Rise to Fame

In the spring of 1941 Frank was picked as the top male vocalist of the year from Billboard magazine and recognized by other famous publishers. He also gained extreme popularity with young adults and teens. In 1942 Frank started his solo career recording songs such as "The Night We Called It a Day," "The Song Is You", and "The Lamplighter's Serenade" which were all well received.



He continued to top popularity polls. Although the Sinatra was enjoying the popularity he was receiving on September 10, 1942 he parted ways with Tommy Dorsey. This was when Frank was three months short of his 27 birthday. After his separation with Dorsey, Sinatra had trouble getting other jobs in the music industry due to labor problems and strikes which crippled the industry. Frank then headed to Hollywood and made a breif appearance in Reveille with Beverly. By late 1942 he was back in New Jersey playing small shows. On his 27th birthday after trying to get the attention of Paramount Theater, broadways hottest music and movie venue he got contacted by them. Robert Weitman, contacted him about a New Year's show called, Star Spangled Rhythm.



He asked Frank to open the show and at this time Frank was having a hard time and was very pleased to get the call. After doing well at the first show the Paramount continued extending his performances. His audience was made up of mostly young women dressed in sweaters, and knee length skirts, and white sox. For this they were called bobbysoxers. By 1944 Frank was also doing more films such as Higher and Higher and Anchors Aweigh.

He was also on Your Hit Parade every Saturday night.

From the years 1943-1945 his success led to the phrase Sinatramania. One thing that I have found during my research is that Frank openly used sex as part of his appeal. Saturday Night (Is The Loneliest Night In The Week), and All Or Nothing At All were two of the songs in which Frank introduced sex and passion back into popular music.





He followed that with a series of a cappella recordings accompanied by vocal groups such as You''ll Never Know, People Will Say We're In Love and Sunday, Monday or Always which all became Number 1 songs that Americans couldn't help but hearing. He also started his own music publishing operation with Hank Sanicola.



One concert in 1944 proved his popularity. 10,000 fans lined up outside the Paramount and an estimated 20,000 were in Times Square. People frustrated by not being able to get into the show started smashing shop windows and destroyed the Paramount ticket book. More than 400 policement couldn't prevent what would become known as "The Colombus Day Riot." Frank was popular not only teens and young girls, his popularity spanned various agese and walks of life. A Billboard critic once wrote "One of the most cosmopolitan, varied audiences you can imagine the kept girls, the rich, the famous, the infamous sports figures, hoodlums.. you name it.

Frank also won an Oscar, awarded to him for The House I Live In. It was a short film directed against racial prejudice.

Many people do not know that Sinatra had a very firm stance when it came to prejudice and racism. Frank thought that "you've got to do it through education" in concern to educating people about prejudice and racism that was taking place during that time. In his visit to the White House in 1944 He told President Roosevelt that he intended to start talking to young people "about the need for tolerance and to point out that we mustn't destroy the principles for which our grandfathers founded this country." Roosevelt approved the idea and Frank kept his end of the bargin and went on 30 speaking appearances in that year alone. Frank also held similarly strong views on religious freedom, specifically working with Jews during the time of World War II.