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As 2015marks 100years since the birth of Frank Sinatra, it’s time to find out howmuch
you really knowabout one of theworld’smost iconic performers.
Let’s Be Frank About Ol’ Blue Eyes
He was the only child of a
pair of Italian immigrants – a
fireman and a midwife – and
was brought up as a Roman
Catholic.
He was asked to adopt the stage
name Frank Satin to match his
smooth vocals, but he refused.
He started singing at the age
of eight, albeit standing on
the bar and crooning for tips.
His professional career began
when his mum persuaded a
local singing group to take him
on during his teenage years.
He was a self-taught singer and
never learnt to read music.
Frank was self-conscious about
his height (he used to wear
platforms in his shoes) and
his face, the latter of which
was scarred from birth and
teenage acne. He tried to avoid
photographs being taken of
the left side of his face and
sometimes covered his scars
with make up.
Known to be a bit of a charmer,
Frank was married four times.
He started with his childhood
sweetheart before moving
through two famous actresses
– Ava Gardner and Mia Farrow –
before finally tying the knot with
former model Barbara Blakeley
Marx who stayed with him until
his death.
DuringWorldWar II, Frank tried
to enlist in the army but was
declared unfit for service due to
his perforated eardrum. Many
years later, the FBI investigated
Frank over suggestions he paid
a bribe to avoid enlisting.
During the height of his fame,
Frank refused to perform in
places where African-Americans
were not allowed to patronise,
raising awareness of the racial
segregation that persisted at
the time.
There were rumours that Frank was
associated with the mafia and the world
of crime, with the character of Johnny
Fontane in
The Godfather
believed to
have been based on him despite his
fervent denials.
It is said that Frank was buried in a
blue suit with a bottle of Jack Daniels,
a packet of his favourite cigarettes and a
Zippo lighter.
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December 2015 it will be one hundred years since the birth of Francis ‘Frank’ Albert Sinatra,
a performer credited as being one of the most influential in the 20
th
century. At the time of his
death in 1998, aged 80, Sinatra had chalked up a 50-year music career and his hits are still
played, performed and adored to this day.
The world has heard of Ol’ Blue Eyes and his music, but how much do you really know
about the man behind the hysteria and the songs? Here are ten interesting nuggets of trivia
about Sinatra: