Frank Sinatra, Pioneering Vocalist, Dead Again at 93

NEW YORK, NEW YORK.  Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra, a popular singer whose voice transcended categorization, died for a second time here last night at the age of 93.

Sinatra began his career during the "swing" era, performing with the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey big bands.  He became a successful solo artist in the mid-1940s, and remained popular despite changes in musical fashions until his retirement in 1971.  He subsequently un-retired, then retired again, a pattern he would repeat several times until his first death in 1998.

"I'll be back, with any luck, if I can still--make a buck . . ."

"Frank knew the first rule of show biz was 'Always leave 'em wanting more'," said his fellow deceased "Rat Pack" colleague Sammy Davis, Jr.  "He came out of retirement and made a bundle, now he's back to being dead again."

"You slay me, Frankie boy!"

Sinatra was reportedly miffed at the attention received by Michael Jackson following his recent death, and vowed to retake his place as the greatest all-around entertainer of the 20th century by dying again.  "Death is a great career move," said Hollywood agent Norman Weiskopf.  "I recommend it for all my clients, once their checks clear."

Sinatra's first death, at the age of 83, produced a sharp increase in record sales and a revived interest in his accomplishments as an actor, for which he won an Academy Award.  "Frank was multi-talented," said fellow deceased "Rat Pack" colleague Dean Martin.  "The music, the acting, the swearing--he could cuss a blue streak any shade from robin's egg to royal to cerulean."

"Anybody seen Anna Maria?"

Sinatra had an explosive temper and maintained long-running feuds with numerous groups and individuals over the course of his life, including biographer Kitty Kelly, print and broadcast journalists, owners of Pomeranians and women who drop out of quilting bees without finding substitutes.  "They're the scum of the earth," Sinatra said to the remaining members of the Sacred Heart Altar Society in Hoboken, New Jersey, consoling them when Anna Maria Tagliatelle resigned from the group on two days' notice.  "I'd put a contract out on her for you, but she's not worth the lead it would take to blow her away."