[sinatraphiles] MARCH 16 - THIS DATE IN SINATRA HISTORY

From: "Scott Henderson" <scott@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <sinatraphiles@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 16 Mar 2022 09:28:24 -0400

Studio

1948 Hollywood
(Orchestral tracks pre-recorded in Hollywood, December 9, 1947)

HCO3224 It Only Happens When I Dance With You
(I. Berlin )
(from Easter Parade)
Irving Berlin Music (ASCAP) 1948
Arranged & Conducted by Axel Stordahl
-1 (3:18) CD: Columbia Years 43-52 Vol. 9
CD: 44236 Sinatra Rarities
78: 38192

HCO3225 A Fella With An Umbrella
(I. Berlin )
(from Easter Parade)
Irving Berlin Music (ASCAP) 1948
Arranged & Conducted by Axel Stordahl
-1 (2:31) CD: Columbia Years 43-52 Vol. 9
78: 38192

Violins: H. Azen, M. Ceppos, S. Harris, J. Held, M. Hershaft, S. Kirsner,
F.. Orlewitz, M. Pitt, R. Polikian, B. Sheppard, H. Shomer, H. Urbont;
Violas: S. Deutsch, L. Frengut, R. Hersh; Cello: A. Kaproff, G. Ricci, H.
Shapiro; Saxes: E. Caceres, H. Feldman, B. Kaufman, J. Mince, W. Taninbaum;
Horns: A. Miranda; Trumpets: G. Griffin, J. Lausen, M. Solomon; Trombones:
R. Dupont, W. Pritchard, A. Russo; Piano: R. Kitsis; Guitar: M. Golizio;
Bass: H. Alpert; Drums: J. Blowers; Harp: E. Vito Ricci

1983 Los Angeles

How Do You Keep The Music Playing?
w/Bill Miller on piano
(Alan Bergman/Marilyn Bergman/Michel Legrand)
WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)
Arranged & Conducted by Joe Parnello
CD:  Sinatra Sings Alan & Marilyn Bergman (Capitol October 2019)

Note:  The recording was recently released on the Capitol CD
"Sinatra Sings Alan & Marilyn Bergman. The song was
rejected by Sinatra in 1983 and again for the
"Suitcase" in 1995. The arrangement by Joe
Parnello is very different from the recording done
in April of 1984, also a Parnello effort. If you are '
completist, it is worth having in collection.
         Ed

Radio

1949 The Bob Hope All Star Show "A Dream Come True"
Arthritis and Rheumatism Foundation syndication.
Announcer: Hy Averback
Host: Bob Hope
Master Of Ceremonies: Bob Hope
Syndicated
Performers: Dorothy Shay, Les Brown and His Orchestra,
William Holden, Frank Sinatra, Abe Burrows, Milton DeLugg,
Ralph Edwards, John McGovern.
1  Buttons & Bows  Dorothy Shay
2. On A Slow Boat To China     Frank Sinatra
3..The Gypsy Violin           Abe Burrows and Milton DeLugg
4.  Anything You Can Do   w/Bob Hope & Dorothy Shay

Note: Show was not broadcast on 3/16 in  New York or Boston
Notes: Fund appeal for the Arthritis and Rheumatism Foundation. Approximate
Date. 30mins. Complete. Audio condition: Excellent.

1950 Light Up Time
Sponsor: Lucky Strike Cigarettes
Network: NBC
Show #139
Broadcast: 7:00-7:15 PM EST (Repeat: 9:00-9:15 PM PST)
Starring: Frank Sinatra & Dorothy Kirsten
Skitch Henderson And The Orchestra
1. opening
2. Don't Go Away Mad - Frank Sinatra
3. commercial
4. You Go To My Head - Dorothy Kirsten
5. God's Country - Frank Sinatra
6. commercial
7. Let's Fall In Love - Frank Sinatra & Dorothy Kirsten
8. closing

Ed O'Brien
AFRS song, in place of second ad, was a duet with
Dorothy on the classic Alec Wilder tune "While Were Young."
It was taken from the 2-1-50 Light Up Time.

