During World War II, Frank Sinatra became perhaps the most popular singer in the country, and his remarkable career ultimately spanned more than half a century. He played a major role in shifting the focus of popular MUSiC from the bands that had dominated “swing era” JAZZ of the 1930s to the singers themselves.
Francis Albert Sinatra was born on December 12, 1915, in Hoboken, New Jersey, the son of Italian immigrants. He often ignored his studies, and eventually dropped out of school at the age of 16. Determined to make a living with his voice, Sinatra played nightclubs, roadhouses, DEMOCRATIC Party meetings, and gatherings of the Hoboken Sicilian Cultural League in the 1930s.
Sinatra’s break came in February 1939, when he was hired by popular band leader Harry James. A year later, in January 1940, Sinatra signed a contract with the Tommy Dorsey Band. In May, the band released “I’ll Never Smile Again,” which catapulted Sinatra to stardom. By January 1942, Sinatra began considering severing his ties with Dorsey. Creative and personal differences along with the success of “Night and Day” and other songs made Sinatra desire a solo career. He played his final show with the Tommy Dorsey Band in September 1942, although he was not finally released from his contract until March 1943.
In December 1942, Sinatra gave a solo performance at New York’s Paramount Theater that helped catapult him to still greater fame and popularity. The audience was comprised mostly of teenage girls known as bobby-soxers, who welcomed his performance with extraordinary enthusiasm. “Sinatramania” had begun and persisted through the war, with Sinatra playing to packed audiences and enjoying huge record sales. An inner ear dysfunction exempted him from the armed forces, and although his general popularity did not suffer, he was held in low esteem by many GIs.
Called by some the greatest popular singer of the 20th century, Sinatra went on to a long and influential career, and he also won plaudits from critics and fellow musicians for the craftsmanship he brought to his singing, especially his phrasing of lyrics. Sinatra also acted in Hollywood films, and won an Academy Award in 1953 for his acting in From Here to Eternity, a film about World War II adapted from a novel by James Jones. His life, both private and public, was often tempestuous and controversial.
Further reading: John Lahr, Sinatra: The Artist and the Man (New York: Random House, 1997).
—Daniel J. Fury
World History
