[Franco]

Do you remember the beautiful "come fly with me" record cover with Lockheed Constellation airplanes ? Well , I have heard (then I can specify where I have read it ) that FS was very , very , very upset with someone in Capitol because they did the cover art with TWA name well visible on the ladder and did publicity (may be taking money) to the airline through FS very famous name, without paying any royalties to him. Do this sound strange or new to you?

[Jake]

I don't have the "Come Fly With Me" album with me right now, but I seem to recall, at least in the Capitol "The Capitol Years" box set that the back cover explicitly notes the Constellation and the TWA logo.

I guess it's just like "Too Marvelous for Words", the lyrics of which Sinatra sang a few times by saying "in the dictionary" instead of "Webster's Dictionary".

I just saw "Come fly with me..." and a posting by Jake.

Fot a moment I thought Jake is organizing a group for a flight and I expected to read something like:

Come fly with me

lets jet to LA in May

[Jake]

Ha ha! Anton, you should be in Vegas headlining in some show, with that humour!

That would be something: to organize a flight to LA and see Nancy receive her star, though!

The 1987 CD cover, with the TWA logo clearly visible on the stair ramp, can be seen in Frank's Recordings: Come Fly With Me.

On the original 1958 album cover, the TWA logo was not quite so prominent, as it appeared only on the fuselage of the Constellation airliner in the background and not on the ladder. This can be seen on the accurate cover art reproductions of the UK box set, The Capitol Years (1998) and the US budget box set, Capitol Records Concept Albums (2004). Both of these contain the following acknowledgement on the reverse cover side:

Cover produced in cooperation with Trans World Airlines and featuring the TWA Jetstream Super Constellation

I'd not heard the story of FS being upset about the royalty issue, but I'm sure his estate did not make the same mistake twice, when it authorized this 1998 promotional CD for United Airlines: Come Fly With Us.

[Nancy]

This story seems very far-fetched and I don't believe it. Maybe if we knew where you heard it, we could comment.

[Jake]

"Cover produced in cooperation with Trans World Airlines and featuring the TWA Jetstream Super Constellation"

That's the statement I was trying to recall in my earlier post. Thanks Bob!

Maybe I'm creating some crack pot idea, but perhaps Frank was angry using the TWA logo because Howard Hughes owned that airline. I know that there was some hostility between them regarding the production of "Double Dynamate" which Huges had severley trunicated.

PLease delete my post if you see it fit.

Did you know (of course you did!) that there is an alternate "CFWM" album cover using a United Airlines aircraft? It is on the cover of the United collector's CD "Come Fly with Us" (A Frank Sinatra Exclusive presented by United Airlines). It appears to be a DC-6 or DC-7 prop plane with a bouyant, inviting Frank holding a lovely hand and directing his guest along the red carpet to the stairs of the aircraft.

I take it this IS an authorized CD since the VP of United's Marketing Dept. warmly thanks the Sinatras for sharing their memories thru the photos and music of Frank Sinatra.

It certainly is, to the best of my knowledge.

A picture of the front cover:

The Come Fly With Us thread was linked in my post above (and now once again).

(David: Your link doesn't work.)

I just noticed, Bob. I wonder what's up with that...

Thanks.

You have an extra "http://" at the start of your IMG link.

[Franco]

Nancy,

this episode regarding FS and the TWA cover art is written in the book by George Martin itself and the title is " all you need is ears" . It is its own autobiography.

ciao!

Franco

[Dugan]

Page 144-45

Quick setup... At the time Sir George was the head of EMI's (Capitol's parent) Parlophone label, was in the control room on his first visit to the Tower and, according to the book, witnessed the following first hand:

"The only sour note came at the end of the session, when Voyle Gilmore showed Sinatra the design for the cover of the album. Sinatra exploded. He called Gilmore every name under the sun, and disappeared still fuming. I, the country cousin from England, couldn't for the life of me understand what all the fuss was about. Then I was shown the cover, and i did understand. It's the copver that was eventually issued, and it shows Sinatra in his broadband hat with the TWA airliner in the background. Sinatra's view was that Capitol were ripping him off by doing some private deal with TWA. The innuendo was that if the record went out like that Capitol executives would get free pubilcity, free fares, or free something-or-other. Whatever the truth, Sinatra's attitude was plain - TWA were getting a free advertisement out of his face."

[Franco]

Thats 'it Dugan .

Thanks for posting the eaxct quote, Dugan! While mentions of Sinatra being angry about the TWA thing/CFWM cover have been legion over the years, this quote seems (in my opinion/from my point of view) for the first time to be telling the story in a "logical" context. This way it does not sound far-fetched at all, but rather believable, given Sinatra's well-documented high-tempered reactions in similar matters before and after this incident.

Bernhard.

And, reading that quote, Sinatra's anger seems more than justifiable.

While paid product endorsements are commonplace today in motion pictures and elsewhere, such a representation on the cover of a record album seems highly objectionable, IMO.

[MMM]

One has to wonder why Capitol did put TWA, or ANY airline's name on the cover. If TWA/American/etc. were never there, the cover wouldn't look any worse for it (and I LOVE the cover of this album). Nowadays, with the demise of TWA, having TWA as part of the cover kinda adds to the period charm, but if it were never put there originally, I seriously doubt the cover wouldn't have seemed lacking due to its absence.

[MAP 55]

A Real Cool Cover and a Real group of great songs!