Frank and Ava (2018) - full transcript

The tempestuous relationship between Hollywood icons, Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner, in the '50s, showing their multi-year love affair and subsequent marriage. A downcast Frank, his career on the wane because of problems with his voice, a failing marriage, and a tarnished reputation falls in love with rising star, Ava, admittedly the most beautiful woman in movies. As couple, they were hapless: reporters pursued them everywhere, even playing them off against each other, initially casting Frank as an adulterer and Ava as a home wrecker as wife, Nancy Barbato, refused to grant him a divorce. When they finally married in 1951 the tabloids then paraded their sorted affairs whenever Ava went off to Europe or Africa to make a movie; leaving Frank behind desperately trying to land the acting job that he believes will turn his fortunes, the role of Private Angelo Maggio in upcoming Columbia Pictures film, From Here to Eternity. Despite the passionate, intense way in which Frank and Ava loved each other it becomes apparent they are doomed mirror images of each other: hard drinking, profane, fiercely independent, who never believed in being faithful and monogamous. They fought wildly, savagely, trading insults and even blows with the despairing Sinatra trying to kill himself on hearing of Ava shacking up with a famous bullfighter while in Spain making The Barefoot Contessa. Eventually they separate, and although Frank does make a comeback when he wins the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 1953 for the role of Maggio, a role that Ava may have interceded on his behalf in his being cast, it is a pyrrhic victory as the broken hearted Frank celebrates alone.

♪ Boy, have you ever
Got it made ♪

♪ Oh boy, you're gonna
Have it breezy ♪

♪ I'll bet good things
Are gonna come your way ♪

♪ Oh boy, have you
Ever got it made ♪

♪ Oh boy, you really
got it made ♪

♪ Just stand to see the sun
Shine along the cloud each day ♪

♪ I mean your stars
Will never be gray ♪

♪ Oh boy, have
You ever got it made ♪

♪ He will try to push
You around ♪

♪ Don't let him
Make that mistake ♪

♪ Walk like a king
And stand your ground ♪



♪ You've got what it takes ♪

♪ Oh boy, you really
Got it made ♪

♪ You're gonna have it easy ♪

♪ I go walk in a glade ♪

♪ If I could wear your
Shoes for a day ♪

Good evening, Mr. and Mrs.
America and all the ships at sea.

Music flash. Is The Voice
now just the gargle?

Whether temporary or otherwise, the old
black magic that once made thousands swoon

when Mr. S wrenched "Night and Day" from
his sapling frame is gone from the throat.

The bobby-soxers are no longer hypnotized by
the vocals, no longer swayed by the music.

In fact, they are, thank
goodness, no longer.

Crooner boy Frank Sinatra's charm
seems to have gone a fleeting.

Maybe the bobby-soxers are getting more
absorbed in such little matters as the H-bomb.

With up-and-comers Perry Como and Eddie
Fisher climbing the charts making waves,



Frank is officially
yesterday's news.

Nothing personal, Frankie.

But you know what they say:
Hot today, cold as a corpse tomorrow.

♪ The wrong romance ♪

♪ Word from the wise ♪

♪ That they don't know
The feeling... ♪

Mr. Selznick has personally
selected you, Señorita Valley.

Oh, yes, I'm going to do
a movie with Mr. Hitchcock.

Look at Selznick with the
flavor of the month.

Goodness.

She's practically flaunting
those diamonds, isn't she?

Oh, we've been hearing quite a bit about you,
Marilyn, these days,

especially your jewelry, dear.

Isn't it dreamy?

David Selznick spent a lot of
flavors of the month though:

Lena Horne, Grace
Kelly, Lana Turner.

- Where are you from, honey?
- Philadelphia.

And despite of what Mr. Field
says, it's a very nice place.

Poor Nancy, it's so humiliating.

You covered it so thoroughly.

As did you, Lila.

Speaking of which,
where's the star of hit parade?

I'm sure he's here somewhere.

I saw his goons lurking about.

Surprised he shows his face at
all after reading your column.

Just stating
the facts, dearie.

Just the facts.

What do they call him?

A hundred and nineteen
pounds has-been?

That's right.

Let's be nice, ladies.
He's put on a little meat since.

Oh, it doesn't matter as long
as it's nineteen pounds of cock.

Let me guess.
Washing his hands again?

Oh, he's worried about his throat,
so he's washing all the germs off.

The germs or the guilt?

They busted him again.

This... this whole Maxwell business,
press got him cold this time.

Mortimer, Winchell, The Hat.

They got nothing.

That's why we're here.

I can't do this anymore. I have talked to
him about the broads and money and Nancy.

The public knows. They know.

They don't like him anymore. You know what
they call his show? Saturday Nightmares.

Come on, why are you
reading that crap?

My prediction... he'll be through in a year.
He'll be dead professionally.

They're not gonna see his pictures.
They are not gonna can buy his records.

The public will not care
about Frank Sinatra.

Hello, gentlemen.

Where is he? Where's Frank?

Well, I do not know.
I am not his keeper, am I?

Well, he needs to speak to me
about something very important.

He needs my help.

Because you've done
so much already.

What Jack is trying to say is you had...
have always given Frank a fair shake. Right?

I think he's out by the pool.

Don't fall in, you
might ruin that hat.

What a witch.

♪ Breaking up
now It's understood ♪

♪ What my dreams are made of ♪

Alone at last.

You move right along, don't you?

I thought I'd come and say hello given last
time we met, we sort of rushed things.

You rushed things.

I was on a date.

Check how I've used.

How can I forget?

Suppose we start over.

So, how are you doing?

Making pictures as usual.

How about you?

I'm trying to pick
myself off my ass.

How's that working out for you?

Most of the times not.

So...

So...

Why don't we get out of here?

Where did you learn
how to shoot, huh?

All right, what kind of crazy...

Howdy, officer.

Working late?

Meet Chester, the working stiff.

Ma'am, I'm gonna need
to take that revolver from you.

This little old thing?

I bet it's not as big
as the one you're packing.

Oh...

- Ain't she something?
- She sure is.

Boy,

this is sure one-horse town.

Where's the horse?

Hello?

Hello, Ma'am, would you mind waking up the
sheriff? It's... it's sort of important.

Hang on.

Lloyd!

- What?
- Telephone.

All right.

What's so important they should
call at this hour, hmm?

Hello.

Sherriff, Sir, it's me, Sir.

Huh?

You're not gonna believe this.

I've got Frank Sinatra
and Ava Gardner.

Frank Sinatra... Yeah,
yeah, I've heard of them.

I'm bringing them in, Sir.

Alright, alright,
I'll be right down.

Shit.

He got a couple of celebrities down there,
Frank Sinatra and Ava... What's her name?

- Ava Gardner?
- Yeah, Ava Gardner.

Alright.

Well, wait, hold them...
hold them there till I get dressed, will you?

Evening, Miss.

It smells bad in here.

It's bug spray, Ma'am.

How about a phone, pops?

Yeah, pops, how about it?

Sure. You're gonna
have a phone call.

Jimmy.

"Senior" is great.

Is that Spanish?

It's beautiful.

Hmm, Jack, it's for you. Sounds like our
boy is lit up like a Christmas tree.

Frank.

Look, we're in trouble.

When I left you at the gentlemen's
party you seemed to be in good hands.

In the old police
station of all places.

Police?

Sherriff Lloyd Boyle.

And... get this... I know
he is long in the tooth.

I think some of those teeth
are made of wood.

Sober up, clam up,
put the sheriff on.

I want to talk to Frankie.

Would you give me a break here?

It's for you.

Pardon me, Miss.

Sherriff Boyle,
Jack Keller here.

Well, I just want to thank you for your
discretion and looking after Frank.

We all appreciate it.

I appreciate your feeling
that way, Mr. Keller.

I'm sure you are as big fan
of Frank as the rest of us.

No, never been much
of a fan. My wife is.

Well, Sir, we want
to take care of you.

Where exactly are you located?

- Right here in Indio.
- Indio.

That's just past Palm Desert,
Cathedral City,

Rancho Mirage.
Just past the cemetery.

Are you sure there isn't
anything Frank can do for you?

You just name it,
anything at all.

Uh, well,

oh, come to think of it,

my wife and I have been
fishing one of these new gizmos.

A television set maybe?

Sheriff Boyle, we could
definitely make that happen.

We'll see you soon.

Okay now? Thank you.

Are we going to Indio?

- Would you take care of that?
- Whoopee!

Not you, tuts, you can
have another nightcap.

Jesus.

I'm a wreck.

How long are they
gonna keep us here?

As long as it takes Jack Keller to
drive out here from Los Angeles.

Is he a lawyer?

Worse. A PR man.

Will he be able to spring us?

Fix is in the weeks.

Lana Turner says you get your
kicks acting like a hoodlum.

