In December 1963, Frank Sinatra’s son, Frank Sinatra Jr., was kidnapped at gunpoint from a hotel in Lake Tahoe. Sinatra was frantic, desperate, and trying to stay in constant communication with the kidnappers and the FBI.
But there was a problem:
Frank Sinatra kept running out of coins for the payphone.
Remember — this was before cell phones, before prepaid cards, before speed dial. Every phone call required coins, and every second counted.
At one point, Sinatra was terrified he’d lose contact with the kidnappers simply because he didn’t have enough change.
That fear burned itself into his memory.
So from that day forward… Sinatra always carried exactly 10 dimes in his pocket.
It became a lifelong habit — almost a superstition, almost a reminder. Even after Sinatra Jr. was safely rescued, Frank never broke the routine.
When Frank Sinatra died in 1998, he was buried wearing a blue suit — and with 10 dimes in his pocket, honoring the ritual he kept for more than 30 years.
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