For a man most famous for his stint on reality television who has always relished the company of celebrities, the inauguration of Donald Trump as President of the United States looks to be notable more for the absence of stars of stage and screen than their presence. The past week has seen opera singer Andrea Bocelli and Tony award winner Jennifer Holliday back out of participating after receiving significant backlash, including threats of boycott and even violence, from those who view the act of performing for the president-elect as unacceptable. Holliday told the Associated Press that “I didn’t see it as singing for Trump; I saw it as singing for the people on the mall.” But that attitude of graciousness and respect was not enough to sway the opinions of those clamoring for her to back out.
This is not an encouraging sign for the next four years. For those celebrities seeking a primer on how to interact with the political sphere in the era of Trump, they would be wiser to look to the model of another prominent star of the past: Frank Sinatra.
Sinatra had good relationships with nearly every president in his lifetime. He performed at the inaugurations and White Houses of members of both parties. As a young idol he met Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944 at the White House, and campaigned for Harry Truman and Adlai Stevenson. He was close friends with John F. Kennedy, and came to have genial relationships with many presidents despite differences in party and personal dislike. Even while holding strong personal political opinions on a number of topics, Sinatra would swallow his disagreements and treat all presidents with respect.
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