Well, Lana Turner
has some mouth on her.

Funny.

She says the very
same thing about you.

Forget Lana Turner.

- I only have eyes for you.
- Oh.

This coming from a married man.

What's my wife have
anything to do with it?

Back in North Carolina proper ladies
do not associate with married men.

Well, I may not be a saint
but you ain't no angel either.

Mel Tormé told me all about you.

That goddamn crooner?

What's wrong with crooners?

You're all spoiled rotten
and you murder on young girls.

Guilty as charged.

Inbred hayseed.

Hoboken hoodlum.

Redneck.

Oh my, oh my.

A good behavior will get all?

Sudden cookie, huh?

Francis!

... as my poor
little country gal.

That's me, all right.
Just a hillbilly with a pair of tits and ass.

Wooo, someone's got to work
on their little self-esteem.

Don't you try
to psychoanalyze me,

Mr. I'm All Washed Up.

Cut it out.

All my tomorrows
belong to you, baby.

Pretty big talk, Mister S.

What talk?

I'm on fire for you, kitten.

Fire?

Trust me honey, it won't last.

Pretty soon you'll want
to mold me and

sculpt me

like all the other
men in my life.

This ain't my first
rodeo, cowboy.

Lee Mortimer here.

It would appear,
unless he slugged someone,

Frank Sinatra can't
get arrested these days.

The latest rejection
for the washed-up crooner

who's been missing in action as well
as from the charts comes from the USO.

It seems that the army doesn't want
Sinatra entertaining our troops in Korea

due to serious questions according
to General Alfred E. Kaisner

as to his sympathies to communist,
communism and unsavory fellow travelers.

It's about that time that the police had a
perfect case of murder in the first degree

against Mr. Anastasia
for indictment.

He don't look so bad.

He's wearing makeup.

Makeup? He's a rat,
not a Fenoitz.

Yeah. Well, somebody's gonna
take it in the ass after this.

Hey Frank, tell me something.

How could you tell a guy's
wearing makeup?

Will you turn this crap off?
I'm trying to concentrate.

Oh yeah, that book game,
Frank, very depressing.

No, it's just a new one.

From Here to Eternity.

Yeah, it's about the army.

Love the war story? Frank,
the war's over. Cut the crap.

Crap? Just listen.

We surveilled the subject
and observed him interact

with known associates
of Mr. Willie Moretti.

Riveting.

Beg your pardon?

Oh, you got a knack for it.

You sound like the shadow.
I love that stuff.

Detective, you are on loan to assist
Mr. Hoover's bureau. Your commentary...

Relax.

He's not going anywhere.

"The bronze glow lighting
his thin child's face.

'I'll see you, kid', he said,
puffing luxuriantly,

like a rich man
on a fifty-cent cigar.

It's on the bestseller list.

Hey, Columbia bought the rights.

Yeah, they are making a movie.

Yeah? Hey, Frank, is there a
part in this movie for you?

Is there...? Ain't you been
paying attention?

Hooligan... hooligan.

Mm-Hm. As long as there's
still Double Dynamite.

Hide, Hide!

Where's Frank?

Where is he? Where's Frank?
This is his haircut day.

Well, you can see
he's not here, right?

I think he's making a
movie. Where the hell was that?

Hawaii.

I didn't know you could read.

These are dangerous
times, fellas.

Frank needs to talk to me.

Tell him.

Frank, you need to talk to her.

I wouldn't be surprised if you
and MGM parted ways, Frank.

This Marilyn Maxwell business
won't sit well with LB.

I'm a family man, you know that.

Frank, you're a public personality and
that includes Nancy and the children.

What's Nancy been telling you?

That her kids wait by the phone
for daddy to check in

while he's out cavorting with the
latest husband-snatching hussy.

Look, LB and I are okay. We did
a lot of good pictures together.

Casablanca was a good picture,
Frank. It didn't save Bergman.

And now you're starting with
Howard Hughes' trophy girl.

At least they won't deport me.

Listen, dearie, the pictures
have been direct too.

Miracle of the Bells? What
a hunk of religious baloney.

You're on very thin ice, Frank.

Frank.

Frank.

Good evening,
Mr. and Mrs. America.

Hang on to your bobby socks.

FS, suspected by many
of having communist sympathies,

is now a certified
moral reprobate.

The married voiceless crooner
has been spotted shamelessly

occupying the shadow
of one Ava Gardner.

Frankie, that's some shadow,
but what would the Pope say?

As for the sultry screen siren,
no stranger to swooning suitors,

good evening, Mr. Hughes,
legion of decency be aware.

I'm tired.

I ain't no criminal.

I ain't no coward.

Heaven help us.

From Here to Eternity? You
haven't put that down in weeks.

For good reason.
It's great. You better read it.

Isn't the book, what,
five hundred pages long?

That's right. You're
from North Carolina.

You're the stick to the Sears Roebuck
catalog in a family outhouse.

Jesus.

You sound just like Artie.

He was always putting me down,
criticizing my intelligence.

Your ex was a prick, the biggest
prick around. You compare me to him?

You asked for it.

Stop tutoring me, Francis.

I'm not tutoring you.

Sure as hell are.

Read this, read that.

Bullshit. I'm just trying to make you
understand why this is so important to me.

It's obvious.

You're hoping they'll past
you as Angelo Maggio.

Give the lady a cigar.

Breakfast?

Will you knock it off?

What's with this Angelo Maggio?

Why are you so
obsessed with him?

He's a buck private from
Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn.

And you have heard
of Brooklyn, haven't you?

Oh, fuck you, Francis.

He's a fast talker streetwise cat that
doesn't give a shit about the army.

I know him, Ava.

I mean if I get a chance to play Angelo Maggio,
I can hit a home run with the bases loaded.

Okay, okay, I believe you.
You'll make a great Maggio.

Are you kidding?
The part was made for me.

I gotta get this part.

I'll kill myself
if I don't get this role.

Stop being so damn melodramatic.

You're the greatest entertainer
this country has ever known.

Losing a lousy film role
isn't gonna change that.

My voice is shot. Didn't you hear me last?
It started scratching and cracking.

- People didn't notice.
- I noticed.

Three o'clock in the morning
I was already beat.

This is just a bad time.

Here, rub my ass.
It'll give you good luck.

Hey, that's good.

Real good.

- I feel better already.
- Good.

I'm glad to be of service.

I have to face it.
I'm washed up.

Not true.

When you sang "Someone
to Watch Over Me" tonight,

I had tears in my eyes.

That's 'cause you're prejudiced.
Your favorite song.

You brought me back to the first
time I heard it,

when I was, what,
ten, twelve years old.

Ava Lavinia, you better get
in there and do your chores.

In a minute.

In a minute.

He's so dreamy.

Dreamy.

Silly, silly girl.

Feelings that have stayed
with me until this very day.

Well, you have
found the mystery.

You found your shepherd.

I'll always watch over you.

I'll always love you.

I don't believe you.

♪ Baby won't you
Please come home ♪

♪ 'Cause your daddy is... ♪

How do I know you're alone?

Well, prove to me
that you're alone.

What do you mean you can't find
her? You can find anybody.

Frankie. Come
with the kids to bed.

What the fuck
am I paying you for?

Well, get over there and
find out, goddammit.

Never mind that.
Let me talk to you.

Hello.

Well, find her, for crying
out loud, alright?

I was lousy tonight, wasn't I, huh?
My voice was tight, it was cracking.

Jesus, don't be so hard on yourself. You
can't bat a thousand when you're a singer.

Yeah, but you can't strike
out every time either.

You didn't strike out, champ,
you just didn't hit a homerun, that's all.

Let's face it. After
fifteen years it's over.

I lost my voice,
I lost my audience.

I'm even losing my hair.

Yeah, well, that's
what hats are for.

Now listen, Cookie,
we have to talk.

The record company decided
not to renew your contract.

They decided to go with these young
guys Perry Como and Eddie Fisher.

See, what did I tell you?
You see the charts?

I'm yesterday's news, Jack.

Okay, Frank, let's take a look.

Vocal cords

may be strained,
possibly a little hemorrhage.

- Is it serious?
- Like fail?

No, Frank, but it
explains the voice.

What now?

Two weeks no talking.

No talking? What...
what about singing?

No singing, no screaming,
no shouting.

- What can I do?
- Whisper.

When can I sing again?

Weeks, maybe months.

These things take time,
Frank, you know. Perhaps

switch to Camels.
It's like Joe DiMaggio.

Right now you're down.

They say you lost your voice.

They're kicking you to the curb.

Along comes this broad,
she makes you feel good.

Before I know,
she floats you a few books.

When I see you,
I see an old friend of mine.

Benny was a good man.

We grew up together.

He was handsome.

He was tough.

He was great with the ladies.
He was a visionary.

