''Sinatra'' is a 1992

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

miniseries about singer

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

, developed and executive produced by Frank's youngest daughter

Tina Sinatra Christina Sinatra (born June 20, 1948) is an American businesswoman, producer, talent agent, actress, singer and author. She is the daughter of Frank Sinatra. Early life Christina Sinatra was born on June 20, 1948, in Los Angeles, California, th ...

and approved by Frank himself. Directed by

James Steven Sadwith James Steven Sadwith (born October 20, 1952) is an American producer, screenwriter, and Emmy Award-winning film director. His films have won or been nominated for over 30 Emmy and Golden Globe awards. He is best known for directing the televisi ...

, produced by Richard M. Rosenbloom, and written by

William Mastrosimone William Mastrosimone (born August 19, 1947) is an American playwright and screenwriter from Trenton, New Jersey. He attended high school at The Pennington School and received a graduate degree in playwriting from Mason Gross School of the Arts, ...

and

Abby Mann Abby Mann (December 1, 1927 – March 25, 2008) was an American film writer and producer. Life and career The son of Russian-Jewish immigrants, Mann was born as Abraham Goodman in Philadelphia. He grew up in East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dou ...

. It stars

Philip Casnoff Philip Casnoff (born August 3, 1953) is an American actor, known for his roles in TV series and on Broadway. He has also been a director. Early life and education Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 3, 1953, Willis, John (1994). The ...

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, in some 60 films, and in approximately 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in the ...

Joe Santos Joe Santos (born Joseph John Minieri Jr.; June 9, 1931 – March 18, 2016) was an American film and television actor, best known as Sgt. Dennis Becker (later Lieutenant), the friend of James Garner's character on the NBC crime drama '' Th ...

Gina Gershon Gina L. Gershon (; born June 10, 1962) is an American actress and singer. She has starred in such films as ''Cocktail'' (1988), ''Red Heat'' (1988), '' Showgirls'' (1995), '' Bound'' (1996), '' Face/Off'' (1997), '' The Insider'' (1999), '' Dem ...

Nina Siemaszko Antonina Jadwiga Siemaszko (; born July 14, 1970) is an American actress, best known for her film roles in '' Little Noises'' (1991), '' The Saint of Fort Washington'' (1993), and for her role as Eleanor Bartlet in '' The West Wing'' (2001–2006 ...

Bob Gunton Robert Patrick Gunton Jr. (born November 15, 1945) is an American character actor of stage and screen. He is known for playing strict authoritarian characters, including Warden Samuel Norton in the 1994 prison drama ''The Shawshank Redemption'', ...

, and

Marcia Gay Harden Marcia Gay Harden (born August 14, 1959) is an American actress. Her accolades include an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and nominations for four Primetime Emmy Awards. Harden's breakthrough came in 1990 with the Coen brothers' film '' Miller's ...

, with some of Sinatra's vocals recreated by

Tom Burlinson Tom Burlinson (born 14 February 1956) is a Canadian-born Australian actor and singer. Early life Tom Burlinson was born in Toronto, Canada, the son of Antony T. Burlinson (born 1923, in Greenwich, Middlesex) and Angela Schofield (born 1926, ...

. It won two and was nominated for seven

Primetime Emmy Awards The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

, along with a win and two nominations for a

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

. Released on November 8, 1992, it was re-released on a two-disc DVD Warner Home Video on May 13, 2008.

Plot

(Casnoff) emerges from

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...

, the son of local politician Natalie "Dolly" Sinatra (Dukakis) and fireman Anthony "Marty" Sinatra (Santos). Beginning his career as a singer for the

Harry James Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band to great commercial success from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947, but ...

(Posey) and

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombone, trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-to ...

(Gunton) big bands, Sinatra struggles to keep his marriage to his teenage sweetheart Nancy Barbato (Gershon). Before long, his talent catapults him to both music and movie fame, but his personal failings place his career and marriage in danger. He endures tumultuous marriages and divorces with starlets

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

(Harden) and

Mia Farrow Maria de Lourdes Villiers "Mia" Farrow ( ; born February 9, 1945) is an American actress. She first gained notice for her role as Allison MacKenzie in the television soap opera ''Peyton Place (TV series), Peyton Place'' and gained further recogn ...

