See Ya Later, Babe

Paula & Dad

Whenever I think of Paula, my dad's longtime girlfriend, I remember her Frank Sinatra story. I first heard it when hubby and I went out to dinner with them, and Sinatra's name came up. My dad looked at her. "Tell them the story." "Oh, Ben," she said, "they don't want to hear about it." I reached over and touched her arm. "Oh, yes we do." 

The many faces of Frank

Sometime in the early '70s, after Paula's first husband had died, she went out to dinner with Sinatra and some friends who were trying to fix them up. "He behaved very badly that night," she said. "He was a little drunk, and for some reason, it was so long ago, I can't remember, but he wanted the maitre d's attention. I think he was probably on the phone, but Frank Sinatra had such a huge ego, he thought he was ignoring them. So he picked up the ice bucket where the wine was chilling, and threw it across the room. Everyone in the restaurant turned to look. It was embarrassing. He was like a child throwing a tantrum."

Later that night, they all went over to the house of one of Frank's cronies and spent the rest of the evening listening to Sinatra records. At one point, Paula found herself next to him on the sofa. He was so immersed in his own performance, she felt like she was intruding. "Does it bother you that I'm sitting next to you?" she asked. "If anything bothers me, babe, I'll let you know." 

On another occasion, he drove her home from a party. "Hang on," I said, "Frank Sinatra drove you home?" She shrugged like it was no big whoop. "What happened next?" "Oh, I don't know. I think he reached over, kissed me goodnight, and said, 'See ya later, babe.' " Not long after, Sinatra married Barbara Marx, Zeppo's former wife. "She was one of the few people who wouldn't put up with Sinatra's nonsense," Paula said. 

On Wednesday, Paula Sheinwold, a lovely and elegant lady who made my dad very happy, passed away at the age of 98.