But along came this one broad,

nothing special,
everyone's been with her.

She couldn't keep
her legs crossed.

But he went nuts for her.

He leaves his wife, his kids,
he moves out to California.

He thinks he's a movie star.

Before long he's lost

and then everything went bad.

The Flamingo couldn't save him.

Nobody could save him.

Watch out for this
movie star, Frank.

Don't get lost.

Could we for once not talk
about Howard Hughes?

Why not?
You spread it, didn't you?

Did you hear that?
They're gonna kill each other.

Just mind your own business.

You son of a bitch.

You call that pitching? I guess
the Dodgers won't be calling.

God damn you.

I don't know how many times I've
told you I never had sex with him.

He bought you jewelry,
took on his fucking airplanes.

Just because he bought me some
trinkets doesn't mean I fucked him.

That's right. I forgot. You like band
leaders and bullfighters, don't you?

Did mama's little choirboy think I
was a virgin when he came calling?

No, but I think maybe there was
someone out there you hadn't fucked.

Miserable wop.

That clinches it.
I'm going upstairs.

You do nothing of the kind.
Just sit there and hush.

You can't even ask
your wife for a divorce.

How am I supposed to ask her, huh?
She's more Catholic than the Pope.

Then why don't you get one of your boys
to go over there and convince her?

You stop talking like that.

What's the matter? I thought
you were a big tough gangster.

Yeah?

For crying out loud, I can't believe
how they can carry on like that.

I can. You've
just forgotten how.

Alright, Frank, you be
a good boy, huh?

Kiss your mommy. Daddy
will be home later. Okay.

I got kids, remember?

Wife and family first, right?

Is this why we sneak around
in strange houses?

I'm in love with you, Francis.

If I'm in love,
I want to get married.

Otherwise

go back to Nancy.

You always go back anyway.

I don't want to go back.

I love you, baby.

I mean sometimes
you scare the shit out of me.

I don't know what
I'm doing with you but

I know I can't go
without you.

Actions, Francis.

Actions.

Where did you go?

Spain? What
are you doing in Spain?

Hello?

Hello?

Hank,

where the fuck
is Mario Cabré?

Mario Cabré is a fucking bullfighter,
he is writing a poem.

Frankie, your voice.

Fucking guy is...

I'll call you back.

Looking good, Mr. S.

If you're going for Zorro.

- Looks authentic, right?
- Yeah.

If I didn't even know you any better,
you'd look like one of us.

Olé!

Any luck?

She's not picking up the phone.

But when she sees that stash...

Never mind that.
Go, go, cut the call.

C-note?

That's the biggest
tip you ever got?

Got fifty last week.

Fifty?

What a lousy cheapskate
gave you that?

That was you, Mister S.

Excuse me, aren't
you Frank Sinatra?

Depends. Who's asking?

Former president, three years running of the
local chapter of the Sighting Society Swooners.

Kid wants an autograph.

Great.

Here you go, kid.

Thanks. Thanks a bunch.

You've been served.

Son of a bitch.

Frankie is planning a trip to Europe,
just about the time

Ava leaves to make Pandora and the
Flying Dutchman with James Mason.

Beautiful. Beautiful.

One for your fans, Ava.

Ava, right here.

Beautiful.

Right there.

- Hey, there is Frank.
- That's right.

What are you two doing
over there in Spain?

Well, she got some sun
and I caught a few tuna.

I was making a movie
with Hemingway.

And we were chaperoning the whole
time just like high school dance.

So Frank, you're gonna ask Nancy for
divorce so you two can get married?

Well, I'm in no
position for a divorce, so.

Oh come off it, Frank. You blew
off Nancy on Mother's Day.

Yeah. Then what next? A divorce in Mexico
and then you two get hitched in Reno?

How about that one, Francis?

Hey look, fellas, you know, everyone's
talking about Ava and me getting married,

except Ava and me.

Come on, Frank, you snuck off to be with her.
Come on, tell us what's the stories.

Give me a break, fellas.
It's just a vacation.

Oh yeah, sure, with a chaperone.
Yeah, we get it guys.

Yeah, who is the chaperone,
Mario Cabré?

Oh wait, wait, maybe Frank
was the chaperone.

Hey Frank, so how'd you feel about
when he started serenading her

with all the poetry?

It was a publicity gimmick for the film,
alright? Just back the fuck off.

Hey, you can't talk like that.
The press made you, Frank.

The press didn't make me.
My singing did, your miserable crumb.

What the hell
was all that about?

Can't get a divorce
just now?

Can you forget those leeches?
You know I want to marry you, baby.

Actions Francis.

Actions.

I think I hit something.

I definitely did.

I'm gonna tell her.

You want to see action?
I'll show you action.

I will do it.

Nancy!

For you, baby, I'm going
to tell her right now.

Nancy,

can you tell Ava that I
asked you for a divorce?

Frank, are you
out of your mind?

- I wouldn't count on it.
- Let him go. Go, go.

- Hey ma.
- Let him go. Go.

She's in the car.

You can't keep a man if he
doesn't want to be here. Go.

He brings that white trash
whore to my house.

Now the one I feel really sorry for is
little Nancy. She's such a fine woman.

You just scared
the kids, alright?

The kids? Maybe the kids
should know about daddy.

Maybe they should know all the
nights I was home alone with them

while daddy was out
gallivanting around.

What gallivanting? I was
out singing, make the records,

doing what I gotta do
to put a roof over our head.

Is that why you slept
with Lana Turner?

I get well with Lana Turner.

Oh, and a diamond bracelet on Marilyn Maxwell
so she could flaunt it around in my face?

Hey, you go snooping around,
I'm not responsible for what you find.

That was in our car, damn it.
I thought it was for me.

And then I see her wearing it.
I felt so stupid.

You weren't stupid, alright?
You were my best friend.

I was your wife.

I still am your wife.

But now I'm not
enough, am I? Am I?

Not like that.

You are in love with
her, aren't you?

That green-eyed filthy white trash whore has
got her hooks in you? You broke your promise.

What promise? Why you
talking about promise?

I had the abortion, Frank.

You promised me that you would
change if I took you back.

And I believed you. You lied.

You left me alone with the kids while
you're running around with your mob friends

and this home-wrecking Jezebel and I
get to read all about it in the papers.

It's not my fault what they write
in the papers, alright, Nancy?

I'm sorry that Lee Mortimer is a rat. He
writes whatever the fuck he wants to write.

Ah Francis, wake up.

It's not the press, it's you.

You don't give a damn
who you hurt.

Just go. Get out.
Take your suits, your hats, your ties.

Get out.

I think we should get a divorce.

I'm not gonna
make it easy, Mister.

I'm not giving you a divorce.

Where are you going, daddy?

Daddy is gonna go
make a record, cupcake.

Keep an eye on things, will you?

This will be the third
separation for the couple

and with Nancy taking the initiative
this time, it looks like the real thing.

Items we doubt that F Sinatra's
parting from his wife is a gimmick

to attract the attention
he used to get by crooning.

What's Frankie doing
in New York?

It has to do with those hearings on
television, investigating the mob.

He's meeting with the attorneys
at 4:00 a.m. to avoid the press.

You think they're gonna
put him on television?

If they do, it'll be
like a death sentence.

If he gets called
before the committee,

Harry Cohn will never read him
for the role of Angelo Maggio.

Well, can't you do something?

I mean, we know
what Harry likes.

You ever have any
business with any of the Fischettis?

No, Sir.

Did either of the Fischettis
ever give you anything to carry into Cuba?

No, Sir.

There has been stated
and certified information

to the effect that you took
a sum of money

in excess of one hundred
thousand dollars into Cuba.

That is not true.

Did you give Lucky
Luciano any money?

No, Sir.

Did you even learn what
business they were in?

No, actually not.

What is your attraction to
these underworld characters?

I don't have an attraction for them. Some
of them were kind to me when I started out.

You want me to believe
you don't know

the people we've been talking
about are hoodlums and gangsters

who have committed many crimes and are
probably members of a secret criminal club?

Now you're not gonna put me
on television and ruin me

just because I know some
of these guys, are you?

Nobody's trying to ruin you.

The Dodgers will leave from Brooklyn.
That's never gonna happen.

Never say never. Look at the Giants. How
many games they behind in... in August, huh?

Thirteen games behind in August.

Yeah, but then now they are
even with the Dodgers.

So if they win tomorrow,
they win the pennant.

You know why I like that rookie colored
kid though, how was he? With the Giants.

- Mays. Willie Mays.
- Mays!

He's beautiful.

He's gonna be a big star.

Hey Carmine, you're gonna watch
him or you're gonna fuck him?

That's true.

Now, let me ask you something wise guys, huh?
Why do they call the Brooklyn's the Dodgers?

