Nancy Sinatra says 'people are blessed to live here' ahead of Palm Springs 85th birthday

The name Sinatra is esteemed in pop music thanks to the contributions of Frank Sinatra and daughter Nancy. Both are iconic not only for their contributions to American music, but for putting Palm Springs on the map — and helping shape the mid-century atmosphere that continues to attract visitors from around the globe.

It's no surprise, then, that Nancy Sinatra will be the grand marshal of Palm Springs' 85th birthday parade on Saturday. In a recent interview with The Desert Sun, the 82-year-old singer had a message for city residents: "People are blessed to live here, it's peaceful and they should take good care of it."

Even though her mother, Nancy Sr., divorced her father before he started coming to Palm Springs in the late '40s, she visited the area during her childhood before Palm Springs expanded and the surrounding desert cities popped up. "It's a beautiful community, and powerful with all the people in it now. It used to be a village where the adults would escape to for a relaxing time and the weather," Sinatra said.

The city announced last week that the parade, which will start at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, will consist of 85 cars from each of the 85 years since the city was incorporated in an attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Record for most cars of varying years in the same place.

"The Sinatra family is incredibly connected with the history of Palm Springs, and we are thrilled that Nancy Sinatra will be playing a lead role in our 85th birthday celebration," said Palm Springs city councilmember Lisa Middleton.

Modernism Week CEO Lisa Vosser Smith described Sinatra as "the iconic Queen of the Desert."

"Nancy is as much of an icon in Palm Springs as anyone, including her father. She and her family have been so generous with their time and access to their stories, photographs and history. We're so thankful they continued to deepen their relationship with the residents of the Coachella Valley and Palm Springs," Vosser Smith said.

"I'm very delighted," Sinatra said. "It's almost my birthday, too. I'm two years younger than the city, and it's been part of my entire life."

Sinatra made a Palm Springs appearance in February on Arenas Road during Modernism Week's Boots on Arenas — The Ultimate Street Party Celebration honoring her legacy. Once DJ Modgirl announced the icon's presence at the event, a Modernism Week double-decker bus pulled up, and a group of young Palm Springs Dance Academy performers donning matching white boots strutted out.

The girls got in position in front of a beaming Sinatra, speakers started blaring her hit song "These Boots Are Made for Walkin,'" and the dancers performed a sassy jazz number for the star and all her fans in attendance.

'It wasn't a good place for kids'

The first memories Sinatra recalled of Palm Springs were staying at the Lone Palm Hotel before her father bought his Twin Palms Estate on East Alejo Road, which was his primary residence from 1948 to 1957. The hotel was owned by vaudeville comic Bert Wheeler and had a national reputation for sunshine, swimming and gambling.

"The bellman used to ride me and my brother (Frank Jr.) around on a luggage cart," Sinatra said.

Indian Avenue (now Indian Canyon), which was one of the main roads in Palm Springs at the time, wasn't even paved. She said her dad drove an Army-issued World War II Jeep to get around and added "It wasn't a great place for kids," but recalled having friends in the community.

"My dad was married to Ava Gardner at the time, and we used to hang out at the house," she added. "There was a market called Jerry's owned by Jerry Nathanson, which was one of the few things along the street (in the city). His son Mark Nathanson ended up becoming a coastal commissioner, but I knew him as a little boy back then. Maureen Reagan and other kids used to come to the house to play and swim."

The Twin Palms estate is regularly featured during Modernism Week, and Vosser Smith said it's a "sublime example of early mid-century modernism" in the desert.

"We love to think about Nancy and Frank Jr. being in that home with their father, and we visit the different bedrooms and tour the sliding glass door Nancy used to sneak out of to go into town, because at that time, being way out on Alejo was like being in the country. We cherish that time of her childhood history," Vosser Smith said.

This year, for the first time in Modernism Week's 17-year history, the event featured a tour of Frank Sinatra's seven-acre property "Villa Maggio," tucked away in the mountains off Highway 74 in Pinyon Crest. The retreat was built for him in 1970, and each of the three houses on the property was built with locally sourced materials.

Sinatra said the home was known to the family as "The Mountain House," and she only visited there a few times before it was sold.

"My mother decorated it and we spent a couple of Christmases there. It was fun to take walks, especially if it had been snowing," she added.

'She's all heart'

Former Palm Desert resident Van Dyke Parks, a musician who has collaborated with The Beach Boys, U2, Bob Dylan and more, never collaborated with Sinatra, but his brother Carson penned the duet "Something Stupid," which she and her famous father recorded in 1967. He described himself as "an admirer" of Sinatra and remembered a night out in Hollywood with singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright when she walked in.

"I told Rufus, 'She'll remember me' and he dared me. We went over to her table and I had no idea if she'd remember me. She stood up, embraced me and recalled how Carson's tune 'Something Stupid' was a bet between Frank Sinatra and (record executive) Mo Ostin. Mo predicted it would tank, and Frank predicted it would go to the top. It was a gold record. Nancy has boots, but she's all heart."

In 2020, Sinatra appeared at the Plaza Theatre's first event in six years during a fundraiser to preserve the historic building. The two-hour show featured Sinatra and her daughters A.J. Lambert and Amanda Erlinger sharing family memories, photos and film footage. Palm Springs city council member J.R. Roberts, actor and singer James Darren and Wrecking Crew member Don Randi also took part in the event.

After a brief intermission toward the end of the evening, Lambert sang three songs backed by Randi on piano, guitarist Jon Depatie and fiddle player Bobby Furgo.

In a surprise twist, Sinatra walked out on stage and performed "Bang Bang" as well as "These Boots Were Made For Walkin.'"

While sitting backstage the day before the event, she told The Desert Sun, "We're fighting like hell to keep the culture of the original city alive. It's not just this theater, it's this whole area and series of shops with the overhang."

What to know before you go

Saturday's parade will travel down Amado and Belardo roads to Palm Springs’ Downtown Park and include what the city describes as local celebrities, community leaders and city pioneers riding in the potentially record-breaking collection of antique cars. Among the figures slated to ride in the parade are former pro tennis star Rosemary Casals and local artist Phillip K. Smith III.

The parade will kick off a day of festivities that also will include a car show featuring the vehicles from the parade and a dog costume contest at 6 p.m. The festivities will conclude with an Elton John tribute concert in the park at 7 p.m. There will also be children’s activities in the park and at the neighboring Palm Springs Art Museum throughout the day.

A full schedule can be found on the event website, palmsprings85.com.

This article includes previous reporting by Desert Sun staff and USA TODAY.

Desert Sun reporter Brian Blueskye covers arts and entertainment. He can be reached at brian.blueskye@desertsu.com or on Twitter at @bblueskye.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Nancy Sinatra says Palm Springs residents 'blessed to live here'