(Siemaszko) while juggling his movie and singing careers and forming significant friendships with an ambitious young senator named

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

(Kelly) and powerful Chicago mob boss

Sam Giancana Salvatore "Mooney" Giancana ( ; born Gilormo Giangana, ; May 24, 1908 – June 19, 1975) was an American mobster who was boss of the Chicago Outfit from 1957 to 1966. Giancana was born in Chicago to Italian immigrant parents. He joined the 42 ...

(Steiger).

Cast

as his singing voice *

as Natalie "Dolly" Sinatra *

as Marty Sinatra *

as Nancy Barbato Sinatra *

Joe Grifasi Joseph G. Grifasi (born June 14, 1944) is an American character actor of film, stage and television. Early life and education Grifasi was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Patricia (née Gaglione) and Joseph J. Grifasi, a skilled laborer. Gri ...

as George Evans *

* David Raynr as

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, actor, comedian, dancer, and musician. At age two, Davis began his career in Vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which t ...

* Ralph Seymour as Budd *

Jeff Corey Jeff Corey (born Arthur Zwerling; August 10, 1914 – August 16, 2002) was an American stage and screen actor. He was blacklisted in the 1950s and became an acting coach for a period, before returning to film and television work in the 1960s. ...

as Quinlin *

Danny Gans Danny Davies Gans (October 25, 1956 – May 1, 2009) was an American singer, comedian and vocal impressionist. Career Gans was a performer on the Las Vegas Strip and the surrounding area, where he was billed as "The Man of Many Voices." He h ...

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

Vincent Guastaferro Vincent Guastaferro (born April 6, 1950) is an American film, stage and television actor. He is known for playing the recurring role of Sgt. Vincent Agostini in the American police procedural television series ''NYPD Blue''. Born in Jersey Cit ...

Hank Sanicola Henry William "Hank" Sanicola (14 June 1914 – 6 October 1974) was an American music manager, publisher, businessman and pianist, best known for his work and association with Frank Sinatra from the late 1930s to the early 1960s. Early life Sanic ...

* James F. Kelly as

* Matthew Posey as

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger ( ; April 14, 1925 – July 9, 2002) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Ranked as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars", he is closely associ ...

as Salvatore Giancana *

Carol Barbee Carol Denise Barbee (born May 22, 1959, in Concord, North Carolina) is an Emmy winning American television writer, actress and producer.Marilyn Maxwell Marvel Marilyn Maxwell (August 3, 1921 – March 20, 1972) was an American actress and entertainer. In a career that spanned the 1940s and 1950s, she appeared in several films and radio programs, and entertained the troops during World War ...

* David Byrd as Michael Romanoff * Paul Collins as

Westbrook Pegler Francis James Westbrook Pegler (August 2, 1894 – June 24, 1969) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning U.S. journalist described as "one of the godfathers of right-wing populism". He was a newspaper columnist popular in the 1930s and 1940s for his opposit ...

* Maggie Egan as

Jo Stafford Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917July 16, 2008) was an American traditional pop singer, whose career spanned five decades from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. Admired for the purity of her voice, she originally underwent classical tr ...

Brian Markinson Brian Markinson (born ) is an American actor who has appeared in a wide variety of films and television shows. Some of Markinson's best known roles include a U.S. Attorney General in ''Shooter'', an unscrupulous industrialist in ''Godzilla'', ...

Sonny Werblin David Abraham "Sonny" Werblin (March 17, 1910 – November 21, 1991) was a prominent entertainment industry executive and sports impresario who was an owner of the New York Jets and served as chairman of Madison Square Garden, and who built and ...

* Tony Simotes as

Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, ...

John Wesley John Wesley ( ; 2 March 1791) was an English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a principal leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The societies ...

Sy Oliver Melvin James "Sy" Oliver (December 17, 1910 – May 28, 1988) was an American jazz arranger, trumpeter, composer, singer and bandleader. Life Sy Oliver was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. His mother was a piano teacher, and his f ...