Trolley Dodgers from all the trolley racing
up and down Atlantic and Flatbush Avenue.

Oh, give it the rest, boys.

Out of the mountains.

- Hey, hey. Look who's here.
- Come on, Frankie.

Hey. Get over here, you.

Give me a kiss, you fucking
Sicilian bastard.

Sit here near your godfather. He'll know.
Frankie, what is this constellation thing here?

Sure, I flew him, Uncle Willie.

I flew him to Europe, Los Angeles, Havana.
He even got bunks he could sleep in.

Even bunks.

But they could use to serve some coffee,
especially on the long flights.

What, no coffee?

Howard Hughes, he wouldn't
even go for coffee?

Speaking of Howard Hughes, you still running
around with that Ava broad you used to go with?

She's with me now, Uncle Willie.

Look, Frank, you're a grown man, you do
what you got to do, it's your business,

- but family comes first, not that wasp butane.
- Understand?

Uncle Willie, I take care
of my kids, you know that.

I'm talking about Nancy.
She comes into town, she goes to see my wife,

the two of them are like, you know,
parrots, you know what I'm saying?

You know what I mean? It's a mala
faguda, Frankie. You got to... you got to fix this.

The... that twat in the newspaper,
what's her name? Hedda Hopper?

Ah, what's she saying
about you Frank.

I'm not saying you got
to move in with her

but you gotta make it nice and nice,
you know, sing her a little love song.

Hey, remember Slapsie Maxie?

♪ Nancy with the Smiling... ♪

No, no, laughing. Laughing Face.

♪ If I don't see her each day
I miss her ♪

Knock it off, knock
it off! Come on.

Come on, Frankie...

How you doing? Everything else
alright? You need anything?

No, I'm good, don't
you worry. I'm good.

Frank, tell Willie about that
book I always see you reading

- about the Italian American soldier in the war.
- From Here to Eternity.

It's a terrific book. It's gonna
make a great picture.

You're gonna be in a picture?
Yeah, that's my boy.

Well, not so fast. I mean they
haven't given me the part yet.

You need me to talk
to somebody here?

Well, I know the head of the studio,
Harry Cohn, and he knows me.

Harry Cohn. We know
this guy, Johnny?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that...
that's the guy that's around the Joey A.

Yeah, gambler. Jew. Big time.

Matter of fact, he left our booster
with your partner in the marina. Yeah.

Well, perfect parlay. They go
out to California to tour them,

they go pay a visit to this fucking producer,
huh, alright Frankie? No?

It's not that easy Uncle Willie.
This producer Harry Cohn,

he shut out eighty-two thousand
bucks for the screenwriters.

I mean he's not just gonna give away a part.
Besides, with this Kefauver Committee

you can't go out there and
make waves. It's too risky.

Remember my television with me?

Mr. Moretti, you were
a member of the mafia.

Yeah, come down to the shore,
I'll show you my fucking membership card.

Besides, when the studio was hanging by a
thread and I was big, I did him a big favor.

I helped him out.
So, this guy owes me.

Alright Frank, let's go. I gotta go, guys.
Take care. I'll see you guys later.

Bet those fucking
Dodgers, alright?

Listen to me, don't worry about it,
this is no different than that fucking leave.

Besides, after tomorrow,
how about the 82?

I'll give it back to him, alright?
Everything will be good. I love you, alright?

I gotta go set up the bar.

Excuse me, boys.

You're a good man, Frank.

You sing but you don't talk.

How you doing, Mike?

Watch out for that favor, Frank.

Willie Moore likes to talk.
He talks to the reporters,

he goes on television,
he makes jokes.

Not you, right, Frank?

Hello and goodbye.
I notice things like that.

News flash.
Willie Moore is no more.

Shots rang out at Joe's Elbow Room
restaurant in Cliffside Park, New Jersey,

where racketeer and gambler Willie
Moretti was executed gangland style

in a hail of bullets.

The fifty-seven-year-old Hasbrouck Heights,
New Jersey resident

who reportedly had fallen out
of favor with La Cosa Nostra,

due to his large gambling debts

and for talking too much to
congressional investigative committees

was a known longtime associate of another
former Hasbrouck Heights resident,

one F. Sinatra, who even sang at the
wedding of a Moretti daughter in 1947.

Despite the declining crooner's connection
with Moretti and other underworld figures,

Senator Kefauver's committee
declined to call Sinatra to testify

and thus spared him
a public lambasting

that would have no doubt finished off
a career already on life support.

What's this thing you
have for the mafia?

I don't have a thing
for the mafia.

Then why are you always
hanging out with them?

I started singing in New Jersey, remember? Most
of the clubs and gin mills are owned by the boys.

But you're not singing in New Jersey anymore.
You're singing in Las Vegas.

Yeah? Who do you think runs
that town, the Salvation Army?

According to Lee Mortimer

you're just a washed-up crooner
who's now a bagman for the mob.

Yeah, well Mortimer is a fink.

Now's the perfect time for you to
cut your ties with these people.

What are you saying?
Turn my back on my friends?

It's an Italian thing.

Yeah, an Italian thing.
So, it's something you wise can't understand.

Basic human values
like friendship and loyalty.

Stop your ranting.

It's not gonna change
your public image.

My public image will change once
I get to play Angelo Maggio.

From Here to Eternity is
a whole different ball of wax.

They're testing heavyweight
actors for the role you want.

Harvey Lembeck, Eli Wallach.

Hey, those guys don't scare me.

They can only play Maggio
from the outside.

I can play him from the inside.
I am Angelo Maggio.

My little tap dancer
in a sailor suit.

And I can make it happen,
especially you picking a little help.

Meaning?

You are friends with Harry
Cohn's wife, right?

So why don't you meet with her
and then work to her husband?

Francis, isn't pulling strings
like that a Hollywood no-no?

Baby,

I wanna help, I really do,

but I've been offered
a part in another movie.

Another movie?

It's called Mogambo.

John Ford's directing.

What's the part like?

It's good, baby. Real good.

Oh good. Oh good. Yeah.

- The best catch.
- Catch?

- It's gonna be shot at a location.
- Location?

Yes, in Africa.

Africa?

Where did my little guinea go?

So, a diamond
is your best friend?

What do you say
we get married?

Francis.

Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. America.
Hang on to your body socks.

Frank and Ava to get married.

Oh baby, I love
the sound of that.

Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner got
married only days after his formal divorce.

The couple married in a
private home in Philadelphia

before slipping away only to be spotted
the next day walking along a Havana shore

in what anyone
could call beach attire.

Truth is the only time I'm happy is
when I'm doing absolutely nothing.

Whatever do you
mean by that, dear?

Anybody want a lollipop?

Let's put it this way.

I was going to be a secretary,
but I'd rather be a star.

Are you kidding, a secretary?

You'll be selling yourself
short. You're a star.

Hey nice outfit, Frank.
Hold that. Hold that.

You remember her
in Showboat, don't you?

She held her own with Kathryn Grayson,
Howard Keel. You lit up the screen.

Come on and have
a drink with me, baby.

I'm bored all by myself.

Not until I make an omelet
fit for a queen.

After all, the article she's inscribing is
entitled "Breakfast with the Sinatras."

How simply adorable.

I didn't know Frank
could be so subservient.

Holding doors, pulling out
chairs, lighting your cigarette.

Marriage, ain't it something?

To get back to your question,

I'll go on acting as long as it
gives me financial security.

Is it true about you
wanting a family?

Well, sure, any time.

I'm ready.

God, I look sick, don't I?

Terrific.

You just gotta eat, that's all.

Voilá.

That looks absolutely
scrumptious.

Frank, they say there isn't
anything you wouldn't do for Ava.

Sure. Anything for my angel.

Even doing theater in Nairobi?

I'd sing namaz if that meant
being close to you, baby.

But they say being
married to Ava

is like sitting on cracked eggs.

You never know what kind
of mood she's gonna be in.

Nonsense.

The only cracked eggs are the ones I
used to make this omelet. Now let's see.

Next topic, dearie.

So, in your country you
are an actress, right?

Yes.

And you speak good
English, right?

Yes.

And in your country possums
pilot airplanes, right?

- Yes.
- Yeah, right.

God damn it, can't
you see I'm busy?

Mr. C, I'm so sorry. Mr. Zinnemann,
Mr. Adler, they just barged in.

What the hell do you want? You can't be out
of money, you haven't started shooting yet.

It's the Maggio.

What about it?

We keep getting telegrams from
Sinatra asking when he can audition.

He's saying you
promised the testing.

I mean he signs the telegrams
"Maggio", for crying out loud.

Mr. Cohn, I think
we've got our guy.

Yeah?

Eli Wallach, stage actor,
New York, Actors Studio.

Yeah, I saw him in the roles. That's who is.
He's brilliant. Wasn't he brilliant?

