Nancy Sinatra Sr., Frank Sinatra’s First Wife, Dies at 101

Variety ^ | July 14, 2018 | Erin Nyren

[lowbridge]

Nancy Sinatra Sr., the former wife of Frank Sinatra and mother of his three children, has died. She was 101.

According to a tweet posted by Sinatra’s daughter Nancy, she died Friday. “My mother passed away peacefully tonight at the age of 101. She was a blessing and the light of my life. Godspeed, Momma. Thank you for everything,” Nancy wrote. The cause and location of death was not released.

Sinatra, then Nancy Barbato, met Frank Sinatra in summer of 1934 in Long Branch, N.J. and they were married roughly five years later, on Feb. 4, 1939 at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic church in Jersey City, N.J. Before Sinatra’s singing career took off, the couple lived in an apartment in Jersey City. Nancy Sr found work as a secretary while Frank worked as a singing waiter.

[onyx]

Nancy Sinatra Sr. RIP

[Moonman62]

First time I’ve ever seen a woman referred to as Sr.

[CharleysPride]

RIP. She must have seen a lot in those hundred years.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

I read he saw her sitting on steps one day I guess in front of her house and ran across the street and started talking to her and of course because he's Frank Sinatra he picked her up. Pretty sleazy though that he would leave her when he hit the big time, but hey, he's Frank Sinatra, capiche?

"Black-and-white photo of Frank Sinatra and Nancy Barbato Sinatra on Newark Ave., Jersey City, N.J., no date, circa 1935-1939. 8" x 10" silver gelatin print. Photographer not identified. Ink annotations by donor Nick Di Brino in 2007 at front bottom margin and on reverse. Source of original image not indicated. Whether they are married at the time of this photo is not known. Nancy Barbato married Sinatra in 1939 and they moved to Jersey City. Donor dated this as circa 1937-1939 which would correspond to that period: they dated 1934-1939. Donor noted the location was near 17 Newark Ave.; most all buildings on this block have been demolished a number of years ago. "

[CharleysPride]

Probably to avoid confusion with singer/daughter.

(don’t want people mistakenly believing boots are funeral appropriate)

[lee martell]

Oh, the books this Nancy Sinatra could have written! She was there during the early years. In the eye of that Italian Storm. I’m guessing Frank Sinatra had the appeal of Elvis and Bieber combined, with Elvis being the more talented, of the two! If everyone around you treats you as something larger than life, after a while you start to believe it too.

I still think Frank Senior found ways to sabotage or stunt the career of Frank Jr. It’s strange that Jr. never did go much farther than “Don Ho” Howard Johnson’s level status.
Jr. seemed like a deflated individual, at least that was the impression.

[allendale]

Bottom line: Frank could sing, but at his core he was a selfish lowlife.

[Az Joe]

Senior?

Was she Trans?

Women aren’t monickered “Sr” or “Jr”.

[PGR88]

Nancy Sinatra Sr.,

Does the appellation "Sr." even exist for women? In our transgender, sexually fluid world, I suppose it does now.

[PGR88]

I swear NY/NJ Italian women have the longest life-spans on earth. I have known at least 6 Italian grandmothers who have made it past 100 years. Has any research been done on this? It must have something to do with Rosaries and chianti in small glasses

[elcid1970]

Sinatra’s daughter Nancy was his favorite. IIRC, he treated Frank Jr. like dirt, reminding him that he’d never be as great as his father.

As noted, Sinatra was a selfish lowlife. He was also mean and sadistic toward those close to him. I heard him called “Not-So-Hotra” when I was in grade school. His fans pleaded, `you must separate the art from the artist!!’

Anyway, Nancy his wife endured a lot in her years. But look at it this way: Sinatra croaked in 1998 so she outlived him by two decades. Hope she’s enjoying eternal rest now.

[smalltownslick]

In this instance, it seems appropriate. Gotta differentiate. Remember the daughter was in the news for something quite ugly in the last week or so.

[SMGFan]

How should the headline be worded to avoid confusion when mother and daughter have the same name?

[Nifster]

Cause of death...old age. Tired enough to go home

[Mears]

“How should the headline be worded to avoid confusion when mother and daughter have the same name?”

—

Do you thing the age,101,might have been a clue?

.

[loveliberty2]

"Nancy, with the laughing eyes. . . ," rings a bell in my mind. Anybody else?

[Bonemaker]

Too bad it wasn’t Nancy Sinatra Jr. who croaked the way she turned out.

[KrisKrinkle]

Moonman62 – “First time I’ve ever seen a woman referred to as Sr.”

PGR88 - “Does the appellation “Sr.” even exist for women? In our transgender, sexually fluid world, I suppose it does now.”

9422WMR – “They were doing that on See BS Sunday Mirni g when they ran with this story. I too noticed it was incorrect. Oh well fake news just makes shit up anyway....”

I’ve seen it used before, though not often. Until recently, a woman with the same name as her mother took her husband’s name so a distinctive addition wasn’t necessary.

According to Webster’s 1828 definition there’s no reason it can’t be used:

Senior
SENIOR, adjective see’nyor. [Latin senior, comparative of senex, old.] Elder or older; but as an adjective, it usually signifies older in office; as the senior pastor of a church, where there are colleagues; a senior counselor. In such use, senior has no reference to age, for a senior counselor may be, and ofted is the younger man.

SENIOR, noun see’nyor.

1. A person who is older than another; one more advanced in life.

2. One that is older in office, or one whose first entrance upon an office was anterior to that of another. Thus a senator or counselor of sixty years of age, often has a senior who is not fifty years of age.

3. An aged person; one of the oldest inhabitants.
A senior of the place replies. Dryden.