* Marc Grady Adams as

Lee Mortimer Lee Mortimer (1904–1963) was an American newspaper columnist, radio commentator, crime lecturer, night club show producer, and author. He was born Mortimer Lieberman in Chicago, but was best known by the pen name he adopted as a young newspap ...

* Tony Gaetano as

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart ( ; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart ...

* Leata Galloway as

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...

* David A. Kimball as

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

Bruce Gray Bruce Gray (September 7, 1936 – December 13, 2017) was a Canadian actor, known for multiple roles in films and television shows for over five decades. Early years Gray was born in Puerto Rico and lived in Toronto after 1949. He graduated fro ...

Fred Zinneman Alfred Zinnemann (April 29, 1907 – March 14, 1997) was an American film director and producer. He won four Academy Awards for directing and producing films in various genres, including thrillers, westerns, film noir and play adaptations. He be ...

* Shelly Lipkin as

Joey Bishop Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (February 3, 1918 – October 17, 2007), known professionally as Joey Bishop, was an American entertainer who appeared on television as early as 1948 and eventually starred in his own weekly comedy series playing a Talk ...

Jack Betts Jack Betts, also credited as Hunt Powers, is an American character actor. He has acted in film, on stage, and on television. He starred in several Spaghetti western films such as '' Sugar Colt''. Career Betts was raised in Jersey City, New J ...

as Earl Wilson *

Rena Riffel Rena Riffel (born March 5, 1969) is an American actress, singer, dancer, model, writer, producer, and director. She is known for her supporting roles in films such as ''Showgirls'', ''Striptease'', and '' Mulholland Drive''. ''Showgirls'' Riff ...

May Britt May Britt (born May Britt Wilkens; 22 March 1934) is a Swedish former actress who had a brief career in the 1950s in Italy and later in the United States. She was married to American entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. from 1960 to 1968. Career Bri ...

* Brad Blaisdell as

Skitch Henderson Lyle Russel "Skitch" Henderson (January 27, 1918 – November 1, 2005) was an American pianist, conductor, and composer. His nickname "Skitch" came from his ability to "re-sketch" a song in a different key. Bing Crosby suggested that he sho ...

* Chris Weatherhead as

Mercedes McCambridge Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge (March 16, 1916 – March 2, 2004) was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress". She won an Academy Award for Best Support ...

* Patricia Supancic as Nancy at 14 *

Beverley Mitchell Beverley Ann Mitchell (born January 22, 1981) is an American actress and singer. She portrayed Lucy Camden on the television The WB/The CW series '' 7th Heaven''. Early life In 1999, Mitchell graduated from Chaminade College Preparatory Scho ...

as Nancy at 7-9 * Samantha Ward as Nancy at 3 * Cameron Phillip Williams as Frank Jr. at 10 * Jameson Rodgers as Frank Jr. at 4-6 * Jenny Regli as Tina at 6 *

Floyd Levine Floyd Levine (born February 23, 1932) is an American film and television actor. Career He played Dr. Ralph Harris in the 1978 film '' Bloodbrothers''. He also played Gen. Duncan in the 1988 film '' Braddock: Missing in Action III'' and Lt. Me ...

as Director

Production

Filming

Filming was shot on location in

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; ) is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's popula ...

, New Jersey, and at the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Union Station A union station, union terminal, joint station, or joint-use station is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway company, railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently bet ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Reception

The series got a mostly positive reception but was accused of whitewashing the controversial aspects of Frank Sinatra's life.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film 1971–1999 1992 television films 1992 films 1990s biographical drama films American biographical drama films 1990s American drama television series American television films 1990s American television miniseries American biographical series Best Miniseries or Television Movie Golden Globe winners Emmy Award–winning programs Primetime Emmy Award–winning television series American English-language television shows Films about Frank Sinatra Cultural depictions of John F. Kennedy Cultural depictions of Marilyn Monroe Cultural depictions of Humphrey Bogart Cultural depictions of Sammy Davis Jr. Cultural depictions of Billie Holiday Cultural depictions of Sam Giancana CBS original programming Films directed by James Steven Sadwith 1990s English-language films 1990s American films CBS television dramas English-language biographical drama films