THE SINATRA FILES by Bryn Fortey

over a 40+ year period

the FBI amassed

thousands of pages

in an ever bulging file

on Frank Sinatra

their first involvement 

was to investigate a malicious claim

that he’d paid a doctor $40,000

to declare him unfit for the WW2 military 

a rumour that dogged the rest of his life

in spite of being proved false

the FBI might have cleared the singer

in that first instance

but then devoted time and manpower 

in unsuccessful attempts to tie him

as a participant in organised crime

Sam Giancana, Angelo Bruno

Joseph and Charles Fischstti

Anthony and Vito Giacalone

were some of the top Mafia mobsters

Frank partied with as friends

never hiding that he knew them

that he sang at their clubs

and enjoyed their company

so, unable to offer a case against him

for Mafia related criminal activity

the FBI switched to accusations

of communist leanings

using his opposition to racism

and support for liberal causes

as Red Menace indicators 

Frank Sinatra was a complex sort of guy

who enjoyed Mafioso company

yet supported democracy and liberalism

and in spite of all their efforts

the FBI never made a case against him

Bryn Fortey is a veteran writer from Wales in the UK. Widely published

over the years, he has had two collections published by The Alchemy 

Press, both featuring a mix of short stories and poetry. He is grateful that

in old age he is still able to put pen to paper and finger to keyboard