(From the Guestbook page and the online book Frank Sinatra: An American Legend by Nancy Sinatra )

SEPTEMBER 24–27, 1979: Frank and Barbara dined with President and Mrs. Anwar Sadat in Cairo... [See September 24th]

SEPTEMBER 24–OCTOBER 2, 1976: Frank played to packed houses at the Westchester Premier Theater in Tarrytown, New York, 25 miles north of NYC.

SEPTEMBER 27, 1974: Frank gave a benefit concert for the proposed Cedars-Sinai Medical Center at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles.

SEPTEMBER 27, 1963: The Nevada Gaming Control Board threatened to revoke Dad's license and began an investigation. At the time of the investigation, Dad was negotiating to sell Reprise—the record company he'd founded three years before—to Warner Bros. The Reprise deal was potentially very profitable for him. Cal-Neva, in the meantime, had not been doing too well financially. Open only on weekends once summer ended, the lodge was dependent on strong summer revenue and the 1963 summer season had not been too successful. Dad had a conversation with the Nevada Gaming Control Board in which he asked them not to interfere with the last opportunity to make some money for the summer season, knowing that he would be open only on weekends from then on.

His attorney, Milton "Mickey" Rudin: "When that request was refused, the conversation went from civil to something that was considered rather strong language. This resulted in disciplinary proceedings being brought against Cal-Neva and your father, threatening the loss of the gambling license. They raised the question that Sam Giancana had visited Cal-Neva sometime in the early part of August. We were prepared to prove that your father had not invited Sam Giancana and that in fact he [Giancana] had not stayed at Cal-Neva Lodge. We made full preparations to oppose the disciplinary proceedings and, even if we lost at the administrative level, to make an appeal, because this was clearly an unfair situation."

While these proceedings were pending, Mickey Rudin got a call from Jack Warner, the head of Warner Bros. Warner insisted that Rudin come down to see him immediately. He told Mickey that if Dad was going to become associated with Warner Bros. and be listed as an executive, Warner did not want all of the newspaper publicity concerning Nevada and the Giancana incident. Warner said, "I know it's all bullshit about Giancana, but I'm tired of the image of Las Vegas. I like having Frank as a partner, but if he's going to become involved in Warner Bros. Pictures and own a third of Warner Bros. Records, I think he should not go on with the hearing."

Warner made it quite clear that if Dad did not surrender his license and thereby end the proceedings, the deal was to be called off. Warner's ultimatum left no room for discussion. And although he was "all warmed up to oppose the revocation of the license," ready to contest it and prove they were wrong, Mickey went to the lawyer in Nevada and said, "Reverse paths, turn in the license. I can't make both deals." Dad authorized Mickey to surrender the license. He never went to a hearing—just terminated the license. But a deeper reason he did not fight back, Dad told me, was not because of Warner Bros., but because the investigation was potentially embarrassing to his friend President Kennedy. He cared more about Kennedy than he did about proving he was right.

Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin showing
their affection for Jack Warner.

THE EFFECT OF THE CAL-NEVA SITUATION ON FRANK SINATRA: Frank Sinatra was the single most visible figure in Nevada in those days, so he took most of the flak. He took it because he was Sinatra and he survived it because, ultimately, he was innocent. But he paid an insurmountably high price for being Sinatra. He lost his license, he gave up his dream, Cal-Neva, and he suffered the pain of public criticism. But he never lost his self-respect because he knew he was innocent. In my mind, he never recovered from not being able to fight to save Cal-Neva—and his reputation. One of the keys to my father's personality is his ability—perhaps his need—to express his feelings, at the time, to the right person. In burying his desire to make this a fight to the finish (even though it would have hurt him financially), he buried a lot of anger. He wasn't used to harboring ill feelings forever, and it is this result of the Cal-Neva incident which he bore from then on. The press, of course, had a field day with the surrendering of the license, even though they did not know the reasons or details. Since they continually printed the wrong information, it become an additional piece of the Sinatra folklore. A new element had suddenly been forced into his core—one with which he had great difficulty. It took away what was left of naive beliefs; it encouraged him to carry a grudge. It made him defensive. Up until then, his problems with the press had been solved or resolved one at a time. From this point on, general statements were made—Frank Sinatra versus the American press—instead of small, separate disputes with individuals. The mythical war began. But he had made his choice. He never blamed anyone else. But for once he didn't get mad and he couldn't get even...He just hurt. The idea that as long as he was right he couldn't be touched no longer held. There was more vulnerability in his life now, and a push closer to the line between skepticism and cynicism.

MICKEY RUDIN (FRANK'S ATTORNEY) ON THE CAL-NEVA INCIDENT: There was never a finding that he would lose his license and there was never a finding that he had invited Sam Giancana to Cal-Neva Lodge. Not withstanding those facts, for many years afterwards, whenever there was a mention of the name Frank Sinatra in conjunction with Las Vegas, or in conjunction with any other matter, there would be a tag line that Frank Sinatra lost his license in Las Vegas because he had invited Sam Giancana to the Cal-Neva Lodge. That blight on Sinatra newspaper publicity did not end until we actually went through a hearing in Nevada by applying for a license and had the true facts read upon the record. He was granted a license.

SEPTEMBER 10–30, 1947: Hearst columnist Westbrook Pegler, fueled by Lee Mortimer and the FBI, resumed his attacks on my father... [See September 10th]

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