Something Stupid Trivia Quiz

Answer: Middle School (US grades 6 through 8)

Frank attended only 47 days of high school before he was expelled for his rowdy behavior. Entertaining and singing had always been his passion, and he decided to pursue that dream instead of putting in four more years of study to graduate from high school.

To tie it back to the song "Somethin' Stupid", here's a line that may have something to do with dropping out of school: "I know I stand in line until you think you have the time to spend an evening with me..." Could be that Frankie just got tired of all the lines he had to stand in at school!

Answer: Lauren Bacall

Nancy Barbato was Frankie's childhood sweetheart. She was his first wife and the mother of Frank's three children.

Frank's second wife was Ava Gardner, who many consider the love of his life. They were married for six stormy years.

Frank's third wife was Mia Farrow, who was 30 years his junior when they married. The marriage was understandably brief.

Frank was indeed engaged to Lauren Bacall, Humphrey Bogart's widow, but they ended up breaking up and were never married to each other.

Frank's fourth and final wife was Barbara Marx (a showgirl and the former wife of Zeppo Marx). They had been married for over 20 years at the time of Frank's death in 1998.

One repeated part of the song "Something Stupid" that relates to this aspect of Frank's life is "And then I go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like 'I love you.'" His many affairs of the heart probably had a lot to do with his saying "I love you" too often!

Answer: False

Throughout his life, Frank was tormented by rumors of having mob ties. Regardless of whether your own personal suspicions are that those ties were strong or loose, the doors that opened at the start of Sinatra's career were undeniably due to his marvelous voice. As part of a group called "The Hoboken Four", Sinatra's first break came when the group appeared on "Major Bowe's Amateur Hour" and won first prize.

The FBI file on Sinatra is thousands of pages long and is available to the public. Though they tried to establish his ties to the mafia, there was never any concrete evidence of confirmed illegal actions that Frank took part in with organized crime. He did have friends who were involved in different groups, but these appear to have been social ties and nothing more.

To link this question back to the lyrics of "Something Stupid": "And afterwards we drop into a quiet little place and have a drink or two..." Because the mob owned many night clubs and bars, this line sort of fits.

Answer: Tommy Dorsey

Frank's years with the Tommy Dorsey band did wonders for his career, and Sinatra launched over 40 chart-topping unforgettable songs, including "I'll Never Smile Again." Nevertheless, the fact that Dorsey earned a third of all of the proceeds of Frank's recordings was something that Frankie didn't think was fair. Dorsey repeatedly said he would never let Frank out of his contract early, but he eventually ended up doing so, opening the door to Frank's pursuit of an acting career.

The rumors of mob ties once again surfaced when Frankie was let out of the Dorsey contract, supposedly through pressures brought to bear by the mob on Dorsey. A version of this story was even included in Mario Puzo's novel, "The Godfather." Frank's daughter Nancy says that these rumors just aren't true and that Sinatra's contract was bought from Dorsey in a legitimate way by MCA for $75,000.

To tie it back to "Something Stupid", perhaps this line has something to do with it: "And if we go someplace to dance, I know that there's a chance you won't be leaving with me..." In this case, Dorsey ended up not leaving with Frank after the contract was bought out.

Answer: 4F

One newspaper published that Frank Sinatra was the most hated man in WWII, even more than Hitler, because of unfounded rumors that he paid to get out of doing time in the armed forces. Extensive FBI investigations into his past never uncovered any evidence of this. In fact, the FBI report showed that Frank's ear injury was well-documented and a legitimate reason for being 4-F.

A line from "Something Stupid" that might apply here is: "And though it's just a line to you, for me it's true and never seemed so right before." Though many thought that Frankie's reason for not serving in the army was a lie, he always maintained that it was the truth.

Answer: Robin and the Seven Hoods

Frank did appear in "Robin and the Seven Hoods," along with several members of his Rat Pack and Bing Crosby.

Frank asked for too much money to appear in "What a Way to Go", which eventually starred Robert Mitchum.