- Yeah.
- Works with the Elia Kazan.

Elia Kazan.

I think he's a communist.
I don't need trouble.

Works? Who said works? Fred,
I don't think they actually worked together.

Did I mean work?

He didn't mean work.
He meant that... that they know each other.

- Isn't that what you meant, Fred?
- They... they know each other.

They know each other?

Yeah, I mean they met a couple of times,
once or twice at the very most,

isn't that right, Fred?

They met at the theater,
the Actors Studio.

I mean it's a big theater,
plenty of seats.

You know, and
besides, I mean,

who has more baggage than Sinatra with
the divorce, living with Ava Gardner?

You got a point. Okay, fine, done deal. Now
get the hell out of here, both of you. Minna.

This way, gentlemen.

No kidding, he'll be great.
This is terrific.

We already spoke to his agent and we can
get him for twenty-thousand dollars.

Whoa, whoa twenty thousand dollars?
Hold the wire. Hold the wire.

Darling, do me favor. Give
me a second now, will you doll?

Yes.

Minna, have her wait outside.
Bye-bye, Lubov.

Hello.

- Minna, get me this... what's the name again?
- Eli Wallach.

Give me this Eli... Eli Wallach's
agent on the phone. Sit down, boys.

Twenty-thousand smackers,
who the hell he think he is, Gable?

Mr. C, Ava Gardner is on the line,
she's with Mrs. C and they've just had lunch.

Sorry boys, but I need you to clear out.
Send her, what's the name, back in.

- Lubov.
- Yeah, Lubov.

Ava, Ava, Ava.

Hello, hello, hello.

I was just
thinking about you.

Lee Mortimer here. The
crowning blow for Frankie boy

is that the Music Corporation of America announced
its decision to withdraw him as his agent.

Hey.

How is that very
bad boy of yours?

Don't worry darling.
Mommy's got him under control.

- I just met...
- Harry, hello.

Ms. Ava, or should
I say Mrs. Frank?

- Claudia was just leaving.
- Excuse me, Claudia.

When are we going
to work together?

Next time you're in town call my
girl, tell her to pencil you in.

Oh, come on Harry,
don't play with me.

Tell her five o'clock. I'll either make
you a movie star or I'll marry you.

Can I pour you a drink?

You got a lot of nerve
calling my wife.

I love Joan.

I hope she's feeling better.

She was under the weather
when we had lunch.

You had lunch?

I'm sure it was lovely.

You mind telling me what
you talked about at this lunch?

Harry, you know that no-good
bastard husband of mine

is perfect for the role of Maggio
in this picture you're doing.

Ah, you don't say.

Harry, the role
was made for him.

And I suppose you think I should give him
an audition, huh? It's like chutzpah.

Don't you want me to be happy?

Yeah.

You got more balls
than half the men I know. So,

how about we go
somewhere more quiet,

talk about this.

Director Fred Zinnemann
has gone to New York

to test stage players
for From Here to Eternity.

Meanwhile, Frank is still pitching
hard for that Maggio role.

The Eternity film could open up a completely
new phase in Sinatra's acting career.

What is so important? Is it Ava?

It's all the wires that you two are
desperately trying to avoid a crack-up?

We're having oral battles
but I'm trying to fix it all up.

Oral battles, sounds
like pornography.

Fix her, Frank.

You don't need no more
heat from the press.

Between divorce and Nancy and this
asshole Mortimer, you got plenty.

Harry, I want to play Maggio.

I know you want to play Maggio.
I got your telegrams.

We all got your telegrams,
sometimes twice a week

You know, Buddy's thinking of paving
his washroom with your telegrams.

- Harry, me and you go way back, right?
- Yeah.

The role is written
about a guy just like me.

Yeah. But can you play
a guy like you?

It is me, Harry.

You must be out of your fucking mind. That's an
actor's part, not a crooner. You're a crooner.

I'm an actor. Come on,
give me a chance to act.

What do you from acting? You know how to
sing and you can sing with the best of them.

You know how to dance
and you got a good smile.

William Powell knows from acting.
You don't know from acting.

Give me one more of these. You
know what I know from acting?

I'm watching a dog like... what's a good dog,
Double Dynamite. Double Dynamite.

And I squirm in my seat
from the pain of my tuchus.

All right, I admit
that was dreck.

But Maggio
is completely different.

They are testing serious actors.
Eli Wallach, he's a stage actor.

- About the money?
- Who's talking of money?

But what about the money?

I used to get a hundred fifty
thousand a picture, right?

You used to get a hundred fifty
thousand a picture, yes.

I'll do it for expenses.

Give me expenses,
you got your Maggio.

You want it that bad, huh Frank?

Harry, it's me.

We'll see, Frank, we'll see.
Let me think it over.

- You are not turning me down?
- I was but we'll see, we'll see.

You won't regret it, Harry.

One more thing.

You tell anybody about this,

I'll kill you,
you son of a bitch.

Frank, are you up to
Africa to visit Ava?

I miss my wife.

I miss my wife. There is
like lions, baters...

- Clark Gable.
- Thank you.

Hey, Gable shot
mixed this week.

What do you got to say
about that?

How do you feel about Ava
working with the King?

Clark Gable is the greatest
actor of our time.

Yeah. You gonna be working
with Ava on Mogambo?

I'm gonna put black paste
and play a native, okay?

So, you're not gonna
work at all?

I'm gonna sing in a couple of
nightclubs in Nairobi, alright?

Who's gonna open, Tarzan?

Very funny. Bing Crosby,
the greatest singer of our time, folks.

Wait a second, Frank.

Stop it, you can't ask that.

No, Frank is bigger.

Really? Bigger? No way.

Thank you, Ndungo. Asante.

Asante.

Asante.

Hi, papa.

Hello, ladies.

Evidently, I am your new valet.

Oh, for me?

- Here, one for you too.
- Oh.

Looks like the King summons.

Frank is coming over.

He misses me.
That little dago.

Zinnemann finally agreed
to give him that screen test.

Did he?

Well, on the set I don't mind having Frank,
I got no problem with Frank at all.

Thank you, papa.

Maybe he'll make us that beautiful
linguini he loves to make.

Thank you.

Doctors pumped powerful shots of
antibiotics into actress Ava Gardner

to beat down a tropical infection
picked up while movie-making in Africa.

The wife of crooner FS apparently made
the mistake of drinking local water

in Kenya's nature country and laid
in pain with stomach troubles.

Meantime, hubby Frank
did not make any new friends

walking out on Shirley Jones
and the set of Carousel.

Off to Rome perhaps to join the little
missus who's there convalescing.

Sounds like the little
missus insisted.

Who have you told?

So far just you.

Is it Frank's?

Yes.

I'm pretty sure.

Pretty sure?

Half the world's female population
would throw themselves at Frank's feet

and here you are flouncing around with men
who wear capes and little ballerina slippers.

Bogie tell you that one?

Never mind him. What
are you going to do?

I'm not having it.

It's my insides
we're talking about.

Besides, the studio
would penalize me.

It doesn't have to be that way.

When I had Stephen and Leslie,
I told those sons of bitches to fuck off.

That was easy for you
to say, you have Bogie.

And you have Frank,
who lives and dies by you.

He is a Catholic, by the way.

He would absolutely
want you to have his child.

Why?

So, I can sit at home
with his baby,

cold, hungry, and in the dark while
he and his rats go off chasing tail?

Oh for God's sake.

There's a clinic in London
on Harley Street.

You shouldn't go alone.

I will go with you.

Thank you.

Come here
and meet me at the airport.

I never got your telegram
with your time of arrival.

Never got?

What, it didn't have Western
Union office out in the bush?

Francis, I'm sorry.

Come on up, baby.

Gable?

How you getting on
with Clark Gable?

Like a dream.

There's a reason why
they call him the King.

Are you fucking him?

What did you say?

I asked you a question.

Are you fucking Clark Gable?

You suspicious son of a bitch.

Hey, I know you, that's why.

And I know how it goes
on movie locations.

King Gable is having a big hot
thing with the Ice Queen herself,

little Miss Grace Kelly.

You jealous?

You're the jealous one.

Can't help myself.

I mean that last phone call, you left me all
depressed, like, my imagination ran wild.

Listen,

I asked you to come
here, remember?

So, why don't you quit
giving me the third degree

and come over here

and fuck me already.

You know how much I miss you?

Same here.

You're my fate,

you guinea bastard.

You're my fate, you redneck
piece of poor white trash.

Do you forgive me?

I forgive you for
everything you did

and everything you're gonna do.

Okay. Coming out, the terror
of Gimbels' basement.

Coming out,

seven,

seven...

Don't overdo the slurring
of your words.

Most people try to hide their
drunkenness by slowing down their speech

and over-enunciating
everything they say.

