Bing Crosby | A photograph of Bing and Al Rinker, ca. [1920s]

Bing Crosby and Al Rinker met when Crosby was invited to join a band of high-school students a few years younger than himself in 1923. “The Musicaladers” was comprised of Al Rinker and his brother Miles, James Heaton, and Claire and Robert Pritchard. While the full band would disband two years later in 1925, Al Rinker and Crosby would continue their creative collaboration, eventually moving to Hollywood in the fall of 1925.

 The present portrait of Crosby and Rinker was taken in Los Angeles by Paralta Studios—the premiere studio for theatrical photography at the start of the 20^th century. This portrait was likely taken as part of the publicity strategy for the duo’s first revues in Hollywood.