Home Entertainment
February 4, 2008
Warner Home Video Celebrates Frank Sinatra May 13 With New DVDs & New Collections
(February 4, 2008 – Burbank, CA) – Frank Sinatra is “widely held to be the greatest singer in American pop history and one of the most successful entertainers of the last century.”* Beginning May 13, Warner Home Video will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the passing of “The Chairman of the Board” by releasing a total of 22 of his films in five new collections, with 11 titles brand new to DVD. docker docroot docs hooks library patches scripts sfmc simplesamlphp web webroot xhprof_html The New York Times, Stephen HoldenReprise Records, Turner Classic Movies, MGM Home Entertainment and the United States Postal Service are also joining Warner Home Video for what will be an unprecedented month-long tribute to the man who left an everlasting impact on popular culture. Also available beginning May 13 will be an all-new CD collection; a television film festival and other specials and a commemorative postage stamp. The initiative is the first from the newly established Frank Sinatra Enterprises (FSE). Frank’s Movies (See last page for complete information. All orders due April 8.) The new DVD collections and their titles are “Frank Sinatra: The Golden Years” with Sinatra’s Oscar® -nominated performance in “The Man with the Golden Arm,” along with “None but the Brave,” “Some Came Running,” “The Tender Trap” and “Marriage on the Rocks.” “Frank Sinatra: The Early Years” features “Double Dynamite,” “Higher and Higher,” “Step Lively,” “It Happened in Brooklyn” and “The Kissing Bandit.” Frank and his boys get the high-end treatment with “The Rat Pack Ultimate Collector’s Edition” containing “Robin and the Seven Hoods,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “4 For Texas” and the first ever home video release of MGM’s “Sergeants 3.” The UCE will feature exclusive behind-the-scenes photo cards; rare correspondence from the Warner Bros. Archives; cool Rat Pack playing cards available only in the collection; a 24-page reproduction of the original 1960’s “Ocean’s Eleven” press book. The UCE includes a free movie poster offer for all four films. Also debuting is a two-disc DVD of “Sinatra,” the CBS-TV mini-series which was critically acclaimed as a ratings hit and won the 1993 Golden Globe for “Best Made-for-TV Movie.” Executive produced by Tina Sinatra and starring Phillip Casnoff (in a Golden Globe® nominated performance) with Frank’s original tracks, the two-disc edition covers 20-years of Sinatra’s life beginning with his Hoboken, New Jersey boyhood through his 1974 return from retirement. The celebration continues with the newly-designed box set “The Frank Sinatra & Gene Kelly Collection” which features ‘the Crooner’ and ‘the Hoofer’ in such hit films as “On the Town,” “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” and “Anchors Aweigh.” Special features include interviews with William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, outtakes and “When the Lion Roars” documentary. Additional titles with new packaging will be “Never So Few,” “High Society,” “Till the Clouds Roll By” and “The First Deadly Sin.” Frank’s Music Reprise will release “NOTHING BUT THE BEST,” a single-disc collection from Sinatra’s Reprise Years that contains 21 classic cuts remastered for the first time in 15 years, plus a previously unreleased recording of “Body And Soul” featuring new arrangements. The compilation will be available at all retail outlets and online at www.franksinatra.com for a suggested list price of $18.98. Frank on TCM Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will honor Sinatra with a month-long festival of films and specials airing Sundays and Wednesdays throughout May. The Wednesday presentations will be hosted by his children: Nancy, Tina and Frank Jr. Among the films included in the May celebration are “From Here to Eternity” (1953), featuring Sinatra’s Oscar®-winning performance; the musicals “Pal Joey” (1957), “On the Town” (1949) and “Anchors Aweigh” (1945); the Rat Pack comedies “Ocean’s Eleven” (1960) and “Sergeants 3” (1962); and powerhouse dramas like “The Man with the Golden Arm” (1955), which earned him a second Oscar nomination and “The Manchurian Candidate” (1962). Also