Money was also the stumbling block to Frank's getting the part that eventually went to Walter Matthau in "The Odd Couple."

Frank actually started shooting "Carousel" and even recorded a lot of the music before walking off the set when he realized that they expected him to do both a wide-screen version of the film as well as a regular-format version, which meant double the effort for the same money. Gordon MacRae eventually did the honors in this one.

To tie this back to the song "Something Stupid", this line may fit the bill: "I practice every day to find some clever lines to say to make the meaning come through..." In this case, practice the lines as he might, Frankie didn't end up playing the part!

Answer: "High Society," Bing Crosby

Frank and Bing always admired each other personally and professionally, and they did appear together in "High Society," a remake of "The Philadelphia Story." The song "Well Did You Evah?" showcases the two singers' talents perfectly.

Barbra Streisand blocked Sinatra's bid to perform in both "Funny Girl" and "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever." The former was starred in by Omar Sharif and the second by Yves Montand instead of Frank.

The producers of "The Fortune Cookie" really wanted Sinatra to be in the picture, but Jack Lemmon pushed to have his friend and frequent co-star Walter Matthau cast instead.

A rather tenuous link with the song "Something Stupid" can be made with the following line: "I can see it in your eyes that you despise the same old lies you heard the night before..." For some reason, these potential co-stars despised the idea of working with Frankie.

Answer: "The Godfather" (in the title role)

Sinatra really wanted the role of Don Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" and lobbied to be given a chance. The producers wanted someone with more weight, both literally and figuratively, however, and they went with Marlon Brando.

The lead in "Dirty Harry" went to Clint Eastwood. Try as I might, I can't imagine Frankie immortalizing the line "Go ahead, make my day..." instead of Clint.

The lead in "Death Wish" went to Charles Bronson. This is another gritty role that I can't imagine anyone other than Bronson playing.

The role of Daphne in "Some Like it Hot" went to Tony Curtis. Though Curtis and Lemmon played their parts to perfection, I think Frank could have done a good job with this one too.

Another line from the song "Something Stupid" applies to Frank's not having gotten the offer of these roles: "But then I think I'll wait until the evening gets late and I'm alone with you..." Frankie considered being in three of these movies, but he reconsidered and decided it wasn't right for him.

Answer: Democratic

Rumor has it that Frank Sinatra had a falling out with JFK after he had planned to have the president stay for a weekend vacation at Sinatra's Palm Springs home, and JFK ended up going to Bing Crosby's house in the same city instead, supposedly due to security concerns. The meeting was further clouded because it ended up being an opportunity for a tryst between JFK and Marilyn Monroe.

None of those allegations has been proven, but what is known is that Frankie officially changed parties in 1972 when he campaigned for Nixon. He remained a Republican for the rest of his life.

To tie this somewhat tangentially to the lyrics of "Something Stupid": "The time is right, your perfume fills my head, the stars get red and, oh, the night's so blue..." Red is the color of the Republican party and Blue is the color of the Democratic party.

Answer: 1971, after 36 years in the business at the age of 55

On June 13, 1971 at a concert in Hollywood benefiting the Motion Picture and TV Relief Fund, Sinatra announced his retirement for the first time, supposedly bringing to an end his 36-year career in show business. He came out of retirement in 1973 with a TV special and an LP, entitled "Ol' Blue Eyes Is Back." Sinatra confirmed his non-retirement in January of the next year when he returned to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas after having sworn never to sing there again in 1970. Frankie once again went on the stage for a live performance, and he continued to do so for audiences all over the world until 1994. His final public appearance singing for an audience was at a private party in January 1995, where he closed with "The Best is Yet to Come", which is also the inscription on his gravestone. Francis Albert Sinatra died on May 14, 1998 at the age of 82.

To tie this to "Something Stupid", his many announcements of retirement and then comebacks could be characterized by the ending of the song where Frank reiterates his undying devotion by singing: "I love you... I love you... I love you..."