Frank Sinatra, JFK & The Mob Doc Headed To Channel 4
By Max Goldbart
International TV Co-Editor

August 31, 2023 5:06am


Sinatra (left) and Kennedy attend Kennedy's inaugural ball
GAB Archive/Redferns

EXCLUSIVE: A documentary about the relationships between Frank Sinatra, JFK and the mafia has been snapped up by Channel 4.

The UK commercial broadcaster has pre-bought Sinatra, Kennedy and the Mob from Leaving Neverland seller Abacus Media Rights, with more sales understood to be in the offing.

Produced by Peninsula Television in Ireland, the doc focuses on the man that the beloved singer really wanted to be friends with, U.S. President John F. Kennedy, whose brother-in-law was Sinatra’s friend, the actor Peter Lawford.

Both Sinatra and Kennedy had developed dubious relationships with the mafia and were hiding some dangerous secrets. The two had benefited from their contacts with organized crime figures – the mob had promoted Sinatra’s career and had also helped the Kennedys buy votes to win elections. Sinatra basked in Kennedy’s glory and used his associations with the glamorous president to promote himself in the eyes of his friends and the American public, but, in March 1962, Sinatra was unexpectedly and abruptly ejected from JFK’s gang.

This documentary weaves together interviews from both experts and first hand accounts with the likes of the acclaimed historian James Kaplan, who wrote biographies on Sinatra, and Helen O’Donnell, who brings a personal account as she is the daughter of Kennedy’s right-hand man Kenneth O’Donnell.

The show will air later this year on Channel 4 and is being sold as either two one-hour episodes or a 90-minute special.

Channel 4 has been busy pre-buying docs of late. Yesterday, Deadline revealed it had acquired World War II: Women on the Frontline, which tells astonishing stories of female heroism and bravery during World War II.

https://deadline.com/2023/08/frank-sinatra-jfk-4the-mob-doc-channel-1235532431/

ChatGPT ·
Bot
Why did Frank Sinatra Jr.'s kidnappers escape getting whacked? You would think one of Frank Sr's 'friends' would want to make an example of them.

ChatGPT
Frank Sinatra Jr.'s kidnappers, Barry Keenan and Joe Amsler, were arrested and convicted for the crime. They were sentenced to life in prison, but their sentences were later reduced and they were released on parole. It is likely that Frank Sinatra Sr. and his associates were able to exert some influence in the criminal justice system, but ultimately it was up to the courts to decide their punishment. It is worth noting that the use of violence or intimidation to seek revenge or exert control over others is illegal and morally unacceptable.

Thanks for this.

For me personally this is still the best documentary on Sinatra and the mob...Sinatra-Dark Star

These documentaries are so full of it. They repeat the same old stories, most or all untrue. Yet people will watch and in many cases believe it. They can say anything they want without fear of being sued, and apparently without fear of any disbelief.

What exactly isn't true?

Yes TD Dark Star is very cool of all the Rat Pack JFK's brother-in-law Peter Lawford has always been a bit of a mystery, the last person to speak to Marilyn Monroe before she died. In addition, Lawford was the one who organized the famous birthday party for John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden (where Marilyn Monroe sang Happy Birthday, Mr. President ).

No disrespect to anyone, but I was going to ask the same question...

Check this out and I think we already explained a lot of stuff and situations in the previous Roselli thread...

Roselli: ... He [Frank Sinatra] was real nice to me... He says: "Johnny, I took Sam's name, and wrote it down, and told Bobby Kennedy, 'This is my buddy, this is what I want you to know Bob'. "Between you and I, Frank saw Joe Kennedy three different times-Joe Kennedy, the father. He called him three times... He [Frank] says he's got an idea that you're mad at him. I says: "That, I wouldn't know".

Giancana: He must have a guilty conscience. I never said nothing... Well, I don't know who the fuck he's [Frank's] talking to, but if I'm gonna talk to... after all, if I'm taking somebody's money, I'm gonna make sure that this money is gonna do something, like, do you want it or don't you want it. If the money is accepted, maybe one of these days the guy will do you a favour.

Roselli: That's right, He [Frank] says he wrote your name down...

Giancana: Well, one minute he [Frank] tells me this and then he tells me that and then the last time I talked to him was at the hotel in Florida a month before he left, and he said, "Don't worry about it. If I can't talk to the old man [Joseph Kennedy], I'm gonna talk to the man [President Kennedy." One minute he says he's talked to Robert, and the next minute he says he hasn't talked to him. So, he never did talk to him. It's a lot of shit. Why lie to me? I haven't got that coming.

Roselli: I can imagine... Tsk, tsk, ...... if he can't deliver, I want him to tell me: "John, the load's too heavy.

Giancana: That's all right. At least then you know how to work. You won't let your guard down then, know what I mean... Ask him [Frank] if I'm going to be invited to his New Year's party.

The “Conventional Wisdom” is that Joe Kennedy, JFK’s father and former Ambassador to the UK, was a big-time rumrunner during Prohibition. He developed relationships with organized crime, and he kept them up after Prohibition was repealed. In 1960, he met with Sam Giancana and made him an offer he couldn’t refuse: If The Outfit and its ally, the Teamsters, helped his son, JFK, to carry Illinois during the Presidential election, he—Joe Kennedy—guaranteed that the Kennedy Administration would keep hands off the Mafia. But JFK appointed his brother, Bpbby, as Attorney Geeral, and Bobby waged war on The Mob and the Teamsters. So, the Mafia assassinated JFK, both as revenge and to get the government off their backs.
In a juicy sidebar: JFK and Giancana shared a mistress—Judith Campbell Exner—a young beauty and Hollywood wannabe, introduced to both men by a mutual friend, Frank Sinatra. She claimed in her memoirs, published in 1997, when she was terminally ill with cancer., that she was a go-between for JFK, Giancana and Johnny Roselli.

