Second Fire at Lombard

Palisades News
Page 22 November 18, 2015
A Sinatra Lover’s Dream Exhibit
Text and Photos by LAURIE ROSENTHAL
Staff Writer
Ol’ Blue Eyes. The Voice. The Chairman
of the Board. Whatever you
call him, Francis Albert Sinatra
was one of the wonders of the 20th century.
His contribution in so many varied arenas
is unparalleled. Music, movies, politics, civil
rights and more were all bettered after
Sinatra’s involvement.
In honor of what would have been his
100th birthday, the Grammy Museum, with
the help of the Sinatra family, has mounted
“Sinatra: An American Icon.”
The scrappy kid from Hoboken, New
Jersey, burst into the world on December 12,
1915, the only child of Marty and Dolly
Sinatra. Marty came from Sicily as a boy,
whereas Dolly was a baby when her family
emigrated from Genoa. It was in their saloon,
Marty O’Brien’s (it was located in the
Irish part of town), where Sinatra first sang.
A stroll through Sinatra’s life is a walk
through the last century. The country grew,
he grew, the country suffered, he suffered
personal setbacks, the country prospered
and so did he.
Sinatra had so many successes in his career—which
spanned nine decades—that
to list them all would take up much more
room than this article, or newspaper, would
allow. Highlights are hard to pick, and
could be deemed somewhat subjective, so
suffice it to say the exhibit touches on highlights
from every Sinatra era.
The passage of time is evident in pictures
alone, seeing him go from a skinny singer
in his salad days, to a cool and suave middle-aged,
mid-century hipster, to a beloved
grandpa hugging his granddaughters. It’s
his song, “September of My Years,” about
life and aging, come to life.
A man whose entire life from about age
20 was played out in public, Sinatra perhaps
Frank Sinatra, arguably the first teen idol in history, is seen here with his fans, known
as bobby-soxers.
had higher highs and lower lows than most
mere mortals. He went from being the first
teen idol to contemplating suicide to winning
an Academy Award for Best Supporting
Actor in From Here to Eternity to
much-publicized divorces.
But through it all, he remained dedicated
to his craft, at home in the recording studio,
working on his television show, hanging
out with his buddies on the sets of various
films, including Ocean’s 11, killing it on a
Las Vegas stage or puttering around in the
desert (Frank Sinatra Drive remains a ma -
jor thoroughfare in Rancho Mirage).
The exhibit shows us every side of Sinatra:
Frank, the family man with his wives,
children, grandchildren and dog; Frank,
leader of the Rat Pack that included good
friends Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.;
Frank, Hoboken’s number-one son.
An eclectic mix of memorabilia, much of
it still owned by the Sinatra family, the journey
through his musical, film and personal
life is well documented. Film reels, gold
records, costumes, album covers, a tuxedo,
personal items, dancing shoes from Take
Me Out to the Ball Game (Gene Kelly’s too),
Al Hirschfeld caricatures, and original
paintings (one is signed Grandpa) are all
included.
The early part of Sinatra’s life and career
is represented by ephemerae featuring his
hometown of Hoboken as well as Louis
Armstrong, Billie Holiday and Bing Crosby,
all three major influences on a young Sinatra.
Crosby’s pipe, Holiday’s passport, a 1929
letter from Armstrong to Okeh Records,
even an earnings statement from 1941 that
shows Sinatra’s Social Security number are
part of the collection, as is a famous mug
(Continued on Page 23)
One of the Al Hirschfeld caricatures
exhibited includes American Popular Song:
Great American Singers, featuring Sinatra
alongside Tony Bennett, Lena Horne, Nat
“King” Cole and others.
Sinatra hanging out with his dog, Ringo, at home in the desert. He’s wearing orange,
his favorite color.
(detail) Artwork created in Sinatra’s Rancho
Mirage studio.
Sinatra’s private copy of his film, The
Manchurian Candidate.