I started my night at the National Arts Club to see Bill Boggs interview Will Friedwald on the occasion of the third edition of Friedwald’s seminal book on Frank Sinatra’s records, “The Song is You.” This is a gorgeous building on Gramercy Park, next to the Players Club. It’s an old-fashioned membership club, a bit staid, with a mostly older member base. There’s art everywhere, old and new. The Explorer’s Club is also a few doors away. Theodore Roosevelt’s childhood home is down the block – Roosevelt was a member of the National Arts Club, as well as the Explorer’s Club. A few friends were in attendance.
The men interspersed video and film clips of Sinatra, including a segment of Bill Boggs’ own 1975 interview of Sinatra, and entertained questions from the audience. There was a “bobbysoxer” in attendance, who told of her cutting school to see Sinatra at the Paramount in 1942. She told me she was 14, which would make her 91 today.
My friend Jonathan Smith, known around town for his Stan Lauren impersonations, suggested we head over to Swing 46 to bid singer Sarah Hayes a bon voyage. Sarah is about to embark on a three-month cruise. We got there, but no sign of Sarah. I texted her and discovered she was at Flute, a Champagne bar on 54th Street, where our friend Ellen Bullinger was singing, and “all the girls” were there. So off we went. There, I found Ellen singing with two of my favorite musicians, Kerry MacKillop on flugelhorn and Ron Jackson on seven-string guitar. Several friends sat in to sing. I was a bit too late, so not this time.