1952 The Big Show
Network: NBC
Sponsor: various sponsors
Show: #52
Time: 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM EST
Sunday Evening
Host: Tallulah Bankhead
Guests: , Helen O'Connell, Fred Allen, Frank Sinatra, Peter Donald, William
Gargan
Orchestra Conducted By: Merideth Wilson
Writers: Goodman Ace, Frank Wilson
Announcers: Ed Herlihy, Jimmy Wallington
Produced & Director By: Dee Englebach
Sinatra Performance Information:
1. I Hear a Rhapsody - Frank Sinatra  & Meredith Wilson Choral Group (Axel
Stordahl arr..)
2. Pretty Baby - Frank SInatra & Tallulah Bankhead (comic duet)
3. I Will Take You Home Again, Kathleen - Frank Sinatra (during St.
Patrick's Day skit)
note: Frank also sang a segment of "May The Good Lord Bless And Keep You" at
the
closing of the show.

1954 To Be Perfectly Frank
Network: NBC
Show: 37
Time: 8:15 p.m
Host: Frank Sinatra
Announcer: Edward King
1. Take A Chance   Capitol Recording
2.  April In Paris      Sauter Finegan
3.  I Get So Lonely    The Four Knights
4  The Girl Next Door     Capitol  Recording
5. Sunny Side of The Street  w/Sinatra Symphonette

1954 Rocky Fortune, "Psychological Murder"
Network: NBC
Episode: 23
Time: 9:35 p.m.- 10 p.m.
Performers: Frank Sinatra, Maurice Hart, Frank Gerstle, Betty Lou Gerson,
Marvin Miller.
Writers: Norm Sickel,
Directors: Andrew C. Love
Announcer: Edward King
Description: Rocky witnesses the execution of the will of a wealthy woman
who thinks that she's going insane.

1955 The Frank Sinatra Show
Network: NBC
Show Number: 57
Time 8:15 p.m.. - 8:30 p.m.
Sponsor: Bobbi Home Permanet, White Rain Shampoo, Deep Magic Face lotion
Host: Frank Sinatra
Writers: Norm Sickel
Announcer: Maurice Hart
Producer: Andrew C. Love
1. Why Should I Cry Over You? - Frank Sinatra
2. As Time Goes By - Frank Sinatra w/Bill Miller, piano
3. You, My Love - Frank Sinatra
Notes: Frank plugs his movie "Young at heart."

Television

NONE

FILM

1948  "Miracle of the Bells" (New York City Premiere March 16, 1948)
Starring:  Fred MacMurray, Alida Valli, Frank Sinatra, Lee J. Cobb
Produced by:  Jesse L. Lasky Jr. and Walter MacEwen
Directed by:  Irving Pichel
Granting her final request, a Hollywood press agent (MacMurray) brings the
dead body of an actress Olga Treskovna (Valli), who died after making her
first and only film, back to her hometown for burial. To arouse public
interest, and to get the reluctant studio head to release the film, he asks
all the local churches to ring their bells for three days. Sinatra plays
Father Paul the priest of the smaller and poorer Polish St. Michael's church
where Olga's body is to buried in accordance with Olga's wishes.
(DVD & Blu-Ray Release date: 2013-05-14)
Emacs!

Concerts

1940 Paramount Theatre, New York City (March 13 - April 9)
Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra

1941 Adams Theatre, Newark, New Jersey (March 14 - March 16)
Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra
Friday/Saturday/ Sunday
Frank Sinatra, Connie Haines, Jo Stafford, Pied Pipers,
Ziggy Elman, Joe Bushkin, Buddy Rich, Sy Oliver

NOTE: Sinatra Scholar Ed O'Brien provides us with this early 40s information
and sends us a quote from Variety:
"With indie screen fare of little consequence, Dorsey piled up outstanding
$10.600 in three weekend days. Prices were 40 to 66 cents."

