Hamill's book revolves around the central thesis that Sinatra is important--he matters. And he matters because he "transcended several eras and indirectly helped change the way all of us lived"(6). Much has been made of Sinatra's Italian heritage. Because of his immigrant roots, Sinatra has come to embody the up-by-the-bootstraps success story of a poor city kid making it big and becoming a star. In addition to considering the importance of ethnic identity to Sinatra's image, we can also examine technology and crime as important tools of Americanization that led to Sinatra's success.
As an Italian-American, Sinatra was subject to significant ethnic discrimination. He was the subject of class assumptions and eventually became a symbol and a representative for working class America. Sinatra was shaped by "the stark conflict between what America promised and what America delivered"(49) during his childhood in Hoboken. Despite having witnessed this contrast and the hardships faced by other immigrants, Sinatra remained committed to his Italian-American identity. He refused to change his last name to the more stage-friendly "Satin". Instead, he elected to retain his surname Sinatra. Ironically, "Sinatra" is actually an Americanized version of "sinestra", the Italian word for left.
Hamill notes that so many of the composers who crafted the classics of the era in which Sinatra grew up were of immigrant stock themselves. Irving Berlin from Siberia, Yip Harburg from Russia, Harry Warren from Italy; "All were very American, creators of most of those songs that became known as the 'standards' of twentieth-century American music"(95). These earlier immigrant musicians paved the way for immigrant stars like Sinatra. At the same time that Sinatra was gaining popularity, so were integrated swing and jazz bands. Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman--all the great jazz band leaders were beginning to include musicians of other races in their performance groups. This process of democratization through music was a telltale sign of things to come.
Technology, another democratizing force, played an integral role both in the Americanization process for immigrant children and in the rise of Sinatra's stardom. Hamill writes about how the motion picture, the phonograph, and the radio "would provide one form of national unity, allowing people form every region and every ethnic group to share common emotional experiences"(52). Virtually every home had a radio, so all kinds of people could listen to programming in English or even in Italian. Immigrant children immersed themselves in the English language through radio, and hearing English words spoken or sung fostered their cognition. Technology, as a force for Americanization, was critical to Sinatra's success as the creator of "an urban American voice"(93).
Continuing with the immigrant theme, we can interrogate Sinatra's alleged Mob connections as a part of his image. The Mob, according to Hamill, "was not a synonym for the Mafia. It was an alliance of Jews, Italians, and a few Irishmen...who organized a supply, and often the production, of liquor during the thirteen years...of Prohibition"(79). The Mob was an entirely new concept, an American invention created by immigrants who "believed that it was foolish to abide by the old Sicilian traditions of excluding non-Sicilians in the name of honor and respect....This was America; you worked with any nationality if it was in your common interest"(79). The Mob represented the democratization of crime--the opportunity to partake in illegal activity and make a quick buck doing so became an option for all. No longer restricted by la via vecchia, the immigrants bucked tradition and opened the Mob up to anyone willing to participate, including, as the story goes, Sinatra. Equal opportunity law-flouting. What's more American than that?
Technology and crime served as processes of democratization and Americanization which, in concert with his immigrant identity, catapulted Sinatra to the height of fame. And after The Fall, technology and crime helped bring Sinatra back to his former glory.
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