Frank Sinatra

I have always had a soft spot for Frank Sinatra.  Some people say he diluted "true jazz" and turned it into musical pop candy, there is something to be said for his incredible talent and charisma, which broadened the audience for music in a way very few artists have single-handedly managed in the history of contemporary music.

Known by many names - Frankie, Francis, Ol' Blue Eyes, The Chairman of the Board, the Voice - he was often revered as being the most popular and enduring singer of the 20th century - borrowing from jazz, swing, pop, big band and more to create a style that was distinctly his own.

I would like to be remembered as a man who brought an innovation to popular singing,  I would like to be remembered as a man who had a wonderful time living his life, and who had good friends, fine family, and I don't think I could ask for anything more than that, actually." - Frank Sinatra

Born December 12, 1915 in New Jersey he was the only child of Italian immigrants and was raised Roman Catholic.  He left high school without graduating having attended only 47  days before being expelled because of his rowdy conduct.  

In 1938, Sinatra was arrested for carrying on with a married woman, a criminal offence at the time.  For his livelihood he worked as a delivery boy at the Jersey Observer newspaper and later as a riveter at a shipyard.  But music was his main interest and he carefully listened to big band jazz.  

He began singing for tips at the eight of eight, standing on top of the bar of a local nightclub in Hoboken, New Jersey and began singing professionally as a teenager in the 1930's, although he learned music by ear and never learned how to read music.

Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early 1940's, released his first album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra in 1946.  In 1954 he won the Academy award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in From Here to Eternity.

He was a founding member of the Rat Pack and fraternized with celebrities and statesmen. Sinatra also forged a successful career as a film actor - a nomination for Best Actor for The Man with the Golden Arm, and critical acclaim for his performance in The Mancurian Candidate, Oceans Eleven. He also starred in musicals - High Society, Guys and Dolls and On the Town.

He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Regan in 1985.

Sinatra was the recipient of eleven Grammy Awards.