1942 Palm Isle Club,  Longview, Texas Monday evening (one-nighter)
Tommy Dorsey & Orch.

Emacs!
Note:  Previous listings had Dorsey in Houston on this night.  Didn't
happen.  He was at the Palm Isle Club in Longview, Texas

1943 Riobamba Club, New York City (March 11 - May 4)
10 week engagment
3 shows a night
Nat Brandwynne's Orchestra
Also appearing: Walter O'Keefe, Sheila Barrett,
The Cerney Twins, Russell Patterson Magazine Girls
Songs sang during the engagement:
You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To
That Old Black Magic
Night and Day
Where or When
Embraceable You
I Only Have Eyes For You
The Song Is You
As Time Goes By
Imagination (not verified)

1958 Fontainebleau, Miami Beach, Florida (11-17)
Jack Stuart and his Orchestra
Also appearing:  Maria Neglia & Sacasas and his Latin American Orchestra

1959 Southeast Florida State Tuberculosis Hospital, Lantana, FL
Note:     "Frank Sinatra entertained them for more than two hours in the
auditorium,
singing songs from a recent album and other all-time Sinatra hits.
   After completing his auditorium show, Sinatra visited the wards where
patients
are confined to their beds, and with the aid of a piano on wheels serenaded
the bed patients."
         --The Palm Beach Post (West Palm Beach, Florida) March 17, 1959

1959 Fontainebleau, Miami, FLa, (March 3-16)
O.A : Kean & Parker
Red Norvo Quintet: Red Norvo vibraphone, Jerry Dodgion flute & saxaphone
Jimmy Wyble guitar, Red Wooten bass, John Markham drums

1960 Fontainbleau, Miami, Fla, (March 8 to March 27)
26 piece orchestra conducted by: Morty Stevens
Also appearing:  The Duquaines & Sacacas and his Latin America Orchestra
Bill Miller (piano)
among the songs:
I Love Paris
I Thought About You
I've Got A Crush On You
Road To Mandalay
River Stay Away From My Door
All The Way
High Hopes
medley: A Foggy Day, I've Got You Under My Skin, Angel Eyes
Come Fly With Me.

1968 Fontainebleau, Miami Beach, Florida (March 3 - April 6)
Lenny Dawson's Orchestra
Opening Act:  Pat Henry

1978 FS cancels the remaining concerts due to a sore throat

1979 Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
First Show
Orchestra Conducted By: Vincent Falcone, jr.
1. New York, New York
2. At Long Last Love
3. The Lady Is A Tramp
4. Someone To Watch Over Me
5. This Is All I Ask
6. There's Something About You
7. All I Need Is The Girl
8. You And Me
9. Send In The Clowns
10. I Have Dreamed
11. monologue
12. That's Life
13. medley: The Gal That Got Away / It Never Entered My Mind
14. I've Got The World On A String
15. You And Me
16. My Way
Notes: TT 75mins.

1979 Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Second Show
Orchestra Conducted By: Vincent Falcone, jr.
1. New York, New York
2. At Long Last Love
3. The Lady Is A Tramp
4.. Someone To Watch Over Me
5. This Is All I Ask
6. There's Something About You
7. All I Need Is The Girl
8. Send In The Clowns
9. I Have Dreamed
10. monologue
11. That's Life
12. medley: The Gal That Got Away / It Never Entered My Mind
13. I've Got The World On A String
14. You And Me
15. Where Or When
16. My Way
Notes: TT 75mins.

1981 Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Orchestra Conducted By: Vincent Falcone, jr.
1. I've Got The World On A String
2. Pennies From Heaven
3. The Best Is Yet To Come
4. Here's That Rainy Day
5.. Come Rain Or Come Shine
6. 'S Wonderful
7.. Angel Eyes
8. monologue
9. Luck Be A Lady
10. Send In The Clowns
11. I Get A Kick Out Of You
12. Street Of Dreams
13. Fly Me To The Moon
14. As Time Goes By
15. Please Be Kind
16. You And Me
17. New York, New York
Notes: TT 63mins.

1982 Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada (11-16)
Orchestra Conducted By: Vincent Falcone, jr.
Notes: substitute for Cher

1985 Golden Nugget, Las Vegas, Nevada
First Show
Orchestra Conducted By: Joe Parnello
1. The Lady Is A Tramp
2. It's All Right With Me
3. Someone To Watch Over Me
4. Fly Me To The Moon
5. Here's That Rainy Day
6. Mack The Knife
7. monologue
8. L. A. Is My Lady
9. All Of Me
10. Come Rain Or Come Shine
11. All Or Nothing At All
12. Something
13. Pennies From Heaven
14. Don't Worry 'Bout Me
15. One For My Baby
16. New York, New York
17. My Way
Notes: TT 78mins.

