LIFE’s coverage of Frank Sinatra over the course of his illustrious career was, to put it mildly, ample. But of all the magazine’s photo essays and reviews and bits of gossip, perhaps nothing captured his hold over the American public—young women, in particular—better than letters sent to the editors in response to an article that deigned to compare Sinatra to one of his contemporaries, the actor Van Johnson:
Sirs:
Don’t you think it quite ridiculous to compare a redheaded, freckle-faced, flabby monstrosity like Van Johnson to a fascinating, slim, brown-haired, blue-eyed, gorgeous hunk of heaven like our Frank Sinatra?
NORMA BERKOWITZ
MAUREEN HIGHES
Medford, Mass.
When Norma and Maureen wrote this letter to LIFE in 1944—sandwiched, as it was, between others that expressed the same sentiment—Sinatra was just shy of 30 and two years into the budding phenomenon of “Sinatramania.” Not only was he monstrously popular, but he was proving there to be a profitable market for popular music targeted to a budding new group called teen-agers. The singer, born a century ago on Dec. 12, 1915, in Hoboken, N.J., had already developed—as recordings continue to prove nearly two decades after his death at 82—one of the most recognizable voices in history. It was, after all, why they called him “The Voice.”
It was also why, between the early 1940s and the early 1970s when LIFE ceased to be a weekly publication, the magazine dispatched a cadre of photographers—Peter Stackpole, Gjon Mili, Allan Grant, Bill Eppridge, John Dominis and Michael Rougier to name a few—to bring a piece of Ol’ Blue Eyes into its readers’ homes week after week. Here, in celebration of Sinatra’s centennial, are their most memorable portraits of the unforgettable singer.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.
25-year-old Frank Sinatra poised at the microphone, singing "As Time Goes By" at the Riobamba nightclub, 1943.Herbert Gehr—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra with wife Nancy and 3-year-old daughter Nancy Jr. at home, 1943.Herbert Gehr—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra singing "Close to You" in CBS radio broadcasting studio as admirer Rita Stearns, the winner of the "Why I Like Frank Sinatra" contest, looks on, 1944.Herbert Gehr—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra singing "Five Minutes More," 1946.Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesEthel Merman and Frank Sinatra singing the duet "You're the Top" in a preliminary rehearsal for "Anything Goes," presented on "The Colgate Comedy Hour," 1954.John Swope—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra and Donna Reed (R) holding Oscars received for their performances in "From Here to Eternity," with presenter Mercedes McCambridge at the 26th Annual Academy Awards Ceremony, 1954.George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra singing to Vivian Blaine in a scene from the film "Guys and Dolls," 1955.Gjon Mili—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesDean Martin and Frank Sinatra, 1958.Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra during the filming of "None But The Brave," which he directed in 1964.Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesNancy Sinatra with her father, Frank Sinatra, during the production of "None But The Brave," 1964.Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesFrank Sinatra with girlfriend Mia Farrow on the deck of the yacht Southern Breeze, 1965.Bill Eppridge—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesFrank Sinatra, 1965.John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra giving musicians of the Count Basie Orchestra direction at a rehearsal at a Los Angeles sound stage, 1965.John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra relaxing at home with pet dog Ringo, 1965.John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSammy Davis Jr. talking with Sinatra at Sinatra's farewell performance, at UCLA, 1971.Michael Rougier—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSinatra waves at the camera during a rehearsal for a benefit concert, 1971.Michael Rougier—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