- Where did you learn that?
- Michael Chekhov.

He's Anton Chekhov's nephew.

You should take
classes with him.

I'll need no classes, I know
how to play Angelo Maggio.

Michael's a magician
with actors.

I don't need that Stanislavski
bullshit, all right?

Don't be so damn cocky.

I'm not cocky.

Truth be told,
I'm scared, all right?

That's all right.

I get scared when
I go on stage to sing.

The minute I step on that stage,

it's like shazam,

I become a different person.

It's like magic.

Come back to bed, magic man.

♪ You put a spell on me ♪

♪ With one glance of your eyes ♪

♪ Yes it was meant to be ♪

♪ A love with no disguise ♪

♪ You put a spell on me ♪

♪ Now I can't remember ♪

♪ Is it day or night I see? ♪

What is it?

♪ May or December ♪

I'm pregnant.

Oh my God,
Frank Sinatra.

Excuse me, can I
have autograph for me?

Please, she's my girlfriend.

I'm your fan. I have the paper
and also a pen somewhere.

- Thank you very much, sir.
- Thank you very much.

- Grazie.
- Can I have also a picture with you?

Please, just
a picture, okay?

Thank you.

- Okay, grazie.
- Thank you very much.

- Grazie, grazie.
- Bye-bye.

I thought you said you
couldn't get pregnant.

Looks like the doctors
were wrong.

Whose is it?

Yours, goddamn it.

Is that true? Is it really true?

I swear it.

Hey, then you must
be thrilled, huh?

Why do you say that?

Oh come on, baby, you love
kids, you adore them.

It's true I adore them.

- But...
- But what?

I'm not going
to have this baby.

Hold the wire now,
hold on a second.

I'm going to fly to London. Somebody
told me about a clinic on Harley Street.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, a second.

- I have no say in the matter?
- No, I'm afraid not.

Ava, listen, you can't do this to me.
What are you talking about?

What are you squawking about?

You have three kids already,
you don't need any more.

- That ain't for you to decide.
- It sure as hell is.

It's my insides
we're talking about.

Have the kid.
I'll help you raise him.

It's just not the right time
for me to have a child.

Ava, listen to me. Back when
Nancy and I were on the skids

before Frank Jr. was born,

she got pregnant.

She didn't want to keep it.

She said the whole
marriage was an abortion.

I didn't stop her because
I knew she was right.

Later on, we patched it up.

My son was born.

Not a day goes by I don't
think about that baby we lost.

I need a drink.

Mmm.

You know what the problem is?

- What's the problem?
- We're too much alike.

We're both selfish,
independent, possessive.

Anything else?

How about hot-headed
and competitive?

And oversexed.

You're sure as hell
right about that.

Most couple's problems
begin in bed.

I'm fine with bed.

My problems begin
on the way to the bidet.

No, your problems
go back to your childhood.

You were spoiled rotten
by your brothers and sisters.

Same goes for you,
Lord Fauntleroy of Hoboken, New Jersey.

But I still love you
more than I do myself.

I swear it, baby.

Listen Francis,

this decision is mine alone.

That means I don't have
any say in the matter?

Exactly. Mine alone.

Is that clear?

Listen to me,

you go through
with this abortion,

I'll never speak to you again.

And I have anything to fucking
do with you ever again.

It's fucking funny?

Go away.

Oh yeah?

You want that?

Fine.

If anybody asks where I'm going,

I'll be in Palm Springs

fucking Lana Turner.

♪ You made me what I am today ♪

♪ I hope you're satisfied ♪

♪ You dragged me
Dragged me down until ♪

♪ Soul within me died ♪

I'll take that fish wrapper.
It's all bollocks anyway.

Let me fetch you
something to help you relax.

Mix me a snack.

Daniels.

Are you sure about this, honey?

Oh Dolly, I can't be in this way.
It would break my mother's heart.

And the father?

Sweet talker.
Navy or prison, I'd say.

My suit from Geismar's.

Never mind your suit
from Geismar's.

You don't come up here
when the door is closed.

Straighten your tie.

Good evening, Mr. and Mrs.
America, and all the ships at sea. News flash.

On his way back to the US of A

after a less than romantic encounter
with new bride Ava Gardner,

the crooner was reported to be suffering from
a severe case of exhaustion and/or bad press.

You've got to give
her up, Frank.

You don't eat, you don't sleep.

The next dollar you make goes to
the IRS if you ever work again.

I'm not your mother, Frank,
but this is not marriage.

You're ruining your career
chasing after her.

It's easy for you to tell
me to give her up.

You're not the one
in love with her.

You're lost, Frank.

Once you lose it in this town,
you never come back.

Even Jesus Christ
couldn't get resurrected here.

What a waste of my time.

They should just offer
me the fucking role.

I was in Gone with the Wind.

What are you testing for?

- Maggio.
- Maggio?

They offered that
part to Eli Wallach.

That's my point. This
Hollywood, you know...

Hey, pal, I flew
in from Nairobi for this.

No one, not even Superman's gonna stop me.
So clam up.

Mr. Sinatra,

Zinnemann is ready for you now.

Your script?

- Oh, I got it all up here.
- Oh.

You know, I used to sing too.

That's nice.

I still sort of do but
no one really pays me.

- I know the feeling.
- Huh.

What are you
looking at, Frankie?

Looking at you, love.

When the cat's away,
the rats take over.

Get out of here, girls, mama's home!
Daddy won't be needing you.

Oh, Frankie...

I see you really miss me,
you big slimy snake.

Darling! I haven't
seen you since Africa.

Grace Kelly
told me all about it.

The sweltering heat,
the mud, the mosquitoes.

Save it, sweetie. We've got a couple of
mosquitoes right here. Some real bloodsuckers.

Tennis tomorrow?

Still looking to smack
around some more balls?

How was it?

Like old times?

Do me a favor, don't make
a Taj Mahal of a simple fuck.

Are you in love with her?

I'm in love with you,
you green-eyed freak.

Then why did you jump
her bones again?

The same reason why you shacked
up with that hunter in Mogambo.

What are you talking about?

Oh, don't act stupid, kid.
Doesn't become you.

Who told you about it?

You got your spies, I got mine.

Neither one of us
is marriage material.

We can't help but jump
into bed with others.

Stop talking like that.
Stop making trouble.

Don't try to shut me up.

You're just afraid
to commit, that's all.

Look who's talking!

You don't want commitment. You want to dominate
me like all you men do with their women.

Francis, I will never let you.

You will never conquer me.

So, you and your little
playmates can just go fuck off.

Why don't you crawl back
to the jungle you belong?

Another word out of you
and I will kick you in the nuts.

Try it. I'll smash you
right in the face.

My wife and I,
we were blissfully happy for twenty years.

And I feel sorry for
people who don't drink.

When they wake up in the morning,
it's as good as they're gonna feel all day.

- Is it true what they say?
- It's huge.

Is there any broad
in here he hasn't fucked?

He's a son of a bitch.

There's no one like him.

I... I didn't...
I really mean that.

Well, one down.

They all come out
to see our headliner.

He used to be big. Direct
from doing a duet with a dog.

This guy's going places, mostly down.
Ladies and gentlemen, Frank Sinatra!

Last time you're gonna
see him work in Vegas.

Where's the dog?

Where's your wife?

Where is your fucking wife?

Oh damn it, break open some
windows, get some air in here!

Wake up, Frank. Frank, wake up.

Get him on his feet.

- Get up. Get up.
- Up, up, up.

We need to call an ambulance?

No calls. No calls.
No ambulance, no cops.

Listen, we gotta call the studio.
He's in no shape to do anything.

After stalling them all night,
they'll never record him again. Frank, Frank!

Stand up, come on. Stand up.

Atta boy.

- Frank!
- Yeah, yeah.

- There you go.
- He's coming through.

Breathe, breathe, come on. Yeah.

- Ava.
- Forget her. Forget Ava.

She is with Artie.

Frank, she's not with... look
at me, she's not with Artie.

Hank checked it out.
She's not with Artie.

I knocked on the door. She ain't there.
She ain't gonna be there.

He got the message,
that know-it-all prick.

Frank, you're supposed to be
at the studio, not doing this.

A billion broads in the world
and you picked the one

that can take you or leave
you whenever she wants.

Oh, he's got it bad. And the boy's been
waiting at the studio for him all night.

Put on a pot of coffee,
we're taking you for a walk. Let's go.

We ought to call or something.

- Come on.
- Just walk with us.

Let's go.

Frank.

- What do you got?
- Show him.

From Billy Roche's shop.
On the arm, of course.

- They match her eyes.
- Mm-hmm.

They're not cheap.

No vig for six months,
but Frank...

Never mind that.

Got the other thing?

Okay.

She's gonna love this.

It sings too.

They're stunning.