1985 Golden Nugget, Las Vegas, Nevada
Second Show
Orchestra Conducted By: Joe Parnello
1. The Lady Is A Tramp
2. It's All Right With Me
3. Someone To Watch Over Me
4. Fly Me To The Moon
5. Here's That Rainy Day
6. Mack The Knife
7. monologue
8. L. A. Is My Lady
9. All Of Me
10. Come Rain Or Come Shine
11.. All Or Nothing At All
12. Something
13.. Pennies From Heaven
14. One For My Baby
15. New York, New York
Notes: TT 52mins.

1986 Radio City Music Hall, New York City
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Benefit
Benny Goodman Orchestra Conducted By: Bill Miller
Other Performers: Placido Domingo, Red Buttons, Ella Fitzgerald
1. New York, New York
2. Where Or When
3. My Heart Stood Still
4. Change Partners 5. Bewitched
6. It's All Right With Me
7. One For My Baby
8. Mack The Knife
Notes: TT 55mins.

1988 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington
The "TOGETHER AGAIN" Tour
Orchestra Conducted By: Bill Miller
w/Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, jr.
1. overture
Dean:
2. When You're Drinking / Bourbon From Heaven
3. Everybody Loves Somebody
4. Where Or When
5. Welcome To My World
6. Here Comes My Baby Back Again
7. That Little Ol' Wine Maker
8. That's Amore
Sammy:
9. Here I'll Stay
10. Another Spring
12. I've Gotta Be Me
13. Medley Sam & Drums
14. The Candy Man
15. What Kind Of Fool Am I
16. Mr. Bojangles
Frank:
17. I've Got The World On A String
18. What Now My Love
19. Maybe This Time
20. For Once In My Life
21. This Is All I Ask
22. Mack The Knife
23. medley: The Gal That Got Away / It Never Entered My Mind
24. You Are The Sunshine Of My Life
25. New York, New York
Frank, Dean & Sammy:
26. comedy
27. medley: Side By Side / I've Heard That Song Before / All Or Nothing
At All / Memories Are Made Of This / Something's Gotta Give / Love
And Marriage / Volare - Old Black Magic / Witchcraft / Bye Bye
Blackbird / I've Got Plenty O' Nutin' / Come Fly With Me / Gonna
Build A Mountain / Oh Marie / All Of Me / You're Nobody Till
Somebody Loves You
28. The Oldest Established
Notes: TT 126mins.

----------------------------------------------

Extra

1976 Eddie Cantor B'nai Brith Lodge, Los Angeles, California
STAG ROAST for Pat Henry
Tuesday evening
$35.00 per seat
Jerry Rosen introduces Billy Daniels who sings The National Anthem
Rosen starts off the evening
John Francis
Jan Murray M.C.
George Jessel tells audience there are three champions in the room: Sugar
Ray Robinson,
Milton Berle and the most popular entertainer in the history of show
business, Frank Sinatra
Joey Villa
Milton Berle
Sid Gould
John Barbour
Pat McCormick
Fred Travelena
Jackie Vernon
Pat Cooper
Jackie Gayle
Frank Sinatra sings parody of Frank Loesser's "If I Were A Bell" (Sammy Cahn
wrote special lyrics)
Redd Foxx
Pat Henry

