Author: Darlene Superville, Associated Press
Date: 04/30/1997
Page: C6
Section: Living
WASHINGTON -- ``Ol' Blue Eyes'' is headed for gold.
Frank Sinatra, the recipient of numerous awards during an entertainment career that spans six decades, will add the Congressional Gold Medal to his collection under a bill that won final passage yesterday in the House.
It is Congress's most prestigious civilian honor.
``Frank Sinatra is perhaps the greatest singer of popular American music of this century,'' said Representative Michael Castle, R-Del.
Representative Jose Serrano, D-N.Y., the sponsor, said he was introduced to Sinatra's music and the English language when his father returned home to Puerto Rico after World War II with a set of the singer's albums.
``I immediately fell in love with both,'' added Serrano, who owns hundreds of Sinatra's recordings and tapes of more than two dozen films.
``His music to me is no different than his music to so many other people,'' he added. ``It serves this incurable romantic with the ability to listen to the best music the world has ever heard.''
The bill, which the House approved by voice vote, goes to President Clinton. The Senate passed a similar version in February.
The bill also authorizes up to $30,000 to pay for the medal, plus the sale of bronze replicas to recover the costs.
Sinatra, who was at his Beverly Hills, Calif., home at the time of the House vote, said he never imagined being honored by Congress when he began work as a waiter in his native New Jersey.
``I am truly quite moved and deeply honored by this marvelous recognition and happily share the Congressional Gold Medal with the talented people with whom I've worked,'' the 81-year-old Sinatra said.
``Today, as a proud American, Congress may have brought a tear to my eyes, but that lofty institution has also made me very, very happy,'' he added.
Congress initially used the award to honor military leaders, but during the 20th century it began to recognize excellence in a range of fields, including the arts, athletics, politics, science, and entertainment.
George Washington received the first medal, approved in March 1776, for ``wise and spirited conduct'' in the Revolutionary War.
More than 320 medals have been awarded since then to such recipients as Winston Churchill, Bob Hope, Howard Hughes, Joe Louis, Lady Bird Johnson, and Walt Disney.
Sinatra, who suffered an apparent heart attack in January, launched his solo singing career in 1942. He also has produced, directed, or appeared in more than 50 movies and has won many major awards.
He was given the nation's highest civilian award, the Medal of Freedom, in 1985 by former President Reagan.