Sinatra in Hollywood

by Tom Santopietro

Oscar-winning actor, acclaimed director, and recipient of the Golden Globe Award for lifetime achievement in film, Frank Sinatra carved out one of the biggest careers in the history of Hollywood, yet his screen legacy has been overshadowed by his achievements as a recording artist. Until now. Sinatra in Hollywood offers an analytical yet deeply personal look at his screen legend.

Examining each of Sinatra's sixty-one feature films in depth, Santopietro traces the arc of his astonishing sixty-year run as a film actor, from his rise to stardom in "boy next door" musical films through his fall from grace to the near-mythic comeback with his Oscar-winning performance in From Here to Eternity. Santopietro deals head-on with the tumultuous marriages to Ava Gardner and Mia Farrow, and directly addresses the rumors of Mob involvement in Sinatra's Hollywood career.

In Sinatra in Hollywood, the film icon receives his full due as the serious artist he was, the actor about whom director Billy Wilder emphatically stated, "Frank Sinatra is beyond talent."