Frank Sinatra is a household name, and that kind of notoriety doesn't come without a significant fortune. Decades of performances on- and off-screen, multiple award-winning albums, and an enduring legacy all amounted to properties, possessions and investments that spanned multiple states. So, what happened when the crooner met the coroner? With multiple kids, wives and ex-wives, and numerous friends, Sinatra's estate seemed like it might be complicated to divvy up, but with a solid will in place, the answer was perhaps simpler than one might expect. Here's who inherited Frank Sinatra's money after he died.
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00:00One of the most prolific singers and Casanovas of the 20th century, Frank Sinatra's fortune
00:06could have ended up in any number of hands.
00:08Want to know who owns the rights to Sinatra's legendary song catalog?
00:12Keep watching to find out the true fate of Frank Sinatra's money and property.
00:16Whether you're a fan of his work or not, you've definitely heard Frank Sinatra's music at
00:20some point in your lifetime.
00:22The iconic singer is best known for his performances of the hit songs New York, New York and Fly
00:27Me to the Moon.
00:28His music is highly revered in America, and though he died over two decades ago, pop culture
00:34has kept his legacy alive.
00:36Today, he's celebrated as one of the most iconic singers of the 20th century.
00:41Sinatra was born to Italian immigrants Martin and Natalie Sinatra in Hoboken, New Jersey,
00:46on December 12, 1915.
00:49He grew up with a natural interest in music and was inspired to hone his singing chops
00:53after hearing the music of Bing Crosby.
00:55Soon, he found himself regularly singing at clubs.
00:59One night, while Sinatra was performing at one such club, trumpeter Harry James invited
01:04Sinatra to sing in his band.
01:06The pair proceeded to perform together before Sinatra went solo.
01:10In addition to singing, Sinatra also found success on the screen.
01:14Over the course of several decades, he's starred in dozens of movies, including The Manchurian
01:18Candidate and the original Ocean's Eleven.
01:21Another defining moment of Sinatra's career was his involvement with the Las Vegas singing
01:26group The Rat Pack.
01:28Sinatra was joined by performers Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lofford, and Joey Bishop.
01:34Together, the quintet changed the landscape of Las Vegas entertainment.
01:37I've been waiting back there so long I was about to call some troops, but I was gonna
01:43do another song here, you know, let's hold it down there.
01:47For most of the 60s, the group was a staple to Sin City, and their act was loved by many
01:52major celebrities at the time.
01:54One notable Rat Pack fan was John F. Kennedy, who was related to Lofford by marriage.
02:00Over the course of the late 60s, the Rat Pack fizzled out.
02:03Though Sinatra would announce his retirement shortly after in 1971, he continued to perform
02:08until 1995.
02:10Sinatra's storied career was nothing short of interesting, but it came to an end on May
02:1514, 1998, when he suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 82.
02:20Frank Sinatra was married four times, but only had children with his first wife, Nancy.
02:26Together, the couple had three children, Nancy, Frank Jr., and Tina.
02:31According to The Washington Post, Sinatra was rumored to be a major playboy and had
02:36several affairs during his marriage to Nancy.
02:38Vanity Fair states that, after they divorced in 1951, Sinatra immediately married actress
02:45However, their relationship seemed doomed from the start.
02:48The pair met while both were still in other marriages, and the Ava Gardner Museum confirms
02:53that the two regularly fought in public.
02:56They divorced by 1957, and Sinatra would marry again less than a decade later.
03:01In 1966, he married actress Mia Farrow, beginning a partnership that would be even shorter than
03:07his previous two.
03:09He didn't want her to be suffering because of him, and she was being, her name was being
03:15bandied about in the press.
03:18By 1968, Sinatra and Farrow separated.
03:22Sinatra wouldn't get married again until 1976.
03:25At the time of his death, Sinatra was married to his fourth and final wife, Barbara.
03:30After a prolific career in music, film, and romance that spanned more than half a century,
03:36who stood to gain from Sinatra's death?
03:38The answer turned out to be several people.
03:41According to the Associated Press, a few weeks after his death, it was revealed that Sinatra's
03:46will included a number of bequests to multiple different parties.
03:50Before his death, Sinatra appointed all three of his children the sole rights to most of
03:55his music.
03:56They also received $200,000 each and co-ownership rights to a property he owned.
04:01The person who would inherit the most was Sinatra's widow, Barbara.
04:06She was left with a bulk of Sinatra's estate.
04:09That included the majority of his property, jewelry, several cars, personal belongings,
04:15as well as $3.5 million.
04:18Sinatra also left $1 million in trust funds for two of his grandchildren.
04:23And last but not least, he left $250,000 to his ex-wife, Nancy.
04:29Sinatra's memory earned an even more generous reputation when it was revealed that he had
04:33even left several more six-figure fortunes to a handful of friends.