In this photographic essay, CBS.com looks back at Sinatra's life, his friends, his music and films.
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A young Frank Sinatra is shown in this undated photo. Sinatra was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, on December 12, 1915. His father, Martin, was a boxer and firefighter. His mother, Dolly, was a nurse who became a power in local Democratic politics.
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In 1933, Sinatra saw Bing Crosby perform and left determined to become a signer. Here, Sinatra records with Tommy Dorsey at the RCA Victor Studios in New York City in 1941. Sinatra was fascinated with Dorsey's breath control while playing instruments. Sinatra never took formal music lessons. In an effort to emulate Dorsey's style, Sinatra learned to breathe in the middle of singing individual notes, allowing him to use his voice like an instrument.
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By 1941, Sinatra replaced Crosby at the top of the Down Beat list of popular musicians. Above, Sinatra is surrounded by a crowd of admiring women as he arrives for singing and movie engagements in Pasadena on August 11, 1943. Sinatra's singing created hysteria and fits of swooning.
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His singing career waning by the early 1950s, Sinatra broke into movies, and quickly became a film star. Sinatra's performance in From Here to Eternity won him an Oscar as best supporting actor in 1953. Here, Sinatra (far right) stands with fellow actors Montgomery Cliff (left) and Burt Lancaster in a scene from the film. Sinatra's other movie credits include: Guys and Dolls, High Society, and The Manchurian Candidate. His 1956 role in the Man with the Golden Arm earned Sinatra another Oscar nomination.
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Sinatra created almost as much news off stage as on. He was married four times. In a scandalous divorce in 1951, he left his first wife, Nancy Barbato, and their two children for actress Ava Gardner. He later married Mia Farrow and Barbara Marx. As a member of the Rat Pack, Sinatra was linked romantically to Lauren Bacall and many others. Above, Rat Pack singers Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Sinatra at a May 22, 1978, charity fund-raising reunion in Santa Monica.
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Sinatra enjoyed a close relationship with John F. Kennedy, shown here at the Inagural Ball. The friendship became troubled after Attorney General Robert Kennedy investigated allegations of Mafia connections that clouded Sinatra's reputation.
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In 1980, Sinatra's old friend Ronald Reagan was elected president. Once again a White House intimate, Sinatra received the Kennedy Center honor in 1983 and was awarded the Medal of Freedom in 1985. Sinatra joined numerous other artists to record Duets in 1993, which went on to become his biggest selling record of all time. Sinatra was honored with the 1994 Grammy Legend award for his lifetime's work. Above, Bono -- the lead singer for the rock band U2 who performed with Sinatra on Duets -- shakes hands with Sinatra after presenting the crooner with his award.
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On May 14, 1998, Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra died of a heart attack at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He had not been seen publicly since a heart attack in January 1997.
Sinatra: 48 Hours HomeWritten and produced by Joshua Platt