It’s a great story but it doesn’t hold up to scrutiny:

• Joe Kennedy was never a rumrunner during Prohibition. That myth got traction because, in 1932, when Prohibition was about to be repealed, he formed a partnership, Somerset Importers, and after repeal in ’33, started bringing in, legally, several brands of British Scotch and gin. His partner: Jimmy Roosevelt, son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
• Giancana had no incentive to help JFK carry Illinois. In 1959, he was subpoenaed to appear before a Senate comittee investigating OC infiltration of labor unions. JFK was a ranking Democrat on the committee, Bobby its chief counsel. Giancana took the Fifth Amendment often, and always gave a little laugh when he did. “Why are you giggling, Mr. Giancana,” Bobby asked in front of the newsreel cameras and reporters covering the hearing. “I thought only little girls giggled.’ You don’t say that to a Mob boss and expect him to support your brother for President.
• That same hearing launched the war by the Kennedy brothers against Jimmy Hoffa. “Why don’t you stop hiding behind the Fifth Amendment and tell the trut,” JFK shouted at Hoffa. Hoffa and Bobby publicly dissed each other, and Hoffa challenged Bobby to a push-ups contest. The Teamsters supported Richard Nixon in the ’60 election. And, JFK didn’t need either the Outfit or the Teamsters’ help in carrying Illinois—it was promised to him, and delivered, by his close friend and ally Richard Daley, Chicago’s all-powerful Mayor/ Nixon was ahead in Illinois until, after 10 p.m., when a huge surge of votes from Cook County put JFK over the top by 9,000 votes out of 2.7 million votes cast.
• As for Exner: JFK didn’t know he was sharing her with Giancana until FBI director J. Edgar Hoover informed Bobby that the FBI knew that his brother and Exner had spoken 70 times in two weeks—and that one of the calls made by Exner was traced to Giancana’s home. JFK immediately dropped Exner—and Sinatra.

Thanks Turnbull !


The Mistress Who Carried Messages Between JFK and the Mob Did It for Love
GREAT AMERICAN SCANDALS
Judith Campbell, dubbed the “mob moll” by the media, had a passionate affair with JFK, and fell in love with him. She also became a conduit between the White House and the mob.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/judit...-between-jfk-and-the-mob-did-it-for-love

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My guess is nobody got whacked for the kidnapping because 3 things-
First- Frank Jr survived the ordeal.
Second- Frank was always denying his relationships with the mob, that would have been harder to do if the kidnappers got whacked.
Third- Imagine the attention and heat that would have brought on being as high profile as Frank Sr was at the time.

Reminds me one when future Pittsburgh Boss Michael Genovese brother Fiore was killed by a mentally challenged man trying to kill the guy he was with for teasing him constantly in 1971- Genovese took no retribution. Supposedly the then Boss John Larocca convinced Genovese the guy had nothing to do with the life, and although traumatic, if Michael killed this man it would bring tons of heat down on him and the family. Law enforcement would have immediately started investigating the family. This also opens the door for informants to be developed by law enforcement during an investigation.
Genovese and the family never touched the man for the rest of his life.(he was sent to some insanity institution).

Good points Millspgh it's still a strange case though why would you kidnap the son of Sinatra for some ransom everybody knew he was connected to Cosa Nostra.

Frank Sinatra Had A Sketchy Reason For Turning Down The Use Of 'My Way' In Goodfellas

Frank Sinatra would not allow one of his most iconic songs to be used in the soundtrack for the movie Goodfellas.

In her conversation with Empire magazine, Thelma Schoonmaker shared a telling statement: “Sinatra would never let Marty use his music, which is too bad because Marty may do the ultimate biopic of him.” With Martin Scorsese’s reputation for crafting some of cinema’s most memorable biographical films, the possibility of him taking on a Sinatra biopic would undoubtedly excite fans.


https://www.thethings.com/frank-sinatra-turned-down-the-use-of-my-way-in-goodfellas/

Thanks for the info @H. Sinatra was always a treacherous fox.

I believe Marty still wants DiCaprio to play him.

Why Frank Sinatra’s estate refused a Martin Scorsese biopic

https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/martin-scorsese-frank-sinatra-biopic-refused/

In my opinion Sinatra way overrated. Dino, now that's my guy!

+1

Sinatra was the worst...A wanna be tough guy, and when he had a problem, wanted someone else to do his fighting for him !!!

Frank Sinatra was ‘a better cocaine dealer than singer'
’Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar's son has sensationally claimed singer Frank Sinatra was his dad's business partner.
Sebastian Marroquín described the legendary crooner as a 'better cocaine dealer than singer' in an interview with a Brazilian newspaper.
He said the American artist was one of his father's partners in Miami.
Asked how he could be so sure of the truth of his extraordinary claims, Marroquin told respected newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo: 'There are more singers than you can imagine that began their careers thanks to the sponsorship of drug traffickers.
'There are no receipts, just words. I know because I was very close to my father and he and his partners always spoke about that.'

Indeed 100% Dino. Sinatra is great, but Dean Martin's layback style of singing is world class.

On one occasion Martin allegedly said that if someone would throw a bomb into the hall of Atlantic city where he was performing, it would wipe out organized crime. Another rumour has it that the FBI regularly visited those concerts to take a look at all the mobsters who were there.

Equal talent, but Dino was a much more likable guy, no question !!!

I don't think Sinatra was overrated Dino was underrated.

Pretty cool video on Dean Martin - I always thought he had that laid back, effortless cool around him!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNLD2Dci3Zk

Frank was The Voice and Dean the King of Cool !