morgan, Jane Wyman, The Andrews Sisters, Johnny Burke, Jerry Lewis, Victor Young, Frank Capra and others.