Ernest Borgnine once shared a story about Frank Sinatra that shows what kind of man he really was.
He said, “You know what Frank did once? Remember the actor Lee J. Cobb? He had a heart attack and was in the hospital. One day, an ambulance showed up and took him away. Lee asked, ‘Where are you taking me?’ The people just said, ‘Don’t worry about it.’ He said, ‘But I have to pay for this.’ They told him, ‘It’s already taken care of.’”
They took him to Palm Springs and brought him to Frank Sinatra’s private place. A little while later, Frank showed up, and Lee looked at him and said, “Why? Why would you do this for me?” And Frank simply said, “I like the way you act.”
Lee J. Cobb later talked about that time too. He said after his heart attack in the summer of 1955, Frank stepped in and helped him in a big way. Cobb was feeling really low — he was divorced, alone, and thought his acting career was over. But Frank didn’t give up on him. He sent books, flowers, and all kinds of special treats. More than that, Frank kept telling him he still had great acting ahead of him.
Frank made sure Cobb didn’t have to worry about anything — he gave him peace and support when he needed it most.
Years later, Frank asked Cobb to be in his movie Come Blow Your Horn.
Photo Credit: Barbara Rush, Frank Sinatra, Jill St. John, and Lee J. Cobb at the premiere of Come Blow Your Horn, 1963.