Ed O'Brien supplied the roast details and added: 150 minutes, NC-17 All The
Way

------------------------------------------------------

1942 Palm Isle Club,  Longvew, Texas
Monday evening
Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra
Emacs!

----------------------------------------------------------

1943 Riobamba Club, New York City (March 11 - May 12)
10 week engagement
3 shows a night
Nat Brandwynne's Orchestra

Billboard March 27, 1943
Riobamba, New York
Talent policy: Show and dance band;
Latin band; production. floorshow at 8,
midnight and 2. Management: Linton
Weil, operator; Fred Chlaventone, maitre
d'hotel; Zussman & Bayne, publicity..
Prices: $2.50 minimum except Saturday,
holiday and holiday eves, $3.
Off to a fast click, this new East Side
spot is currently spending its heaviest
dough for floorshow talent. It brought
in March 11 Frank Sinatra, making his
cafe debut as a single: Walter O'Keefe,
Sheila Barrett, Carney Twins, line of six
Russell Patterson Magazine Girls, Peggy
Holmes and Ray Dowd.
Biggest excitement is Sinatra, who is
being backed by an aggressive publicity
campaign as Bing Crosby's successor, and
who has RK0 pictures, radio and vehicle
deals set. Sinatra may not be another
Crosby, but he's got sex appeal In his
voice, and that's something that means
dollars at the box office. The club has
been packed since he opened, and women
patrons actually gasp out loud when he
sighs thru some pushy pop ballads.
Crooned eight numbers, including a couple of oldies.
He knows how to sell ballads, making the lyrics sound
sincere and letting his face suggest real feeling.
The men apparently were not carried
away by his torching, but the women. . ..
Sinatra is in for three weeks. .
Nat Brandwynne (piano) leads the
show and dance band (three sax, three
fiddles and three rhythm). It's a good ---,outfit, with the
leader's tine piano leadilng most of the arrangements.
Chavez's band" (seven men) is, as usual, a lively, jumpy;
hotcha Latin outfit. Its rhythms are very danceable.
--Paul Denis.

--------------------------------------------------------

1948  "Miracle of the Bells" (New York City Premiere March 16, 1948)
Emacs!
Daily News (New York, New York)   16 Mar 1948, Tue

The opening credits of the film read: "Jesse L. Lasky Productions, Inc.
presents Russell Janney's The Miracle of the Bells ." Contemporary news
items add the following information about the production: Lasky and
co-producer Walter MacEwen purchased Janney's novel in Oct 1946 for
$100,000 plus five percent of the producers' gross up to the first
$4,000,000.
After $4,000,000, Janney was to receive ten percent of the producers' gross,

with no maximum limit set. Four other parties negotiated for the book's
screen
rights, including William Cagney, who wanted the property as a vehicle for
his
brother, James Cagney. At that time, Lasky and MacEwen reportedly made
James Cagney a "percentage offer" to play the part of "Bill Dunnigan."
Janney was announced as the picture's screenwriter at that time. Clark
Gable and Cary Grant were also considered for the lead male role. Many
actresses were considered for the part of "Olga," including Barbara Bel
Geddes, Ingrid Bergman, Jennifer Jones, Joan Fontaine and Greer Garson.
In 1946, Bergman appeared as "Joan of Arc" in the Maxwell Anderson stage
play Joan of Lorraine . (Ironically, shortly after the release of this film,
RKO
distributed Joan of Arc , Walter Wanger's screen adaptation of Anderson's
play,
starring Bergman.) Lasky and MacEwen also considered casting an unknown
actress in the part and tested Jana Garth, who also had played "Joan of Arc"
on
stage, and Ricky Soma, an eighteen-year-old New York ballerina. Maxwell
Hamilton,
who plays a reporter in the picture, was the editor of Motion Picture
magazine.
       In Feb 1947, John Cromwell was announced as the film's director, but
he was
replaced by Irving Pichel. Lasky borrowed Pichel from Paramount for the
production.
Lasky and MacEwen considered doing the picture in Technicolor, but
eventually
concluded that the story would "work better" in black and white. A
reproduction
of a Pennsylvania mining town was built at RKO's Forty Acres ranch in Culver
City.
HR announced in Jun 1947 that a featurette about the making of the film was
to be
shot and used in movie theaters to advertise the multi-million dollar
production.
Although the national release of the film coincided with Easter week of
1948, HR
announced in Oct 1947 that the film was to be shown in Los Angeles in Dec
1947
in order to qualify for the 1947 Academy Awards. The picture did not receive
any
Academy Award nominations, however.
       In Mar 1948, NYT reported a rumor that the actual contribution of
radio
personality Quentin Reynolds, who is credited onscreen with Ben Hecht as a
screenwriter, was "reading the novel and reporting its contents to Mr.
Hecht,
the latter having taken the assignment of writing the screenplay on the
provision
that he didn't have to read the book." According to NYHT , Hecht, a declared