included are four outstanding television specials, including “Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music” (1965) and “Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music + Ella + Jobim” (1967), the latter teaming him up with songstress Ella Fitzgerald and Brazilian songwriter Antonio Carlos Jobim. About FrankA beloved entertainer for six decades, Sinatra’s achievements earned him three Oscars, three Golden Globes (including the Cecile B. DeMille Award), 10 personal Grammys (and a total of 21 including those for his albums), four Emmy nominations, a Peabody and recognition at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983. A generous charitable contributor, one of his most prestigious awards was the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1971. Francis Albert Sinatra was born on December 12, 1915 in Hoboken, New Jersey. (It is interesting to note that the city’s post office was renamed in his honor in 2002). Dreaming of becoming the next Bing Crosby, he quit high school at age 15 to pursue a singing career. By the early ‘40s, Sinatra was enjoying a thriving solo career, thanks to his first hit, “All or Nothing at All,” and the adoration of hordes of screaming teenage “bobby soxers.” Appearing in a total of 58 films, Sinatra’s first movie appearances were as a singer with the Tommy Dorsey band in “Las Vegas Nights” (1941) and “Ship Ahoy” (1943). His acting debut, however, came in 1943 in “Higher and Higher” which was followed by “Step Lively” and “Anchors Aweigh,” the first of three movies in which he played Gene Kelly's sidekick. He went on to star with Kelly in “On the Town” in 1949. Sinatra first proved himself to be a major dramatic actor with his Academy Award-winning performance in “From Here to Eternity” and his Oscar-nominated turn in “The Man With the Golden Arm.” Sinatra’s musical career was revived after he signed with Capitol Records, and he later formed his own Reprise label. Having recorded more than 1,800 songs in his career, with a dozen of his albums achieving one of the top three spots on Billboard’s charts, Sinatra was definitely “A - number 1, Top of the Heap.” In the early ’60s, Sinatra made his Las Vegas debut at the Sands Hotel and continued for years as a main attraction at Caesars Palace, along with the infamous “Rat Pack.” Frank Sinatra was married four times -- to Nancy Barbato (with whom he had three children, Frank, Jr., Nancy and Tina); actresses Ava Gardner, Mia Farrow and Barbara Marx. Sinatra died of a heart attack on May 14, 1998 at age 82. His tombstone reads, “The best is yet to come.” For further bio information, please visit www.sinatrafamily.com Frank’s Films’ Details “FRANK SINATRA COLLECTION: THE RAT PACK ULTIMATE COLLECTOR’S EDITION” “Ocean’s 11” Danny Ocean with his 10 partners in crime devise a scheme to knock out power to the Vegas strip and electronically rig five big casino vaults to raid them all in the same instant. This original version of “Ocean’s 11” is an entertaining best bet. Special Features: • Commentary by Frank Sinatra Jr. and Angie Dickinson • Interactive “Las Vegas Then and Now” Map Casino Vignettes • “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” excerpt featuring guest host Frank Sinatra and guest Angie Dickinson • Cast/filmmaker profiles • Theatrical trailers “4 For Texas” Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin play wily business rivals in this Wild West lark of gambling and romance. The film features appearances by Anita Ekberg, Ursula Andress, The Three Stooges, Victor Buono and Charles Bronson. Special Features: • Vintage making-of featurette • Cast/filmmaker profiles • Theatrical trailer “Robin and the Seven Hoods” What’s yours is mine. This mirthful adaptation gives the Robin Hood legend a Depression-era, mob town Chicago setting. And the jazzy Sammy Cahn/James Van Heusen score is the perfect match for this all-star cast. Special Features: • Commentary by Frank Sinatra Jr. • Vintage featurette “What They Did to Robin Hood” • Cast/filmmaker profiles • Theatrical trailers “Sergeant’s 3” Produced by Frank Sinatra, this second Rat Pack movie has Sinatra and gang (including Dean Martin, Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr.) playing the wildest characters in the west, sure to be an