How Nancy Sinatra Achieved a Net Worth of $50 Million
Nancy Sinatra will forever be known as the firstborn daughter of Frank Sinatra, the late musician remembered for being among the top-selling musicians of all time. Sinatra ensured that she made a name for herself in the same industries that her father was known for – music and film. When Frank passed away, he left most of his fortune to his wife Barbara, and Sinatra had to work hard for her own money. She once had to borrow money from her mother and pose for “Playboy,” but today Nancy Sinatra’s net worth is $50 million. Let’s tell you more about how she achieved it.
Born to be a Performer
When Frank died in 1998, his net worth was estimated at over $200 million. However, as the late musician’s daughter told The Guardian in 2008, he was not rich when Sinatra was born. Sinatra was born in 1940 as the eldest child of Frank and Barbato. The family was struggling, but everything changed when Frank became a well-known musician. He acquired so much fame that people would sneak up to their house and at one time, Sinatra’s brother, Frank Sinatra Jr., was kidnapped and released upon Frank paying a ransom of $250,000. Despite living in fear of such an incident ever happening again, Sinatra still had a happy childhood in Toluca Lake, where Frank had settled. Besides enjoying sailing, the young girl back then also was introduced to music at an early age. By the time she was six, Sinatra was studying music and set her sights on being a performer like her father. She planned on studying classical music in college and showed so much potential even in her high school, where she would participate in the annual song banquets.
The classical piano she had studied enabled her to write harmony parts for the women in the Young Women’s Christian Association in her high school, and they won every year. She told Rolling Stone that her earliest memory of performing was at 18 when she sang a Shirley Temple song on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Her ability to move the crowds with her charming personality led her to also strike a close friendship with Elvis Presley. Therefore, when Presley returned from Germany, Sinatra was tasked with welcoming him. She disclosed that the two were such good friends that he even informed her of the birth of his daughter, Lisa Marie Presley. Additionally, her charming personality resulted in her making her television debut on her father’s show, “The Frank Sinatra Show” in 1957. Unfortunately, her dream of attending college was cut short because Sinatra ended up being married at the tender age of 20 to Tommy Sands, a decision she regrets to date. She said the only reason she opted for marriage was to have sex.
Working Hard for Her Money
As her marriage crumbled, so did the music career she had tried to launch so desperately but never attained the success her father enjoyed. By 1965, Sinatra confessed that her label was about to drop her but they left her in the hands of Lee Hazlewood. She had been signed to her father’s label Reprise and warned that she would stay as long as she paid her way, which meant selling records. She had not had a single hit in the United States and was yet to find her authentic voice. Thankfully, her father encouraged her to think about taking up music again but stay away from what he did to avoid being compared to him. As a result, the collaboration with Hazlewood proved to be the break that Sinatra needed in her musical career. He helped her recognize her authentic voice. Hazlewood also advised her to sing like a woman who had been married and divorced.
He wrote “These Boots are Made for Walkin’, ” and wanted to sing it, but Sinatra convinced him it was better suited for a girl Consequently, Sinatra sang it, and she made a comeback to the industry by selling 5 million copies of that record. The two continued making hit after hit, and Sinatra attributes the success to the sexual tension between them that was never acted upon, enabling them to produce sensual songs that lured the audience. Her music career also helped the musician to launch a film career. She was cast in “Burke’s Law,” “Get Yourself a College Girl” and “The Ghost in The Invisible Bikini” among other films in the 1960s, before making her final appearance in 1968 in “Speedway.” While Hazlewood and Frank played a major role in Sinatra’s music career, she feels they were both a help and hindrance. According to Cheatsheet, Sinatra said she never received due credit for her work. She explained people thought she had only reached her height of prosperity because of her father’s influence.
She Would Be Worth Much More
Besides regretting her early marriage, Sinatra also regrets not taking up all the opportunities that came her way. The former actress told Big Issue that she wishes she had taken all the chances accorded to her. She remembered passing up a role to play a mom with a 14-year-old child simply because she felt she was too young to act as a mother to a teenager. She knew it was not about age but her ego because she thought they would give her a much better role given her status. Sinatra added that she was too shy and nervous to chase a huge career; she was content with the little success she managed to accrue. The success would have been much greater if she had not taken a break to raise her family because, by the time she tried returning to the music scene, she could barely afford to pay for studio time. Sinatra had to pose for Playboy Magazine in 1995 to get $50,000 as funding for her album. Thankfully, all that is behind her now as she sits on her $50 million net worth today.