Anglophobe, had his name removed from British release prints of the film. In

Aug 1948, Raymond Polniaszek, an undertakeer from Glen Lyon, Pennsylvania,
sued RKO for $500,000 in damages on the grounds that he had been
caricaturized
as "Nick Orloff" in the film, according to a LADN article. Polniaszek
claimed that he
participated in a number of real-life events that were depicted in both the
novel and
the film, including the burial of a woman named Olga Trotski. The
disposition of that
suit has not been discovered.
       Modern sources add the following information about the production:
Before
casting Frank Sinatra in the role of "Father Paul," Lasky sought approval
from the
Catholic Church, which voiced no objections to the performer. Sinatra, who
had
actively sought the part, then announced his intention to donate his acting
salary
to the Church. Sinatra's scenes were written by DeWitt Bodeen. Reviewers
commented on Sinatra's simple, a capella rendition of the song "Ever
Homeward."
The film encountered distribution difficulties in England because of a
boycott
against the films of Ben Hecht. Hecht had made derogatory comments about the

presence of Britain in Palestine.[4]The premier for the film is another
interesting
story. It took place on Friday, March 26, 1948 at the then "Park Theater" on

Brownsville Road in the little Coal Mining town of Library, Pennsylvania.
Although
the movie was not filmed in Library, the town was chosen to host the premier
because
it "most resembled a typical American mining community, like the one
portrayed in the
movie." Accompanying the premier, a large motorcade escorted movie stars
Charles
Coburn, Ruth Warrick and Leo Carrillo into the town of Library. The stars
visited the
War Memorial just down the road from the theater, where they addressed the
enormous
crowd of locals who showed up for the pomp and celebration. The theater is
still standing
today, and over the years has been converted for other uses, such as a Dance
Studio and
a Boxing Gym.[
Reception[edit]
The Miracle of the Bells was dismissed by critics, and was mentioned in the
satirical film
book The Golden Turkey Awards, which poked fun at Frank Sinatra's portrayal
of Father Paul.
Time magazine excoriated the film upon release, declaring in their review
that "St.
Michael ought to sue".[ In recent decades the film has developed a better
reputation due
to its realistic portrayal of coal miners in small town America.
Box office
The film recorded a loss of $640,000

Emacs!

Emacs!

Emacs!

Emacs!

---------------------------------------------------------

1954 Rocky Fortune, "Psychological Murder"
Network: NBC
Episode: 23
Time: 9:35 p.m.- 10 p.m.
Performers: Frank Sinatra, Maurice Hart, Frank Gerstle, Betty Lou Gerson,
Marvin Miller.
Writers: Norm Sickel,
Directors: Andrew C. Love
Announcer: Edward King
Description: Rocky witnesses the execution of the will of a wealthy woman
who thinks that she's going insane.

       Media Confidential: 2019-09-29

Emacs!

Emacs!
            note: A pilot was done of "Frankie Galahad."

-------------------------------------------------

1959 Southeast Florida State Tuberculosis Hospital, Lantana, FL
Emacs!
The Palm Beach Post (West Palm Beach, Florida) March 17, 1959

Emacs!
Emacs!
The Miami Herald (Miami, Florida) . 18 Mar 1959

Frank Sinatra became a part of Florida's musical history when he gave a
secret concert at a hospital in Lantana.

By Larry Aydlette The Palm Beach Post
Posted Oct 14, 2019 at 3:20 PM

He was The Chairman. The Voice. A-Number One. King of The Hill.

So when Frank Sinatra arrived in Palm Beach County to give a concert 60
years ago, you'd think it would have been a big, fat, ring-a-ding deal. A
lot of hype. Excited fans lining up for tickets.

But hardly anybody knew he was here.

At the time, Francis Albert Sinatra was the most famous singer in the world.
And 1959 marked the close of a decade that had seen the release of some of
his greatest concept albums -- "In The Wee Small Hours," "Songs For Swingin'
Lovers," "Come Fly With Me" and the towering "Frank Sinatra Sings For Only
The Lonely."

He was a major movie star, catnip to the ladies and a personality whose
every move was fodder for gossip columnists.

So why did he come here under the radar?

Despite many stories of Mob connections and petty cruelties, Sinatra was
just as famous among friends for his private generosities. And his
appearance on March 16, 1959 at the Southeast Florida State Tuberculosis
Hospital  in Lantana definitely fits the profile  of the Sinatra who would
quietly help those in need.

You couldn't buy a ticket. He didn't do any interviews. Sinatra probably
wanted it kept hush-hush. And who was going to cross Ol' Blue Eyes?

The brief story of his appearance -- "Frank Sinatra Visits Hospital" -- was
buried the next day in The Palm Beach Post on Page 13, dutifully reported by
"Lake Worth News" correspondent Wilbur Royce.. It shared space with less
flashy community headlines, such as "Water Pressure Temporarily Low."

