Chairman of the Board
A very intimate portrait of Francis Albert, giving us a different perspective of his begginings through photos as provided by his family, creates a more human appreciation of the greatest pop singer of our generation. A must for Sinatra fans and collectors.
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Frank Sinatra Family Albulm
Excellent book by Charles Pignone, noted Sinatraphile. Charles does a fabulous job in putting together this great family albulm of great photos and remarks, this is a must have book for all Sinatra fans and collectors.
Frank Sinatra is and will always be the greatest singer in the world and this book shows you a little bit of how he got there over the years in pictures. Awesome.
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A GLIMPSE INTO OL' BLUE EYES' LIFE
He's one of the true icons of the entertainment industry as well as one of the most renowned stars ever. Ol' Blue Eyes...Frank Sinatra. His name is still synonymous with stardom. Sinatra is one of those stars who will never fade away. It's not just that he left an enormous body of work in music, film, and television when he passed away, lots of stars did that. But Sinatra has something only a handful of celebrities had, true charisma and a certain aura to him. It's what separates Sinatra and others like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis, from the pack.
With Christmas fast approaching, Little Brown & Co., has released a book that is sure to be a hit this holiday season. Frank Sinatra: The Family Album is a glimpse into the personal life of this legendary performer. As the title implies, this book is photo album of Sinatra's life. His family has graciously supplied most of the photos in the book, a gift to his legions of fans. The book contains over 100 color and black & white photos, tracing his life and career every step of the way. Writer Charles Pignone provides the informative captions as well lively anecdotes that include comments from Sinatra himself as well as various friends and family members, all sharing their memories of Frank.
What must assuredly be the most rare Sinatra picture shows as an infant, lying naked on a blanket, and even at that age, the eyes were already striking. We see Frank as a kid on the streets of Hoboken, New Jersey, riding his bike and also visiting the beach with friends along the Jersey shore. My only regret is that we didn't get to see Frank more as a child and the album quickly moves into young adulthood with his marriage to Nancy in 1939. The happy couple are shown walking down the steps of Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Jersey City. It's evident that Frank and Nancy were deeply in love as evidenced by the joyful photos. Nancy notes that in those early days they were together 24 hours a day as Frank traveled from show to show for his blossoming career. There's also lots of pictures of Frank and his children having many fun times together.
Much of the book is focused on Frank's careers from his days as a big band crooner and later with his film and television career. Frank is shown at lavish parties with a who's who of Hollywood including Jackie Gleason, Milton Berle, Jack Benny, Tony Curtis, Dean Martin, and many more. Frank's life truly lived up to the type of a legendary star! Oddly though, there were no pictures of the Rat Pack together as one might have thought.
The book comes full circle as an older Sinatra becomes a Grandpa. Frank's status as a true family man is cemented as he plays with his granddaughters Angela and Amanda, building snowmen, sledding, and hanging out in the swimming pool. Amanda reveals that Frank was a big fan of the "Jeopardy" TV show. A star to the very end, this book presents a unique and personal look into the life of one of the 20th century's greatest stars. A fantastic tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes!
REVIEWED BY TIM JANSON
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