Barbara Sinatra Explained

Barbara Sinatra
Birth Name:Barbara Ann Blakeley
Birth Date:16 October 1926
Birth Place:Bosworth, Missouri, U.S.
Death Place:Rancho Mirage, California, U.S.
Burial Place:Desert Memorial Park[1]
Other Names:Barbara Oliver
Barbara Marx
Spouse:
    Children:1

    Barbara Ann Sinatra (formerly Oliver & Marx, Blakeley; October 16, 1926 – July 25, 2017) was an American model, showgirl, and socialite and the fourth and last wife of Frank Sinatra.

    Early life

    Sinatra was born as Barbara Ann Blakeley on October 16, 1926,[2] [3] [4] in Bosworth, Missouri, to Irene Prunty (née Toppass) and Charles Willis Blakeley. The family moved to Wichita, Kansas when she was 10.[5] [6] After graduating from Wichita North High School in 1944, Sinatra moved to Long Beach, California.[6]

    Personal life

    She married Robert Oliver in September 1948 and had a son, Robert Blake "Bobby" Oliver on October 10, 1950. She divorced Oliver in 1952.

    She married Zeppo Marx on September 18, 1959. They divorced in 1973.[2]

    She married Frank Sinatra on July 11, 1976. It was his fourth and final marriage, and her third and final marriage. It was also the longest-lasting marriage for both. She converted to Catholicism. According to her book, Lady Blue Eyes: My Life With Frank, "He [Frank] never asked me to change faith for him, but I could tell he was pleased that I'd consider it."[7]

    Upon his death in 1998, Frank Sinatra left her $3.5 million in assets, along with mansions in Beverly Hills, Malibu, and Palm Springs. She also inherited the rights to Sinatra's Trilogy recordings, most of his material possessions and control over his name and likeness.[8]

    Death

    Barbara Marx Sinatra died on July 25, 2017, in Rancho Mirage, California, of natural causes at the age of 90.[9] She died a year before Frank's first wife, Nancy Barbato, who died on July 13, 2018, at the age of 101.[10] She is buried at the Desert Memorial Park next to husband Frank.

    Legacy

    The Sinatras founded the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center in Rancho Mirage in 1986.[11] [12] The center is adjacent to the Betty Ford Center on the campus of the Eisenhower Medical Center.[11] The non-profit facility provides individual and group therapy for young victims of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.[13] In 1998, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to her.[14]

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Barbara Sinatra dies in Rancho Mirage at age 90. Dailynews.com. July 25, 2017. August 1, 2017.
    2. News: Barbara Sinatra, widow of singing star Frank Sinatra, dies at 90. The Washington Post. August 20, 2017.
    3. Fessier, Bruce; Pena, Xochitl (July 27, 2017). "Barbara before Sinatra: What you don't know about her humble beginnings before becoming 'Lady Blue Eyes'". Palm Springs Desert Sun.
    4. Weber, Peter (July 26, 2017). "Barbara Sinatra, founder of child-abuse center and widow of Frank Sinatra, is dead at 90". The Week.
    5. https://www.ancestry.com/1940-census/usa/Kansas/Marie-S-Garner_2544gg Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls.
    6. News: Barbara Sinatra, Frank's 4th wife and philanthropist, dies. July 26, 2017 . . July 25, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170726104505/http://ksn.com/2017/07/25/barbara-sinatra-widow-of-frank-sinatra-passed-away-tuesday. July 26, 2017.
    7. Sinatra, Barbara (2011). Lady Blue Eyes: My Life With Frank. New York: Crown Archetype.,
    8. Web site: Sinatra's Will Averts Family Feud. Marcus Errico. Eonline.com. May 22, 1998.
    9. Web site: Barbara Sinatra, widow of Frank Sinatra, dies at 90. Lisa Respers France. CNN. July 25, 2017. 2017-08-01.
    10. News: Nancy Barbato Sinatra, 101, an Idol's First Wife and Lasting Confidante, Dies. The New York Times. July 14, 2018. Fox. Margalit.
    11. Web site: About Us . Barbarasinatrachildrenscenter.org . July 26, 2017 . August 1, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170801162341/http://barbarasinatrachildrenscenter.org/index.php/about/ . dead .
    12. News: Barbara Sinatra, Philanthropist and Singer's Widow, Dies at 90. The Associated Press. 2017-07-25. The New York Times. 2017-08-01. en-US. 0362-4331.
    13. Web site: Barbara Sinatra, founder of child-abuse center and widow of Frank Sinatra, is dead at 90 . Theweek.com . January 1, 1970 . July 26, 2017.
    14. Web site: Palm Springs Walk of Stars by date dedicated. July 26, 2017. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121013165655/http://www.palmspringswalkofstars.com/web-storage/Stars/Stars%20dedicated%20by%20date.pdf. October 13, 2012. mdy-all.