Video: Nancy Sinatra and Her 1957 Thunderbird

For her 17th birthday, Frank Sinatra gave daughter Nancy a brand new ’57 Thunderbird, which she kept for 20 years and even used in her TV appearances. Here’s more on her beloved hot rod, including a video.

 

 

Something of a car guy, singer Frank Sinatra owned a number of fine vehicles in his day, including a Dual Ghia and a customized Ford Mustang. He passed the enthusiasm along to his daughter Nancy on her 17th birthday when he presented her with a brand new ’57 Thunderbird. She and the car bonded and she owned it for two decades, hot rodding and customizing the T-Bird multiple times.

Originally finished in 1957 Dusk Rose—a bright pink—Nancy’s ‘Bird was later repainted in Candy Apple Red, while performance enhancements included oversize tires on American mag wheels, traction bars, a four-speed transmission, and a McCulloch supercharger. In 1970 she took the car to George Barris, Hollywood’s customizer to the stars, for another makeover, which included a Mustang Boss 302 engine, Chrome Yellow lacquer, and a matching patent leather interior. She kept the car until 1976, when it passed on to a private collector, and in 2013 the Thunderbird sold at Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale for $50,600. Still in excellent condition, the Thunderbird was then showing around 12,000 miles on the odometer.

 

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In December of 1967, the Thunderbird starred in the NBC television musical specialĀ Movin’ With Nancy, which also featured Sammy Davis, Jr., Lee Hazelwood, and Dean Martin. The clip below is from the opening segment, in which the second-generation entertainer sings “I Gotta Get Out of This Town” from behind the wheel of her T-Bird, which here is in its Candy Apple Red phase. Video follows.

 

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