Barbara Ann Blakeley Oliver Marx Sinatra (March 10, 1927 – July 25, 2017) was an American model,

showgirl A showgirl is a female dancer or performer in a stage entertainment show intended to showcase the performer's physical attributes, typically by way of revealing clothing, toplessness, or nudity. History Showgirls date back to the late 180 ...

, socialite and the fourth wife of Frank Sinatra.

Early life

Barbara Ann Blakeley was born on March 10, 1927 in

Bosworth, Missouri Bosworth is a city in Carroll County, Missouri, Carroll County, Missouri, United States. The population was 213 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census. History Bosworth was laid out in 1888, and named for a settler. A post office call ...

, the elder of two daughters. Her parents were Charles Willis Blakeley (June 29, 1895 – October 5, 1989) and Irene Prunty (née Toppass) Blakeley (June 22, 1907 – December 15, 1993). At age 10, she moved with her parents and younger sister, Patricia, to

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had a population of 647,610 in 2020. It is located in ...

, where she was raised. In 1946, she graduated from Wichita North High School. At age 18, she moved to

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

Personal life

Marriage to Oliver

She married Robert Oliver in September 1948 and had a son, Robert Blake "Bobby" Oliver on October 10, 1950. She divorced Oliver in 1952.

Marriage to Marx

She married

Zeppo Marx Herbert Manfred "Zeppo" Marx (February 25, 1901 – November 30, 1979) was an American comedic actor, theatrical agent, and engineer. He was the youngest and last survivor of the five Marx Brothers. He appeared in the first five Marx Brothers f ...

on September 18, 1959. Despite their divorce in 1973, she was thenceforth known as Barbara Marx.

Marriage to Sinatra

She married Frank Sinatra on July 11, 1976. It was his fourth and final marriage, and her third and final marriage. It was also the longest-lasting marriage for both. She converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. According to her book, ''Lady Blue Eyes: My Life With Frank'', "He

rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * ...

never asked me to change faith for him, but I could tell he was pleased that I'd consider it." Upon his death in 1998, Frank Sinatra left her $3.5 million in assets, along with mansions in Beverly Hills, Malibu, and Palm Springs. She also inherited the rights to Sinatra's ''Trilogy'' recordings, most of his material possessions and control over his name and likeness.

Death

Barbara Marx Sinatra died on July 25, 2017, in

Rancho Mirage, California Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 17,218 at the 2010 census, up from 13,249 at the 2000 census, but the seasonal (part-time) population can exceed 20,000. Incorporated in 1973 and locate ...

, of natural causes at the age of 90. She died a year before Frank's first wife, Nancy, who died on July 13, 2018, at the age of 101. She is buried at the

Desert Memorial Park Desert Memorial Park is a cemetery in Cathedral City, California, United States, near Palm Springs. Opening in 1956 and receiving its first interment in 1957,The Palm Springs Cemetery District itself was covers 504 square miles, including Palm Spr ...

next to husband Frank.

Legacy

The Sinatras founded the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center in

, in 1986. The center is adjacent to the Betty Ford Center on the campus of the

Eisenhower Medical Center The Eisenhower Medical Center (EMC) is a not-for-profit hospital based in Rancho Mirage, California, serving the Coachella Valley region of Southeastern California. It was named one of the top one hundred hospitals in the United States in 2005. ...

. The non-profit facility provides individual and group therapy for young victims of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. In 1998, a Golden Palm Star on the

Palm Springs Walk of Stars The Palm Springs Walk of Stars is a walk of fame in downtown Palm Springs, California, where "Golden Palm Stars", honoring various people who have lived in the greater Palm Springs area, are embedded in the sidewalk pavement. The walk includes po ...

was dedicated to her.

References

External links

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Barbara Sinatra
at Find a Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Sinatra, Barbara 1927 births 2017 deaths American memoirists American socialites Burials at Desert Memorial Park Converts to Roman Catholicism Female models from Missouri People from Carroll County, Missouri People from Wichita, Kansas 20th-century American philanthropists 20th-century American women 21st-century American women Sinatra family