The Kid From Hoboken
With all the bad weather we are enjoying here in the Hoboken/Jersey City area, people need things to do that won’t take them out into the elements. It looks like the ever-popular plan to stay in and watch a movie might be the best route. Get out the popcorn and hot chocolate, and curl up on the sofa! Tonight we’re watching Hoboken’s favorite native son in Ocean’s Eleven!
Of course, we all know about Frank Sinatra’s “humble” beginnings here in Hoboken. His father changed his name to Marty O’Brien in order to be able to train for his boxing career in Irish gyms that wouldn’t admit Italians. Frank was an only child, so things weren’t too bad financially. His mom, Dolly, was a smart lady who evidently wasn’t afraid to work hard to improve the family’s situation, and who guided her husband to better employment.
Frank began singing with a local group, The Three Flashes, who changed their name to The Hoboken Four, and performed on the Major Bowes Amateur, winning first prize. (The backstory seems to be that they only let him sing with them because he had a car.) Eventually, he began solo performances, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Besides a stellar career in recording and live performances, especially in Las Vegas, Frank Sinatra had a long and interesting career in the movies. Of course, lots of his movies featured his singing. Who can forget Step Lively and Anchors Aweigh? However, music wasn’t his only genre. Frank Sinatra was a serious actor who won awards for his roles in comedy, and in drama. He played some unforgettable characters.
Even the roles that didn’t win him awards were enhanced by Sinatra’s performance. Nathan Detroit in Guys & Dolls is a case in point. Then switch gears, and watch him in the dark suspense movie, Suddenly. Pick it up again with him and the incomparable Grace Kelly in High Society. Then, get adventurous with Frankie against a volcano in The Devil at 4 O’clock. More suspense ensues as he relives hellish nightmares from Korea in The Manchurian Candidate. He even made a cameo appearance as a saloon singer in Around the World in Eighty Days.
It would be interesting to see what kind of performance Frank would have given in the Rodgers and Hammerstein movie, Carousel. He was pegged for the lead. However, after filming two songs, he discovered that each scene had to be filmed twice, and walked off the set, leaving the part open for Gordon MacRae.
The Hoboken Historical Museum is featuring a wonderful exhibit celebrating the one hundredth anniversary of Frank Sinatra’s birth. It runs through July 3 of this year, so you don’t have to go out in the blizzards to see it. Just relax and watch Frankie on the “little” screen for now. You have a large selection of choices!
What is your favorite Frank Sinatra movie?