The six-paragraph story said the patients had "the time of their lives" when
Sinatra spent more than two hours in the hospital auditorium, "singing songs
from a recent album and other all-time Sinatra hits."

But he didn't just perform in the auditorium. "Sinatra visited the wards
where patients are confined to their beds, and with the aid of a piano on
wheels serenaded the bed patients," the Post reported.

Needless to say, a hospital official said there had never been "such
enthusiastic reception" for any show staged at the hospital. "We wish to
thank Sinatra a great deal for leading the way in what we hope will be a
parade of stars to entertain patients here," said H.E. Melton, the
hospital's special services officer.

The patients certainly deserved a respite from their isolated suffering.
Tuberculosis, primarily a lung disease , was a leading cause of death in the
United States from the early 20th century through the 1950s. Sanitariums
began popping up across the country, and the 500-bed Lantana hospital had
opened only nine years before Sinatra appeared.

Longtime residents probably remember it as the A.G. Holley State Hospital,
re-named in 1969 for a state tuberculosis board member. By the 1970s, it was
the state's only TB hospital, down to 150 patients. After numerous attempts
to shut it down, the state finally succeeded in 2012, despite the fact that
Florida had just experienced its worst TB outbreak in decades.

It's unknown how Sinatra was recruited for the hospital show. He was a
supporter of many charities, including the American Lung Association. And,
perhaps most important, he was hanging out just down the road.

A few days before, he began a two-week stint at Miami Beach's fabled
Fontainebleau hotel. He had been a frequent visitor to Miami since the '40s.
He had recently filmed Frank Capra's "A Hole In The Head" on South Beach,
and would make his Tony Rome detective pictures there during the '60s.

When he opened with the Red Norvo combo on March 3 at the hotel's 750-seat
La Ronde room, UPI reported that several hundred people were turned away.
"It was our largest opening night of the season," a hotel official told the
news service.

As always, gossip trailed after him, this time reports of a feud with Sammy
Davis, Jr. Sinatra wouldn't talk about it. He stuck to his singing -- and
hits from "Night and Day" to "All The Way."

To get an idea of what Sinatra Prime must have been like at the Lantana
hospital, consider what Herb Kelly of The Miami News said about his
Fontainebleau show:

"Maybe a professional head shrinker can explain how Frank Sinatra does it.
The thin man dressed in jet black suit, jet black shoes  and light pink
tie...lifts the skinny microphone from its stand and sings 'I Could Have
Danced All Night' in the beat of the blues.

"And for a solid hour, by some mysterious magnetism, he held the audience in
a spell...Everything about the act is reserved and refined. To coin one of
Sinatra's polite expressions, 'It's a gasser.'"

The French singer and film star Maurice Chevalier saw Sinatra's last show at
the Fontainebleau, and was impressed by his talent. But he also glimpsed the
other side of Sinatra.

"He can turn on his audience in only a moment, and I must say it, he's a
little frightening when he does this," Chevalier told the Miami News.

That shadow haunted Sinatra throughout his life and career. Palm Beach
County would not get a chance at another Sinatra concert until 1993, when he
was 77 and did a four-show run at the Kravis Center. In the September of his
years, Sinatra's vocals weren't all there. Neither was his memory, but he
still had plenty of that mysterious magnetism.

As for the tuberculosis hospital, the wrecking ball started knocking down
the old A.G. Holley buildings in 2014. In its place is Lantana's largest
development, a long-gestating, mixed-use complex of retail and apartments
known as Water Tower Commons.

Maybe one day, somebody will be walking through one of the complex's shops
and hear a voice -- The Voice, in fact. And a Sinatra song will once again
serenade the area just like the man himself did 60 years ago.

This story was based on original reporting in The Palm Beach Post, the Miami
News, the Fort Lauderdale News, and stories by Post reporter Jeff Ostrowski
and former Palm Beach Post writers Michelle Quigley, Stacey Singer, Lauren
Fisher and Charles Passy.

--Thanks to Ed O'Brien for posting the above story.

-----------------------------------------

1988 Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington
The "TOGETHER AGAIN" Tour
Orchestra Conducted By: Bill Miller
w/Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, jr.

Emacs!

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