A Story for the Ages
September 1, 2025
Source: eBay
In 1983, Burt Reynolds and Frank Sinatra shared the screen in Cannonball Run II, but their real connection didn’t happen on a movie set. It happened in a kitchen, during a quiet dinner that turned into a memory so strange, so bold, it feels like something out of a screenplay.
Just Another Night in Hollywood… Almost
Burt Reynolds was dining at Nicky Blair’s, a celebrity-favorite restaurant, with his then-girlfriend Dinah Shore. Nothing about the evening seemed extraordinary—until Frank Sinatra entered the room.
They noticed each other. Friendly waves were exchanged. Then Sinatra motioned for Reynolds and Shore to come over.
Dinah whispered, “I think he wants us to go join him.”
But Burt? He wasn’t about to rush.
“Well, we’re not going,” he said. “I’m not a waiter here. We’ll have dinner first and maybe go over later.”
Only Burt Reynolds could delay Frank Sinatra and make it sound cool.
The Kitchen Game Begins
Eventually, after finishing his meal, Reynolds made his way over. Sinatra greeted him warmly and extended an unexpected invitation — a poker game was about to go down in the kitchen.
Five-card stud. Sinatra-style.
Reynolds accepted, and the kitchen transformed into a smoky, secret card room where fame took a backseat to the hand you held.
That’s when things took a turn.
The Crash — and Sinatra’s Surprise
Midway through the game, a busboy dropped a tray of glasses. The sound echoed — shattering silence and catching the owner’s attention. He started reprimanding the poor kid.
But Sinatra wasn’t having it.
He turned and asked, “How much do those glasses cost?”
“Few bucks apiece,” the owner replied.
Sinatra nodded, motioned to his handler, and pulled out a thick wad of cash.
$3,000 worth of glasses.
He handed it to the owner and said, “Let him break every one.”
And that’s exactly what happened.
The busboy, wide-eyed and probably terrified moments before, was now gleefully smashing glass after glass across the kitchen floor — with Sinatra’s blessing.
Reynolds’ Exit — And the Perfect Sinatra Story
As the floor filled with broken glass and the poker game tried to continue, Reynolds quietly stood up. He stepped through the mess — crunching glass underfoot — and headed for the exit.
Sinatra called after him.
“Where the hell are you going?”
Reynolds didn’t even look back.
“Home,” he said.
“I’ve got my Sinatra story.”
And just like that, he walked out.
A Moment Frozen in Time
It was classic Reynolds — charming, self-assured, and always with a sense of timing that made you feel like you were watching a scene from one of his films.
But it wasn’t a movie. It was real life.
A poker game in a kitchen.
Sinatra handing out wads of cash.
A floor littered with glass.
And Burt Reynolds walking away with the best story in the room.
Some stars leave behind awards.
Others leave behind scenes you’ll never forget.
Burt Reynolds did both.
And on that night, he didn’t just win a poker hand —
He walked away with a legend.