Customer Reviews

Frank Sinatra: An American Legend

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I had to get this book after seeing how low the price came down.The original price was 40 dollars. Nancy Sinatra's book on her Father has everything in here.I couldn't believe Frank weighted 13and a half pounds when he was born on December 12,1915.The Doctor ripped and scarred his ear,check,and neck,plus puncturing his eardrum.Frank wasn't breathing,so his grandmother Rose held the baby under cold running water until he gasped his first breath and cried.This book is like a Diary.It goes from year to year,sometimes month to month.All of Franks movies,records,concerts,TV shows,songs,and the name of the songwriters are in here,plus hundreds of pictures,starting with Frank's baby photo, ending with a touching family photo taken in 1996.There's a wonderfull picture of Marilyn Monroe taken with Dean Martin sitting ringside at the Sands..All of the stars are in here,and family pictures we've never seen before.If you are a Frank Sinatra fan,you have to get this Book.Its huge,and the pictures are fantastic.

No wonder this book is so thick- it's filled with numerous photos of Frank Sinatra, his family, and friends over the years. I love looking at these pics, and so will any other Sinatra fan. There is detailed info throughout the book as well. This is one worth having in your collection.

Here is Sinatra stripped of everything who leaves me knowing he has deserved my love and admiration all these years. With Sinatra, he drove himself through life going after whatever he wanted and risking the consequences. We get to look at his ups and downs and his prides and his falls. We see him suffer at love and sing about it. We see him finally, after all the aborted tries, finally sink himself into a relationship with his last wife that kept him happy until he died.

Life for Sinatra was all or nothing at all and he did life his way and fell into lots of tender traps and led some into his own tender traps, like one famous movie star I will let you discover on your own.

What so special about Nancy's book is that she is amazingly organized and objective in her account of her father's life. And the CD, well the CD is everything. You get to hear Sinatra on Sinatra, unabashed.

Everyone on the planet needs to buy and read this book to learn what life can be when you go for it all every day!

Kudos to Nancy for a biography well, well done.

Sinatra was the century's greatest entertainer, with the sole possible exception of Louis Armstrong (sorry, Elvis fans -- TV Guide had it wrong!). I'm only in my thirties, but Sinatra has come to mean more to me than almost any other singer (except for Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald). This book is an excellent retrospective of his life, told chronologically by his daughter Nancy. Full of pictures and anecdotes from his friends and family, the book is free from most of the overblown hype and scandal-sheet tone of other biographies. While it is only an introduction, and not the last word, the book is a joy to read. As a bonus, a CD comes with the book, containing a number of rarities unavailable anywhere else. When you're done with this lovely volume, turn to Will Friedwald's book on Sinatra's music; at this point of my life, I don't really care to know more about Sinatra's personal struggles, but I do want to know as much as I can about his most enduring legacy: his music. And Friedwald does a better job than anybody else ever has.

This scrapbook is a real treat to any true SINATRA fan.It is full of pictures of everybody who was important in his life from his parents to collaborators like arrangers NELSON RIDDLE; all his wifes from NANCY to BARBARA;the legendary LOUIS B. MAYER etc.Better than most biographies because it is based on facts not rumours.The early pictures from his beginnings are alone worth the price.I was fortunate enough to get this book at the third of it's price and i went through it very fast because once you open it, you simply can't take your hands out of it.If FRANK became the singer of the past century, it's not by accident, he worked hard at it.I was particulary touched by his loyalty to his true friends.FRANK SINATRA is a mirror of his country. He was the son of immigrants who lived the AMERICAN dream to the fullest.Where is the AMERICAN dream today now that it's last legend is gone?Let's not complain too much ,because everything that FRANK SINATRA ever recorded is now available on cd.Nostalgia when you think of it is a very good thing.SATURDAY is not the loneliest night of the week anymore thanks to the chairman of the board.If you are not already a fan, this book should do the trick.

This book has excellent pictures with the most vital information for a biography project. A great buy and great read for interested fans of Ol' Blue Eyes.

I thought this book was a wounderful timeline of the life and times of Ol' Blue Eyes from the people that loved him. It includes rare pictures and unique stories not found in other books.

Bernard Barton (BBarton@worldnet.att.net)
An excellent portrait by Frank's beloved daughter
Nancy;( A bit of trivia, in honor of Nancy, Phil
Silvers of Sgt. Bilko fame wrote a song in Nancy's
honor called 'Nancy'. One of the best lines in the song is "Picture A Tomboy In Lace, That's Nancy, with the laughing face"; which Frank performed and recorded several times in his career.)
My uncle Ben Barton was partners with Frank in a music publishing venture. I met Frank several times. My uncle and I had many conversations over the years about Mr. Sinatra. Nancy presents an accurate, compelling portrait of an American Idol. Nancy does, of course project her Fathers views on how Frank was treated over the years by the congress and particularly the "media".
But she also acknowledges Franks personality traits that serve as a counterpoint or explanation of why certain elements of the United States Congress and the media have treated Frank over the years. An excellent value for such a detailed, well illustrated book full of family pictures that we generally never get to see of one so famous as Frank Sinatra. A solid 9 out of ten.

It took me awhile, but I finally found this gem right here on AMAZON.COM through a private seller. This is the 'Deluxe Edition,' which includes the beautiful, coffee-table-size book AND the four (4) CD's. I was able to find this copy in 'NEW' condition, completely shrink-wrapped and in remarkable 'MINT' condition. (This product first hit the market back in 1995.) I should add that this edition also includes a very informative booklet, which includes an 'A-Z' directory of all of Mr. Sinatra's songs, a very informative preface written by Nancy Sinatra, Jr., and an extremely interesting historical perspective on Mr. Sinatra, written by noted Sinatra family historian Charles Granata. This book and the four (4) CD's tell us a great deal about the life and music of a true American legend. The forty-seven (47) songs here were all carefully chosen by Nancy as an accurate portrayal of the four (4) stages of Mr. Sinatra's career which began back in the mid-to-late 30's. All in all, this lovely presentation stands out as a treasured highlight for any Sinatra collector or afficionado. It'll probably be hard to find, but your time, effort, and expense will be well worth it!! Happy Hunting!!

Nancy Sinatra seems to be the daughter that every daddy dreams of. To put together a biographical account such as this is such a beautiful lasting tribute! I applaud her efforts and salute her for a wonderful job! I finished reading this book only 2 weeks before Mr. Sinatra died.