WHAT'S YOUR CUP OF TEA?

That's not tea, pal, it just looks like it.

The official Frank Sinatra Day is quite upon us! A mere 4 days away! And many of us are still without a good idea of how we will celebrate. It could only be proper to include a lot of cigarettes, a fedora, and some amount of brown liquor... which brings us to the question, "what will I be drinking on May 13th, the official Frank Sinatra Day?"

As most avid Fan-atras (you like that? i just made it up.) may already know, Frank was a big fan of the Jack Daniels. It seems only right that JD should be brought into the celebration then. Right?

Alas and alack, I shall have need to celebrate with a JD lover, for I haven't the palate myself for Bourbon. I do, however, appreciate a cheap scotch. For this reason, I think I'll be having my other boyfriend, Johnny Walker, over for dinner.

I know, you're asking "won't your first boyfriend (Frank) be a little upset about you partying with another man?" My answer to you is, Frank and I have a long distance romance, and we recognize the need to resume an open relationship to avoid the pitfalls of extreme loneliness. Don't worry though, the aforementioned bourbon lover who'll be celebrating with JW and I will be purely platonic.

Author's Note

I should adress the folly I noticed on the link below. May 8th as Frank Sinatra Day was a curiosity... I found a couple references to that date, but overwhelmingly, the majority of notices on Sinatra Day I found refered to the 13th. Sorry for any confusion.

Further, please be aware that the depreciating tone in that link does not reflect the opinions of this blogger. Quite the contrary; I realize that that writer will not be invited to that Big Casino in the Sky when her time comes--the unholy broad.

11 days and counting!

FINALLY GONNA CLASS THAT JOINT UP, 'EH SIMON?

Alright pallies,
I know there's some folks amongus that must be fans of American Idol. G'head and admit it; we're all friends here. Good news for you... this week on AI, our boys' tunes are gonna be featured! S-wing Baby!
Perhaps now, Frank'll make a comeback and turn some of the heads of 2009 popular culture?
I know AI is taking a bit of flack from other folks for this incredibly fortuitous executive decision. That's just because those other folks aren't hep to the scene, right Mac?
Don't forget to check out American Idol on Tuesday... especially for those of you who are relatively unfamiliar with Rat Packer's standards.

ORIGIN UNKNOWN...

We'll chalk this one up to divine intervention...

You may be wonderin' how an otherwise relatively hip chick like me would become an adoring fan of such an old-timer...
Well, it was merely a matter of time.

My childhood experience of watching the classic musicals that my parents so adored created a subtle sense of nostalgia for the bygone days. However, my parents weren't nearly as cool as I in their musical tastes, preferring Yani (they call him that cuz it's what he makes you do!) and, what's that sax player's name? to the super style of my boys. My grandparents--really more of the Sinatra fan base peer group--were either into barbershop quartets (such as grampa the preacher) or old school country (such as granny the arkie). So where did the influence come from? I guess it might have been a gift from above...

As a bartender in Wichita, Kansas at the premier dead-head/biker bar, Downtown Wally Brown's, I was shooting pool in a local competition dive bar--i mean seedy!--when I stumbled upon a Sinatra CD in their juke box--is that cosmic placement or something? It was just like the Universe slipped it into that brief moment in time, just to change my life!--and decided, "what the heck; let's see what that era was all about!" I don't remember just what song it was... I've heard so many of his songs for years not even realizing who I was listening to, like the Married With Children theme song, Love and Marriage. Maybe it was World on a String. Whichever the case, it was like an immediately heart-melting moment, and I knew that no other man, not Jerry Garcia himself, would ever hold a candle to this one.

I returned to my own dive bar the next day and demanded that SOME album be taken off the jukebox so that SINATRA could be put on!

OK, so the bikers and the hippies gave me funny looks for quite a while after that, but man I tell ya, something otherworldly happened, and it caught on. Imagine the bearded, burly, bikers singing in unison,
I got the world on a string
Sittin' on a rainbow
Got the string 'round my fi-i-inger
What a world, What a life
I'm in love!

Then I discovered his theatrical line-up. He was really quite good. Check out my review of certain films, 3 posts down, called "what mood moves you?"
Lori, to you I recommend "High Society." It's a musical, if you can handle that! But Frank's performance is top notch. Plus, he sings some wonderful tunes.

WHAT MOOD MOVES YOU?

When it comes to Sinatra movies, it's all about mood.

What emotion are you looking to appeal to when you're going out to rent a Frank flick? Here's a quick rundown of potential movies for your potential moodies.

FRANK THE LOVER

Definitely go for Anchors Aweigh. He's cute as a button, unassuming, and in love with the lady who loves another. He gets his comeuppance, though, and finds the perfect girl. This movie also features (sigh) Gene Kelly. If you've never seen a Gene Kelly movie, OMG, after this one you'll be a believer. He's the singularly greatest dancer/choreographer of all time. He's like Astair, only HOT!

Anchors Aweigh also features the very famous dance scene with Jerry the Mouse. This is the film that pioneered mixing real film with animation. The sequence with Jerry was the first to incorporate a cartoon character interacting with a filmed figure.

FRANK THE PARTIER

Robin and the Seven Hoods, all the way! This movie has Dean and Sammy in it too, as well as Bing Crosby. The musical numbers are glorious--especially "You either got or you haven't got style." The comedy is sheer hilarity! They make you want to be there having a good time with them, law-breaking, mob-dodging, and shooting pool.

