This fall, Bulova unveiled a new collection of watches that is, fittingly, enjoying the limelight: the Frank Sinatra series. Recalling the legendary singer’s incredible career, the four lines in the collection (each with several different versions) are all named for some of Sinatra’s most famous songs. Each has a special nod to Ol’ Blue Eyes, from his signature and fedora on the dial to special engravings on the case backs.
During his lifetime, Sinatra recorded more than 1,400 songs, was awarded more than 40 gold and platinum albums by the Recording Industry Association of America, was a Vegas performer with the Rat Pack, starred in more than 60 movies, winning an Oscar for one, and even had his own television series, The Frank Sinatra Show. That program was sponsored by watch brand and was also known as Bulova Watch Time. Sinatra even owned and wore several Bulova watches, among others. Always an inspiration—singing nearly until his death at the age of 82 in 1998— the Chairman of the Board continues to have a huge following and to play an important role in art and culture.
One for His Baby: Frank Sinatra with his daughter Tina in the late 1950s.
This Saturday, December 12, would have been Sinatra’s 105th birthday, and in honor of that, his daughter Tina Sinatra recalls memories of her father, their family life, his view of time, and how and why his legend lives on.
“He is so global, so far reaching,” Tina Sinatra says. “Everywhere you go in the world there is a great bar that has photographs of him on their walls and they play his music. Sure, he was there in his lifetime, and he’s still there now; I’m sure social media has everything to do with that. We support and respect the people who adore him.” She adds that even though her father was incredibly prolific, she didn’t think he ever expected such a longstanding following. “He is being remembered for what was important to him. Believe me, he had no idea he would last in to the 21st century, let alone 20 years into it. But he deserves it, he earned it, he was that good.”
“He would always say, ‘If you’re not early, you’re late.’” Tina Sinatra says of her father. “He was very professional and didn’t like to be kept waiting or keep anyone else waiting.”
Sinatra says she is impressed by the number of younger fans who are still inspired by her father’s music. “He was talented,” she says, simply. “I want people to know him as a good dad, a good man and a mighty good singer.”
Bulova Frank Sinatra "Fly Me To The Moon" watch.
While Frank Sinatra divorced the mother of his three children when Tina was just three years old, she remembers him calling every day no matter where he was. “Ours was a severed family, obviously, bit even if dad were living at home and married to mom, we wouldn’t have seen him much more,” she says. “Maybe a little more, but only to change bags in between planes. He worked hard between movies, club dates, and especially once he was established in the 1950s in Las Vegas,” Sinatra continues. “But he called us every day. It was the only thing I knew and I don’t know a kid I grew up with who didn’t miss their dad if they were traveling, so I felt kind of average.”
Tina's Favorite: The Frank Sinatra "Young at Heart" watch.
According to Tina, the fact that her father was regularly overextended, juggling gigs and always racing against the clock, most likely gave him his all-important take on time. “He would always say, ‘If you’re not early, you’re late.’ He was very professional and he didn’t like to be kept waiting or to keep anyone else waiting,” says Tina Sinatra. “In his day, you had radio that was in the moment, you had countdowns to television shows, you just couldn’t be late. It was a code we grew up with.”
Because time was so important to him, Frank Sinatra naturally owned several watches. “He was a collector to a degree. He was very specific about his shirt cuffs being large enough to slip over the watch, but he relied on time and was responsible about time, so having a good watch mattered. But he didn’t want to feel the watch. He wanted something to feel like it belongs, like a good pair of gloves that don’t constrict the knuckles or like shoes that don’t squeeze. The watch had to feel soft, light,” says Tina, noting that her father had been gifted a gold watch once but it was heavy and she never really saw him wear it. She added that she thinks her father would like Bulova’s new Sinatra collection because they are classic and elegant and not big or heavy.
His Way: Frank Sinatra watches are sold in a box with a portrait of the singer on it.
According to Tina, she learned some valuable lessons from her father that include the importance of loyalty, of being kind and of not prejudging people. “He was particular about people who didn’t judge others and who had kindness and loyalty. He gravitated toward them. He hated bullies.” As such, it was important to live nicely in the world. “He could be rascal in his own ways, but the base core of my father was a really good and loving man, and I try to be nice and good to others because of that.”
So, with four lines in the Frank Sinatra collection, I asked Tina which was her favorite. “My favorite is the one I think dad would have picked. It has the numbers 1 to 12, but at 12 we put his fedora instead of the number. It’s the watch called Young at Heart, and that’s what dad was. I am sentimental about that model.”