entertaining ride. Special Features: • Audio commentary by Frank Sinatra Jr. “FRANK SINATRA COLLECTION: THE GOLDEN YEARS” “None but the Brave” There are two sides to every war. Making his directorial debut, Frank Sinatra also stars in this suspenseful World War II saga about mistaken identity, unexpected heroism and the unsteady peace that ensues. Special Features: • Theatrical trailer“The Man with the Golden Arm”Drummer Frankie Machine is out of detox and eager to get on with a big band career. Sinatra’s piercing, Academy Award-nominated portrayal is one of his best in this film, known for its landmark on-screen depictions of drug abuse. Special Features: • New Featurette: “Shoot Up/Shoot Out: The Story Behind The Man with the Golden Arm”• Theatrical trailer“Some Came Running”Frank Sinatra plays World War II veteran Dave Hirsh, whose arrival back in his hometown brings small-town hypocrisy to the unforgiving light of day. Costar Shirley MacLaine was nominated for her performance. Special Features: • New Featurette: “The Story of Some Came Running” – an exclusive ‘making-of’ retrospective • Theatrical Trailer“The Tender Trap”Debbie Reynolds sets her marital sights on Manhattan talent agent Sinatra, who is dedicated to life, liberty and the happiness of pursuit. Love is indeed “The Tender Trap.” Special Features: • New Featurette: “Frank’s Way”• Soundtrack remastered in 5.1 audio • Theatrical Trailer“Marriage on the Rocks”A bored wife (Deborah Kerr) swaps her fuddy-duddy hubby Dan (Sinatra) for his swinging bachelor best friend Ernie (Martin) – and sparks fly. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“FRANK SINATRA COLLECTION: THE EARLY YEARS”“Double Dynamite”Frank Sinatra is underpaid bank teller Johnny Dalton, who comes across big money – and big trouble – in this frothy comedy. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“It Happened in Brooklyn”Times aren’t easy for returning GIs in the years after World War II. But falling in love, that’s easy. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“Step Lively”As a playwright whose real talent is his singing voice, Frank Sinatra steps into his first top billing in this antic backstage musical based on the Broadway/Marx Brothers movie hit “Room Service.” Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“Higher and Higher”Making his acting debut in this merry musical comedy about a get-rich scheme with comic complications, Sinatra plays the boy next door who definitely knows his way around a song. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“The Kissing Bandit”Timid Ricardo haplessly continues his father’s bandito tradition, and so “The Kissing Bandit” rides again – if he can somehow manage to stay on horseback. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“THE FRANK SINATRA & GENE KELLY COLLECTION”“Take Me Out To The Ball Game”Combining baseball with that other all-American pastime of romance, Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly play a pair of 1900s vaudevillians who spend the winter performing onstage and the summer performing on the field. Special Features: • Deleted Musical Numbers “Baby Doll” and “Boys and Girls Like You and Me” • Notes on Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly • 3 Theatrical Trailers“On The Town”New York, New York, it’s a wonderful town – especially when sailors Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Jules Munshin have a 24-hour shore leave to see the sights – sights that include Ann Miller, Betty Garrett and Vera-Ellen. Special Features: • Theatrical Trailer“Anchors Aweigh”A wartime tale of two sailors on leave in Hollywood, this milestone of movie fantasy includes live-action fancy footwork with animated Jerry (of Tom and JerryÔ). Special Features: • Archival interview with animation legends William Hanna and Joseph Barbera • Excerpt from the “MGM: When the Lion Roars” Documentary Series • 3 Theatrical trailersAdditional WHV Titles New-To-DVD“Sinatra”Executive produced by daughter Tina Sinatra, this award-winning miniseries documents Sinatra’s remarkable life, covering more than 20 years, from boyhood through his return from retirement in 1974. The Legend himself collaborated in the making and the show features his own singing and some astonishing personal revelations.# # #