Frank Sinatra’s Mom Publicly Stated That His Marriage to Mia Farrow Wouldn’t Last

Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow married in 1966 after a whirlwind romance. Some of his friends expressed their surprise at the union as Sinatra was 30 years older than Farrow. His mother also wasn’t sure about the relationship, which she made exceedingly clear. She publicly complained about Farrow and expressed her certainty that the marriage wouldn’t last.

Mia Farrow wasn’t sure she was ready to be married to Frank Sinatra

While reflecting on her relationship with Sinatra, Farrow wondered if she looked to him as a sort of father figure. Her own father died in 1963, before she met Sinatra.

“Oh, I don’t know what I was looking for,” Farrow told the LA Times in 1989. “I had a touch of Zelda Fitzgerald in me. Possibly, it had something to do with looking for a father. There are worse things to look for.”

In more recent interviews, she has described Sinatra as the great love of her life, but she doesn’t know that she was ready to marry him.

“I was too immature to handle that situation,” she said. “I became very withdrawn and tried to find other values in life.”

His mother publicly predicted that the marriage wouldn’t last

Those close to the couple, particularly Sinatra’s friends and family, were surprised to hear that they were considering marriage.

“Jesus Christ, Frank,” his close friend Dean Martin said, per the New York Post. “I got Scotch older than this kid!”

Many assumed that the relationship was a passing fling, and the marriage came as a bit of a shock. Sinatra’s mother publicly complained about Farrow.

“This one don’t talk, she don’t eat, what’s she do?” she said. She took solace in her assumption that the marriage would not be a lasting one. “It won’t last long, so I guess it’s a good thing they weren’t married in the church.”

Ultimately, the marriage did end after two years. Sinatra wanted Farrow to put her career on the back burner and support him. When she starred in Rosemary’s Baby against his wishes, he served her with divorce papers while she was on set. 

Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow remained close even after their divorce

Sinatra and Farrow’s marriage was brief, but they remained close for the rest of Sinatra’s life. When Farrow ended her relationship with Woody Allen, she worried that Allen would use his power in Hollywood to harm her. She expressed these fears to Sinatra, who told her, “Don’t worry about it.” 

Sinatra organized a meeting between Farrow and an unnamed man who gave her names and phone numbers to call if she ever felt threatened. He assured her that they wouldn’t let anything happen to her.

“I remember babbling, ‘Thank you, thank you,'” she told Vanity Fair. “Off he went, and I did feel safer.”

Farrow also shared that their romantic relationship never truly ended. They remained a consistent part of one another’s lives. 

“He came back, over and over and over and over,” she explained. “I mean, we never really split up.”