Seeing Frank Sinatra ‘our way’

One of the beautiful things about New York City is how one can visit any of the public galleries even with very little money in your purse. One scorching day in August, my friend Marivir Montebon and I decided to go down to the New York Public Library’s Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center to catch the Sinatra centennial exhibit before it closes on September 4.

For two Filipina journalists raised on Sinatra music, it was an exhibit worth seeing and experiencing. The space offers a rich and revealing collection of Sinatra memorabilia, including a pitch-dark booth where one can sing “New York, New York” with just you, your guts, and Ol’ Blue Eyes on a TV screen!

As fans, we know much of the narrative: Boy from Hoboken with beautiful voice rises to become one of the iconic musical artists of his generation. But the exhibit, “Sinatra: An American Icon,” offers more rare images about the singer’s films, records, and mementos. On display were some of his oil paintings of the abstract and realist styles.

Marivir, the editor of OSM magazine, adores the complexity of this man’s many talents: “I like Sinatra’s voice and his being a spectacular total performer…singer, actor, and artist.” And how the song “New York, New York” — originally written for Liza Minnelli – came to be identified with him because, as Marivir noted, of the “bullish, courageous attitude” in his legendary version. – Cristina DC Pastor

Here are some photos from the exhibit.