Yahoo Lifestyle Looking Back at Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow’s Wedding: The 9-carat Diamond Ring, Unconventional Ceremony Suit and $27 Reception Dress
Mia Farrow was an up-and-coming actress when she tied the knot with Frank Sinatra in 1966. The legendary singer was 30 years her senior and though the couple’s union quickly ended in divorce, Farrow still considers Sinatra the love of her life.
After meeting at a soundstage on the 20th Century Fox backlot in 1964, the two began dating. “I told my mother right away I was seeing Frank. She approved,” Farrow told DuJour.
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Sinatra proposed to Farrow at his Palm Springs, Calif., home, presenting her with a 9-carat, pear-shaped diamond set in platinum. He purchased the ring from celebrity jeweler William Ruser, who also counted Barbara Stanwyck and Joan Crawford as clients.
The couple’s high-profile nuptials took place nearly 60 years ago on Friday. In honor of their would-be anniversary, WWD look backs at their wedding day.
The Ceremony
According to New York Times’ original reporting on Farrow’s and Sinatra’s marriage, their wedding was quickly arranged. “We decided to be married about 20 minutes ago,” Sinatra told the paper. “The plans were made last week.”
Sinatra and Farrow’s civil ceremony, lasting just five minutes, took place at the home of the late Jack Entratter, president of the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas. The couple posed for photos and cut cake at the resort, where Sinatra often stayed, following their vows.
Film producer William Goetz and his wife, Edith, served as the best man and matron of honor. Comedian Red Skelton, as well as Entratter’s daughters and granddaughters, were also in the wedding party. Neither Farrow’s or Sinatra’s family was present.
Sinatra gifted a double-row diamond bracelet — another Ruser piece — to his new bride. Elizabeth Taylor sent the couple a white Pekingese puppy, who they named Eliza.
Inside Frank Sinatra & Mia Farrow’s Wedding: Suits, Rings & More [PHOTOS]
Farrow was the singer’s third wife following his marriages to Nancy Barbato and Ava Gardner.
Mia Farrow’s Wedding Dress
Unlike the typical bespoke celebrity wedding gown, Farrow pulled her bridal attire from her own closet. She already owned the silk faille skirt suit she wore on her wedding day, which included a cropped jacket with rhinestoned double-breasted buttons and a bow at the waistline.
Farrow selected a different dress for her reception, which was hosted by friends of the couple in Los Angeles. “I wore [a] lacy dress,” the actress wrote in the caption of a recent Instagram post. “I remember it cost $27.”
The Aftermath
Sixteen months after their wedding, Farrow was served divorce papers on the set of “Rosemary’s Baby.” Upon their marriage, Sinatra expected his wife not to work.
“In terms of what Frank would say, I shouldn’t have done any movies,” Farrow told Vanity Fair in 2013. “He’s on the record saying, ‘I’m a pretty good provider. I can’t see why a woman would want to do anything else.’ That’s the way men thought, and you felt pretty guilty wanting something for yourself.”
The couple’s divorce was finalized in 1968, with their marriage lasting just over two years.
Still, the couple remained friendly after they separated. “We never really split up,” Farrow told Vanity Fair.
The actress attended Sinatra’s funeral in 1998, leaving her wedding ring in the casket, as well as “a small bottle of Jack Daniel’s and a dime, because he always told us never to go anywhere without a dime. ‘You never know who you’ll have to call.’”
Launch Gallery: Inside Frank Sinatra & Mia Farrow's Wedding: Suits, Rings & More [PHOTOS]
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