Where'd you get the money
to afford them, for God's sakes?

Now what kind of
question is that?

I'm a nosy broad. You know that.

I mean they're real,
aren't they?

Ey! Nothing fake for my girl.

Come here! You
like your present?

No, I hate it.

You didn't have to.

I'm just happy being your wife.

Mrs. Sinatra.

Mr. Sin-atra.

I love you, Francis.

All I ever wanted in the world
was to be a singer.

Now

you're all I want.

So, Harry, are you sure there isn't anything
in your little old war picture for me?

I'm sure you recall the performance I
gave the last time we worked together.

Yes Mercedes, you did good.

Minna, get me Sinatra on the line
and then give me Eli Wallach.

Well, I did a little
more than good.

You might have
a point, Mercedes.

Darling, I have some delicate calls to make.
I'll tell you what.

We'll read the script together over lunch
and see what we come up with, okay?

Oh I know we can
come up with something, Harry.

Bye now.

Another broad with balls.

I got Mr. Wallach
on the line for you.

Frank!

- Hello?
- Frankie baby!

Maggio was the last
part we cast.

It was between you
and Eli Wallach.

He's one hell of an actor.
He tested great.

That crowd Zinnemann just
plotzed when he saw the reel.

I understand.

I appreciate
getting the shot.

Thank me later. Look,
he doesn't look Italian.

He looks like a Hebe.

So, we're going with you.

We're going with you,
you big putz!

You hear me, boy?
Check, you got the part.

Get your tush over to Hawaii and start
marching. You're in the army now, son.

That was Harry.

Better pour us a drink.

Oh, baby!

Sure thing!

Better make it champagne.

Champagne?

I'm so happy for you.
You got it. You got it!

I got to go to Hawaii
and learn how to march.

Attention, Private!

♪ Oh boy, have you
Ever got it made ♪

♪ He will try to push
You around ♪

♪ Don't let him
Make that mistake ♪

♪ Walk like a king
And stand your ground ♪

♪ No, you've got what it takes ♪

♪ Oh, boy ♪

It's got a script by Joseph Mankiewicz,
the guy who wrote All About Eve.

Yeah, I know all about him.

What kind of part
has he written for you?

I'm supposed to play an
international woman of mystery

who goes from
dancing in a tango bar

to marrying one of the richest
men in the world.

I also get to fuck
every man in sight.

Typecasting!

Damn you!

How would you feel if
I walked out on you?

I'm not walking out. This is my big chance.
This is a pinnacle role for me.

What about From Here to Eternity?
I need you here by my side, damn it!

You don't need me.

Just pick up the phone.

You've got Lana Turner,
Marilyn Maxwell.

Oh, why are you talking
about Marilyn Maxwell?

Don't deny it.
Lana Turner told me.

Lana Turner is a ditz.

Not too much of a ditz to figure out
what you were doing behind my back.

All right, so I played around.

That's just play.
What we got is real.

How do you know what's real?
You'll fuck anything that moves.

Well I guess that leaves you out.
You hardly move when we fuck.

Go to hell, you wop bastard.

You inbred Baptist ice queen.

You're nothing but a pair of vocal
cords with a nine-pound cock.

My pals are right about you.

They said you'd be
the ruination of me.

We're perfect replicas of each other.
You're getting just what you deserve.

Listen to me.

If you leave to do this film,

I'll kill myself. I swear
to Christ I'll kill myself!

You know how many times I called Italy?
Morning, day and night, no answer.

I'm at the end of my rope.

Take it easy, Frank.
She's probably just rehearsing.

She had dinner with Bogie
just the other night.

I heard she spent the weekend in
Spain with Picasso and Hemingway.

You know what Frank, that Picasso can
paint some really groovy paintings, man.

And I mean that, baby.

Who else was she with?

Uh... Girl, can I get
some Chiclets?

Frank, you got to stop trying to reach her.
It's driving you crazy.

You got to concentrate
and focus.

How is Monty Clift, by the way?

I heard he trained like a fanatic for
the role, even got you to rehearse.

Zinnemann worships
the ground he walks on.

I never met a more
powerful actor. I mean,

he's taking me to places
I've never been to before.

Is that the end of
one-shot Sinatra?

Howard Hughes says
he is a homosexual.

Oh yeah? Well, he could fuck
sheep as far as I'm concerned.

What matters to me
is what he gives me on set.

I mean we work on every scene,
every beat, breakfast, lunch and dinner.

I mean he's taking me
to a whole other level.

Who knows? Maybe you'll
win an Academy Award.

Oh darling, Frank
winning an Oscar!

Oh, speak of the devil.
Howard, how are you darling?

Well, look who
we have here, Howard.

I want to get a chair Arte and sit down,
okay? You mind? Thank you.

Lovely, lovely.

Here we are, the swooner,

unhealthy, wartime finale.

Yesterday's news, right?

Yes, the war is over in Korea.

Well, what would a draft
dodger know about a war?

You're a cookie full of
arsenic, aren't you, Lee?

Well, I take that as
a compliment, Frank.

Howard, why don't you take your new friend
over to the bar and get a drink on me?

I didn't come here to have you buy
me a drink. I was hoping to see Ava.

So where is our little
kitten, Frank?

Why don't you take a long walk off a
short pier, you right-wing creep you?

Howard, why don't you take it
easy on my friend here?

Wait, she isn't here, is she?

She's over in Italy.
Or is it Spain?

Let's leave the sword play
to Errol Flynn, shall we?

Would you like me to make
you a movie star, little girl?

Yes, Mr. Hughes! Make me a big
movie star like Ava Gardner.

You see, Frank, I could just make another one
but that little Tar Heel got under your skin.

Why I... you are the...

Besides, you don't need her.

You have Montgomery Clift.

Hold on a second, Howard, my...
my listeners want to know...

That son of a bitch
called me a queer.

Frank, if the shoe fits...

Hey, lay off, Lee.

I'm exhausted. I must
go wash the stench off.

Why don't you just beat it, pal?

Frank, you know what I'd like to do? I'd like
to take a picture. Would that be all right?

Waiter, come on over here and
you know what I want you to do?

I want to get Frank
a bowl of spaghetti.

I want to... I want to see you
eat the spaghetti, Frank.

They got nice little Dago
wop that you are.

You rat...

Let me go. Let me
go. God damn it! Fucker!

Operator,
what's the problem?

I'm trying to reach
this number for days.

Pavely.

Well, how do I know? It's
someplace outside of Rome.

It's United Artists.

How can the phones be out of order?
It's a fucking movie studio.

Well, watch my language?

How about this?.

Of all the gin joints in all the world,
she goes walking into mine.

Bravo, Frank, Bravo!

Bogie owns that but
yours had more soul.

Just words on the page, Monty.

Words on the page.

Without soul, they
mean nothing, Frank.

A character's soul is more
important than the words he speaks.

I'll drink to that.

It's all about behavior.

What goes on behind the eyes.

Well tell me something,
professor.

What's going on
behind these eyes?

I know, Frank. I know.

Your marriage is falling apart,

the whole world
is crashing down on you,

it's beating you to death.

That's Maggio, Frank.

Just use it.

Use all of it.

It's okay.

They're gonna send
me to the stockade, Prew?

No, they ain't gonna
take you to the stockade.

Watch out for Fatso.
Watch out for Fatso.

He'll try to crack ya.

And if they put ya
in a hole, don't yell.

Don't make a sound.

You'll still be yellin' when
they come to get ya out.

Just lay there. Just lay there.

And be quiet,

Prew.

Hello!

Yeah operator,
I'll accept the charges.

Hello, Ava!

Ava?

A bullfighter?

What's his name, damn it?

Luis Miguel Dominguin,

the most famous
bullfighter in Spain.

I suppose he fucks
like a jackrabbit, huh?

There's no rhyme or reason
to an affair, you know that.

I suppose when it's all over
you'll come back to me, huh?

Do you want to come back?

Olé!

Oh come on, tiger!

You've treated lots
of women like dirt.

It's your turn now.

Olé!

Well, what about love?

Olé!

My pals were right about you.

There's a cruelness deep inside
no one can ever reach...

Your drink, madam.

Gracias.

I'm through with you,
you hear me?

You're staring into
a looking glass, Francis.

You're seeing
your own reflection.

Olé!

Snake eyes.

Story of my life.

The crooner admitted that he had bruised and
scratched his wrist but laughed off as gossip

the rumors he had
attempted suicide.

The tempestuous singer, who recently reached
the parting of ways with Ava Gardner,

said he did not remember when
or where the accident occurred.

Frank Sinatra and Ava
Gardner stated today

that having reluctantly exhausted every
effort to reconcile their differences,

can find no mutual basis on which
to continue their marriage.

My heart
bleeds for Frank.

