His Way
You know that Frank Sinatra was as talented a singer as he was an actor. That he had a collection of nicknames, from The Voice to Ol’ Blue Eyes. And that he liked to do things “My Way.” In honor of what would have been the legendary crooner’s 100th birthday, here are 35 things you might not have known about Frank Sinatra.
1. HIS BIRTH WAS A TRAUMATIC ONE.
Born on December 12, 1915, in an apartment in Hoboken, New Jersey, Francis Albert Sinatra was blue and not breathing when he was yanked out of his mother with forceps. Thought to be dead, the infant was laid on the kitchen counter while the doctor attended to his mother. His grandmother picked up the newborn, stuck him under some cold water, and little Frank wailed out his first song.
2. THOSE FORCEPS CAUSED SOME DAMAGE.8. A SHORT FILM GOT HIM TAGGED AS A COMMUNIST SYMPATHIZER.
In 1945, Sinatra made a short film, The House I Live In, that spoke out against anti-Semitism and racial intolerance. Ironically, a decade later, its liberal slant got him tagged as a Communist sympathizer during the McCarthy trials. (Sinatra never testified.)
9. THE FBI HAD A FILE ON HIM.
Sinatra’s FBI file had been started by J. Edgar Hoover after a radio listener wrote to the Bureau, saying, “The other day I turned on a Frank Sinatra program and I thought how easy it would be for certain-minded manufacturers to create another Hitler here in America through the influence of mass hysteria.” Sinatra had also been investigated by the FBI for reportedly paying doctors $40,000 to declare him unfit to serve in the armed services.
10. HE HELPED INTRODUCE THE CONCEPT ALBUM AND BOX SET.
In 1946, Sinatra’s debut release, The Voice of Frank Sinatra, helped introduce both the concept album and the box set. At a time when long-playing records were still novel, Sinatra issued a set of 78 rpm records with eight songs, all with a theme of lost love. It sold for a hefty $2.50 (the equivalent of about $30 today). But the price didn’t prevent it from topping the charts for seven weeks. Two years later, it became one of the first-ever pop music vinyl 10″ LPs.
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