Sinatra (miniseries)
Sinatra is a 1992 CBS biographical drama miniseries about singer Frank Sinatra, developed and executive produced by Frank's youngest daughter Tina Sinatra and approved by Frank himself.[1][2][3] Directed by James Steven Sadwith, produced by Richard M. Rosenbloom, and written by William Mastrosimone and Abby Mann. It stars Philip Casnoff, Olympia Dukakis, Joe Santos, Gina Gershon, Nina Siemaszko, Bob Gunton, and Marcia Gay Harden, with some of Sinatra's vocals recreated by Tom Burlinson. It won two and was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, along with a win and two nominations for a Golden Globe Award. Released on November 8, 1992, it was re-released on a two-disc DVD Warner Home Video on May 13, 2008.[4]
| Sinatra | |
|---|---|
Promotional poster | |
| Genre | Biography Drama |
| Written by | William Mastrosimone Abby Mann |
| Directed by | James Steven Sadwith |
| Starring | Philip Casnoff Olympia Dukakis Joe Santos Gina Gershon Nina Siemaszko Marcia Gay Harden |
| Theme music composer | Artie Butler |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Tina Sinatra |
| Producer | Richard M. Rosenbloom |
| Production locations | Hoboken, New Jersey Union Station - 800 N. Alameda Street, Downtown, Los Angeles |
| Cinematography | Reynaldo Villalobos |
| Editors | Steve Potter Scott Vickrey |
| Running time | 250 min; 60 min (4 episodes) |
| Production companies | TS Productions Warner Bros. Television |
| Distributor | CBS Warner Home Video |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBS |
| Picture format | Color |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release |
|
Plot
Frank Sinatra (Casnoff) emerges from Hoboken, New Jersey, the son of local politician Natalie "Dolly" Sinatra (Dukakis) and fireman Anthony "Marty" Sinatra (Santos). Beginning his career as a singer for the Harry James (Posey) and Tommy Dorsey (Gunton) big bands, Sinatra struggles to keep his marriage to his teenage sweetheart Nancy Barbato (Gershon). Before long, his talent catapults him to both music and movie fame, but his personal failings place his career and marriage in danger. He endures tumultuous marriages and divorces with starlets Ava Gardner (Harden) and Mia Farrow (Siemaszko) while juggling his movie and singing careers and forming significant friendships with an ambitious young senator named John F. Kennedy (Kelly) and powerful Chicago mob boss Sam Giancana (Steiger).
Cast
- Philip Casnoff as Frank Sinatra[5]
- Olympia Dukakis as Natalie "Dolly" Sinatra
- Joe Santos as Marty Sinatra
- Gina Gershon as Nancy Barbato Sinatra
- Nina Siemaszko as Mia Farrow
- Joe Grifasi as George Evans
- Marcia Gay Harden as Ava Gardner
- Bob Gunton as Tommy Dorsey
- David Raynr as Sammy Davis Jr.
- Ralph Seymour as Budd
- Jeff Corey as Quinlin
- Danny Gans as Dean Martin
- Vincent Guastaferro as Hank Sanicola
- James F. Kelly as John F. Kennedy
- Matthew Posey as Harry James
- Rod Steiger as Salvatore Giancana
- Carol Barbee as Marilyn Maxwell
- David Byrd as Michael Romanoff
- Paul Collins as Westbrook Pegler
- Maggie Egan as Jo Stafford
- Brian Markinson as Sonny Werblin
- Tony Simotes as Buddy Rich
- John Wesley as Sy Oliver
- Marc Grady Adams as Lee Mortimer
- Tony Gaetano as Humphrey Bogart
- Leata Galloway as Billie Holiday
- David A. Kimball as Benny Goodman
- Bruce Gray as Fred Zinneman
- Shelly Lipkin as Joey Bishop
- Jack Betts as Earl Wilson
- Rena Riffel as May Britt
- Brad Blaisdell as Skitch Henderson
- Chris Weatherhead as Mercedes McCambridge
- Patricia Supancic as Nancy at 14
- Beverley Mitchell as Nancy at 7-9
- Samantha Ward as Nancy at 3
- Cameron Phillip Williams as Frank Jr. at 10
- Jameson Rodgers as Frank Jr. at 4-6
- Jenny Regli as Tina at 6
- Floyd Levine as Director
Production
Filming
Filming was shot on location in Hoboken, New Jersey and at the Los Angeles Union Station in California.
Awards
| Award | Result |
|---|---|
| American Cinema Editors Award for Best Edited Episode from a Television Mini-Series | Nominated |
| American Society of Cinematographers Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Mini-Series | Nominated |
| Casting Society of America Award for Best Casting for TV Miniseries | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costume Design for a Miniseries or a Special (Shelley Komarov (costume designer))[6] | Won |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special (James Steven Sadwith) | Won |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Art Direction for a Miniseries or a Special[7] | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Special[7] | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Editing for a Miniseries or a Special - Single Camera Production[7] | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special[7] | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Direction[7] | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries | Nominated |
| Emmy Award for Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Miniseries or a Special[7] | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film | Won |
| Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or Television Film (Philip Casnoff ) | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (Olympia Dukakis) | Nominated |
Reception
The series got a mostly positive reception but was accused of whitewashing the controversial aspects of Frank Sinatira's life.[1][8][9][10][11]
References
- ^ a b "COVER STORY : Is This Really His Life? : Frank Sinatra blessed a TV bio with daughter Tina as executive producer. Cynics have already cried whitewash. But the CBS miniseries script includes the heartbreaks, the fights and the Mob. The question is: Why did he allow it?". Los Angeles Times. July 26, 1992.
- ^ "SINATRA PORTRAIT RINGS WITH TRUTH AND CLARITY". Orlando Sentinel.
- ^ Strum, Charles (November 8, 1992). "TELEVISION; Sinatra: The Idol, The Institution, The Mini-Series" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "DVD Talk". www.dvdtalk.com.
- ^ "TELEVISION". Los Angeles Times. January 23, 1992.
- ^ "THE 45th ANNUAL EMMY AWARDS : Presenting the Prime of Primetime". Los Angeles Times. September 20, 1993.
- ^ a b c d e f "Emmy Award Nominations 1993 : Nighttime Nominees: A Complete Rundown". Los Angeles Times. July 23, 1993.
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (November 6, 1992). "TV Weekend; Sinatra: The Good, the Bad, and Mostly the Music" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "GETTING SEMI-TOUGH WITH FRANK SINATRA". Chicago Tribune.
- ^ "SINATRA THE MINI-SERIES". Chicago Tribune.
- ^ November 06, Ken Tucker Updated; EST, 1992 at 05:00 AM. "Sinatra". EW.com.
External links
Quotations related to Sinatra (TV miniseries) at Wikiquote
- Sinatra at IMDb