♪ My heart is sad ♪

♪ Although my man's
Treating me mean ♪

♪ I regret the day
That I was born ♪

♪ And the man I ever see ♪

From Here to Eternity, people are
talking of Sinatra for an Academy Award.

Rog, it's just a minor role.

Maybe, but a dead-end kid getting
the podium playing a dead-end kid,

that could be
a hell of a story, Frank.

Well, look who's here?
The Judas God in person.

Why don't you just write it how you sees it?
That's what you guys do anyway.

Aren't you here against
doctor's orders, Frank?

What do doctors
know, right, Frank?

Anything?

Sorry chief.

Keep your chin up, Frank.
She'll be back.

They always come back,
you know that.

Hurricane Ava?

I'm sure she wouldn't want
you to hurt the other wrist.

What are you, a stunod, huh? Frank cut his
hand trying to open a window. End of story.

What's a stunod?

It means you got a big mouth.

And one of these days,
somebody's going to shut it for you. Capisce?

I'll take that under advisement.

Listen Frank, tell me the truth.

Who was it this time?
Hughes? Hemmingway?

Maybe another bullfighter?

Now why you got to come up to this
man and say a thing like that?

Easy champ, easy.

As a torero you need more
than a cape and fancy footwork

to escape Ava Gardner,
isn't that right, Frank?

Why don't you button
it up huh, Walter?

Yeah, I'll button it up.
I'll button it up if you face the music.

We all know who wears the pants,
who pays the rent, but she is not here.

Enough of your bullshit.
Joe, get him out of here.

Mr. Winchell, you're going to
force me to make a comeback.

Hey wait, don't put
your hands on me.

Come on, get him out of here.

Oh wait, Frank, Frank,
good luck at the Oscars.

I hear they're even putting it on television.
Isn't that something? First time.

Why do you even
talk to that creep?

Remember Lucky?
He talked to him.

You know what he got? The chair.
The chair, that's what he got.

It hurts, Hank, 'cause
I got a big hole right here.

I just can't hide it anymore.

Then don't hide it.
Use the pain. Sing from there.

Happy songs are bullshit anyway.

Go ahead! Go kill 'em!

♪ So if your man is nice
You better take my advice ♪

♪ Hug him in the morning
Kiss him at night ♪

♪ Give him plenty lovin', girl
Treat your man right ♪

♪ 'Cause a good man ♪

♪ Yeah, a good man ♪

♪ Nowadays is hard to find ♪

What's the matter?
Doesn't the wasp cook for you?

Nancy, please, huh?
Make me a few ravioli.

Don't they feed you
at the Academy Awards?

I know, Frankie
misses home cooking.

So, you're nervous?

Me? Nah.

I'm just happy to be there.

You know, they nominated
a lot of heavyweights:

Bill Holden, Audrey
Hepburn, Monty Clift.

So, what about your African
Queen? Isn't she nominated?

Oh wait! The paper says
she's not coming. What was it?

Bullfighting.

Cliché.

Now don't overcook
the ravioli, will you?

You're going to make a mess of yourself.
When are you going to learn?

Your kids are here.

Hey! Angel.

See how nice daddy looks
for the Academy Awards?

Are you going to win
an Academy Award?

Not so fast, cupcake.

Mommy thinks you are.

The terror of Gimbels' basement.

Seven, seven.

Snake eyes. Story of my life.

So, you need a date
for the Oscar's?

Nominees for the best performance
by an actor in a supporting role

are Eddie Albert in Roman
Holiday, Paramount.

Do you remember
he gave us the TV set?

Yeah, what if he's going
to mention my name, huh.

Oh, I hope he does.

Brandon deWilde
in Shane, Paramount.

Jack Palance
in Shane, Paramount.

Frank Sinatra in From
Here to Eternity, Columbia.

And Robert Strauss in Stalag 17, Paramount.
And who please is the winner?

The winner is Frank Sinatra!

We had him in our jail.

Yeah, he's alright.
He's a good guy actually.

He won! Give me the money.

You got it, Frankie boy!

That's it.

- Don't ever doubt Frank. Let's go.
- I won't doubt Frank.

Hey Mac!

Mac, you all right?

I'm all right, pal.

Oh, yeah?

Could sure use a nightcap.

Yeah never mind that.
What do you think you're doing out here?

She's gone.

No show.

Who... who's gone?
Who are you talking about?

The girl,

you know.

Can't stay together,
can't stay apart.

You know how that
works, don't you pal?

No, what I know
is that you're drunk.

You've been drinking and you're sitting here
on private property, that's what I know.

By the way, what is this thing? How'd you
get a hold of that? Who does that belong to?

Would you believe little old me?

Oh yeah, how does a fellow like you
get a hold of a thing like that huh?

Behavior.

It's what goes
on behind the eyes.

What do you got, Josenhans?

He's a vagrant, publicly intoxicated,
possibly stolen goods.

What do you got here?

Who is he calling a vagrant?

Congratulations!

You had a great night tonight, huh?
Come on, pal.

What do you say we give you a
lift to wherever you want to go?

What do you think, huh?
Up you go. That's it.

There you go.

A big day tomorrow!

Sarge, he's a friend of yours?

It's Frank Sinatra.

- The singer?
- Yeah!

- What, that guy?
- Yeah, the actor.

No kidding.

Yeah he just
won the Academy Award.

It was on television and
everything. You didn't see it?

No. He kept
talking about some girl.

Yeah. If you've been
in this job as long as I have,

you always find that there's a
girl at the end of the story.

Especially with a guy like that.

Frank Sinatra.

I'm... I'm terribly pleased
and if I start thanking everybody,

I'll do a one reeler
up here so I better not.

And

I'd just like to say, however, that
they're doing a lot of songs here tonight

but nobody asked me.

I love you though.
Thank you very much. I'm absolutely thrilled.

Okay, boys,

let's make a record.

One, two, three, four.

Yeah, baby! He's still got it.
Yeah he's got it.

Yeah, go with it, Frank.

Howard Hughes really used his influence
to turn the press against Frank Sinatra.

Ava Gardner had
a sense of irony.

She was very intelligent.

And in her own way,
she was very principled.

She never said
she was a nun.

And she was very, very
much her own person.

You know, she was not one of these
people who said a man can run my life.

That was not who she was.
Frank wanted to run her life.

I knew Ava Gardner well like
a lot of people knew her well.

I wasn't the only one,
many people knew her well.

She was out and about and around and
making it here and making it there.

The only time I ever really, really, really
saw Frank happy was when he was on stage.

He was an amazing singer,
no question about it.

And he turned out to be
a pretty good actor too.

Everything that he
ever did, I watched.

Every album he ever made, I had.
I adored his voice and adored him.

And I mean after all
he was Frank Sinatra.

I mean there was nobody bigger or more
charming and those blue eyes and that smile.

I'm ninety-three years old and I can
still smell Ava Gardner's perfume.

♪ Please stay
Where are you going? ♪

♪ I haven't started yet ♪

♪ You haven't stopped me yet ♪

♪ And you know
That's alright with me ♪

♪ Follow your beautiful stare ♪

♪ Cinder blocks in cold hotels ♪

♪ Where feigning hearts
Meet empty stairwells ♪

♪ And out the fire escape ♪

♪ Escape ♪

♪ I don't give a damn
If it's weak or strong ♪

♪ I know I want you ♪

♪ And I know you want me too ♪

♪ So, I take all I can get ♪

♪ I'll beg and weep for it ♪

♪ Crawl on my two hands ♪

♪ Get up and convince
You again ♪

♪ That I don't even
Know you yet ♪

♪ Yet ♪

♪ Please say
You're thinking of me ♪

♪ Taken hearts
In tangled sheets ♪

♪ You're the shrouded
Missing piece ♪

♪ That sets the spark aflame ♪

♪ Aflame ♪

♪ I don't give a damn
If it's weak or strong ♪

♪ I know I want you ♪

♪ And I know you want me too ♪

♪ So I take all I can get ♪

♪ I take all I can get ♪

♪ I'll beg and weep for it ♪

♪ Crawl on my two hands ♪

♪ Get up and convince
You again ♪

♪ That I don't even
Know you yet ♪

♪ Yet ♪

♪ Yet ♪

♪ It's written in the daylight ♪

♪ A message in the sunshine ♪

♪ And I can't wait
Until tonight ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

♪ And I don't give a damn
If it's weak or strong ♪

♪ I know I want you ♪

♪ And I know you want me too ♪

♪ So, I take all I can get ♪

♪ No, I take all I can get ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ I'll beg and weep for it ♪

♪ Crawl on my two hands ♪

♪ Get up and convince
You again ♪

♪ That I don't even
Know you yet ♪

♪ Yet ♪

♪ Yet ♪

♪ I don't even know you yet ♪

Yeah, he's alright.
He's a good guy actually.

He looks so great!