FRANK THE SINGER

Many of his films feature his voice, but for all intents and purposes, High Society rocks the boat! This Grace Kelly, Bing Crosby (and... what was that other gal's name... I don't remember, but I love her! ) film is a musical spin off of the Hepburn/Grant/Stewart classic The Philadelphia Story. I LOVE THIS MOVIE!! The songs are AWESOME! Including Porter's marvel, "What a swell party this is." Frank's journalist partner (I wish I could remember... OH YEAH), Celeste Holm, are magic together! And who doesn't swoon when watching the supremely graceful Grace Kelly?

As a side, Guys and Dolls is a great film with Sinatra as supporting actor alongside the wonderful Marlon Brando. Brando, I love you. But God bless him, he's just no singer. Somehow (cuz he's so dreamy), he got the lead role and the lead vocals on a Sinatra standard, "Luck be a Lady." Kinda infuriating, but I suppose Sinatra had a decent role nonetheless.

FRANK THE RAT

There's a tie here between Marriage on the Rocks and The Tender Trap. These two movies ('65 and '55 respectively) will truly offend the delicate feminist sensibilities. But that point is an interesting illustration of what was considered appropriate gender ideology of the time. Marriage on the Rocks features Deborah Kerr (From Here to Eternity) and Dean-o and makes bold statements about what a wife should be willing to accept. The Tender Trap costars Debbie Reynolds (from the alltime greatest, Singin' in the Rain) and the wonderful Celeste Holm, and tells the tale of a womanizer falling in love.

Whatever mood moves you to the movie store, check it out, there's a Sinatra gem that's just right for you.

Yes, he loved the ladies

FIRST AND FOREMOST

Frank was an actor. Much like Dean, the ruse he played out was a self-depreciating kind of humor meant to reflect his human quality. As an example, Dean was famously an unqualified drunk... Always sipping a cocktail during his act, slurring his words, forgetting the songs... In fact, Dean did not drink while he performed, and was, for the most part, never drunk during performances. It was an act. As Sinatra once said when asked about Martin's drunkenness, "I spill more than he drinks." Sinatra was no less an actor. And his jokes about women were for the purpose of comedy (which got lots of giggles from the ladies, by the way). Here's personal testimony, quoted I believe from Playboy--someone correct me if i'm wrong here.

"I’m supposed to have a Ph.D. on the subject of women. But the truth is I’ve flunked more often than not. I’m very fond of women; I admire them. But like all men, I don’t understand them."

It's not hard to believe that he did appreciate women, he married 4 times! And Ava Gardner, in particular, tormented his delicate sensibilities. I will admit that begrudging Mia Farrow for not giving up her career was a slap in the face of women's lib, but come on, it was the 60s! And Mia, always remembering Frank fondly:

"TV in bed, our puppies, his incredible sweetness, the purity of his feelings. His smile. Our ages finally mattered. [he was 50, she 21] I was too ill at ease with his remoteness and unable to fathom his complexities."

Sinatra's exes all shared this sentiment. And he got along smashingly with all of them. How many people do you know that can say the same?

(quoted from Remembering Sinatra)

BTW, if anyone is judging him based on his famous "The Lady is a Tramp," check out the lyrics:

"She gets too hungry, for dinner at 8

She loves the theater and never comes late

She'd never bother with people she'd hate

That's why the lady is a tramp

Doesn't like crap games with Barons and Earls

Won't go to Harlem in ermine and pearls

Won't dish the dirt with the rest of the girls

That's why the lady is a tramp"

here's to cole!

a note to Don Key's topic...

cole porter was a marvelous songwriter. i particularly like "what a swell party this is" and "anything goes," both CP songs, yes? (please feel free to correct me if i blunder; i'm only right 87% of the time so i must be told about my other 13% if i am to ever amend that percentage! ) While sinatra was no songwriter (that i know of, but that makes swell chum for further research), he was a gifted musician... his instrument being his voice. he played that instrument with incredible finesse, devotion and intuition. there is a reason such an incomparable voice is, at the same time, so effortless. he is a prodigious example of vocal expression. All that and songwriting too? save that for jesus, cuz only HE could top our guy!

PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN LIVING-STATUS

i feel i must post to don key's points, made in the comment section at welcome friends. the same point was raised by mjzmusic in a different post comment:

let me be frank... since he's not here to be (or defend) himself...
the notion of sinatra's racism is, in my opinion, not properly considered.

it's easy for us to believe now that the things sinatra said were racist or politically incorrect, but i believe his love for jr. was real and deep, and there was not a bit of frank that appreciated sam any less for his race. check back in for sinatra quote on the subject once i've researched it. remember, sammy was just as much a participant in the rat pack act as anyone else, and likely had as much fun with it (though further research into sammy's bio is due this point).

the key to being able to joke about race is having a pure heart with regard to it, and recognizing it as simple comedy, not agenda-pushing--this is the reason we can joke about our own race today without offending others of the same race. they know we aren't really degrading ourselves and others like us, but rather bringing comic relief to otherwise ugly disparities. while it is true that i haven't experienced all the pack's bits, from what i've heard, it was never truly meanspirited or deliberately insulting to brownness.

it was commonplace at that time to make comments that today are considered crass or inappropriate. consider jokes about women--girlfriends vs wives--or even the jokes made about being an alcoholic, and how inappropriate that might come off as now. conceptions of race and stereotyping, were not considered the icky subject that they are today. That's not to say that a man is justified in racist notions simply because it is the majority perspective. simply, that an evaluation of the man's heart cannot be made based on the way he behaved 50 years ago measured by notions of a today's taboos.

thanks for raising the subject, don and mjz