In the late 1950s and early ‘60s, Las Vegas was the epicenter of cool thanks to the legendary Rat Pack – the fast-living, hard-partying group of entertainers led by none other than Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra. Alongside fellow icons Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford, the Pack dominated the Strip with their hip mix of music, comedy, and vodka-fueled escapades.
Yet not everyone meshed well with the bad boys of the Vegas strip. One Rat Packer found himself unceremoniously dumped from the crew – Joey Bishop. So where did it all go wrong for the caustic comic? Why did he end up getting the boot from the coolest cats in showbiz?
The Quippy Comic Who Charmed Ol’ Blue Eyes
While he may not be as well-remembered as the other members, Joey Bishop was undoubtedly talented. He made a name for himself in the New York comedy circuit during the early 1950s as an acid-tongued insult comic long before Don Rickles arrived on the scene.
Bishop‘s acerbic wit was heavily influenced by the Borscht Belt style he grew up with in the Bronx neighborhoods – always quick with a sharp quip and unafraid to bruise a few egos for the sake of a laugh. He would sneak sly barbs into rapid-fire monologues while casually smoking on stage, roasting every celebrity target in his clinical crosshairs. Alongside contemporaries like Rodney Dangerfield and Alan King, Bishop emerged as a master of merciless mockery.
His style soon caught the attention of Chairman of the Board himself. Never one to mince words himself, Frank likely appreciated the young comedian‘s boldness and wit. By the late 1950s, Joey was serving as Sinatra‘s opening act out on the road, effortlessly winning over audiences with his sardonic charm before Frank took the stage with the smooth tunes.
Clearly Ol‘ Blue Eyes saw something special in Bishop. After all, Sinatra wasn’t exactly known for suffering mediocrity lightly, whether on stage or in his exclusive inner circle. Under Frank’s wing, Joey‘s fame grew exponentially during the glitzy Vegas years. Soon enough the cosmopolitan comedian was inducted as an official member of Sinatra’s showbiz crew, who the media had dubbed “The Rat Pack” after their dapper style and late-night carousing.
The Legendary Rat Pack Live Shows of the Vegas Strip
The Rat Pack name may not have been to the boys’ liking initially, but they certainly embraced the image. By 1959, Frank, Dean, Sammy and the crew were selling out show after show in the legendary Copa Room at the Sands Hotel and Casino. Their riotous late-night performances would see the marquee stars taking turns at the mic, riffing jokes, tossing back drinks, clowning around in impeccable tailored suits – and of course, belting out the hits to a packed house of adoring fans.
With Joey added to the mix, The Rat Pack cemented themselves as the hottest ticket on the Strip. Whether crushing cheeky renditions of "Come Fly With Me" and "Ain‘t That a Kick in the Head" or simply bantering and messing with each other on stage, their shows were less scripted concerts and more like wild house parties with world-class entertainment unfolding spontaneously right before your eyes. For the audiences flocking to see these icons live, it was worth every penny.
As Variety entertainment critic Burr Snider raved in March 1960 after catching their run at the Sands:
"You‘ll get the feeling it’s all unrehearsed—that they’re making it up as they go along. Such an aura gives the impression of informality and freshness and quite overwhelms the customers… For the finale, Martin and Sinatra led the Wayfarers in a knockabout chorus of college songs with everyone pitching in. [It was] one of the funniest 20 minutes seen in this room."
Little wonder fans couldn‘t get enough. For his part, Joey Bishop reveled in the attention, finally receiving marquee status alongside Tinseltown royalty. The Rat Pack‘s larger-than-life personae fed into the media image of Las Vegas in its midcentury heyday as Sin City – the glamorous desert playground where the booze and good times never stopped for its glitterati guests.
The Truth Behind the Rat Pack Persona and Party Lifestyle
Today, the legends of the Rat Pack endure thanks to images like the iconic shot of a tux-clad Frank, Dean and Sammy toasting cocktails, cemented in pop culture history as the epitome of Vegas cool. Indeed, you‘ll still find no shortage of tourist tchotchkes and collectibles playing up that nostalgic persona – poker chip shot glasses, retro posters and more.
Naturally then, vintage photos make it seem like Sinatra and his crew lived only for chasing broads and getting blitzed in their sharp suits between benders of late night debauchery. Even contemporary memoirs of former Sands employees paint a picture of wild backstage antics, flowing liquor, and mob ties mixing with entertainment exclusivity behind the scenes.
But in reality, the Rat Pack image was more carefully manufactured myth than depraved truth. Yes, the appeal of Las Vegas itself marketed on the promise of nonstop revelries in an adults-only playground. But maintaining such a lucrative reputation still required discipline and professionalism from its stars.
While they toasted bandleaders with Jack Daniels on stage, the actual liquor was really just iced tea or Coca-cola. And as renowned author Kliph Nesteroff shared in an interview:
"Contrary to popular belief, the Rat Pack were not drunk on stage. They were there to entertain. Getting drunk would mean not giving the audience their money’s worth.”
Even notorious showman Dean Martin largely avoided hitting the bottle before performances, at most taking a single shot of apple juice laced with a splash of whiskey strictly for show.
Off the stage, things weren‘t so lavish either. Nobody embodied busy work ethic more than Ol’ Blue Eyes himself. Often Frank would spend his downtime quietly in his dressing room rather than living up the loud Rat Pack image, memorizing lyrics and resting his voice rather than basking in booze and broads as his public persona suggested.
As one former Sands executive later revealed:
“Frank Sinatra was all about the music. There were no late night parties in his suite like most people think. After each performance, he immediately went upstairs, took a steam bath, had a late dinner in his suite, reviewed his song lyrics for the next show and often went to bed by 2 AM.”
Turns out these icons were savvy businessmen first and foremost – and they weren’t about to let anyone upset the profitable entertainment ecosystem they ruled over.
Reneging on Rat Pack Shows While Filming Ocean‘s 11
However, Joey Bishop‘s reluctance to pull double duty during the filming of 1960’s Ocean’s 11 ultimately sealed his banishment from Sin City‘s coolest fraternity.
Producer Jerry Weintraub had convinced Frank and the gang to star in this heist flick as a self-styled extension of their smooth on-screen personae from the Sands concerts. Shooting ran late mornings to mid-afternoons daily during the summer of 1960. But Sinatra still carried on commanding the marquee at the Sands by night.
Perhaps Bishop felt he deserved some rest in between the grueling schedule rather than constantly playing the undercard to Sinatra‘s main event. Or maybe a few years basking in Ol‘ Blue Eyes limelight had simply fed his ego to expect more preferential treatment as a key Rat Pack crony.
Whatever Bishop‘s reasons, he refused to take part in keeping the streak alive for the Sands late shows while the Ocean‘s 11 cameras weren‘t rolling. This insolence predictably infuriated Sinatra. After all, Frank expected his chosen circle to put business first and know their place in keeping his crowd-pleasing money machine humming. Without all its components syncing up on stage, the rat Pack prodcut risked losing its lucrative luster.
Soon enough, Bishop found himself ostracized for his impudence. The Rat Pack had little use for someone who skimped on pulling his weight. And with just like that, Joey Bishop‘s membership among Tinseltown‘s most elite boys club was unceremoniously revoked.
Joey Bishop‘s Outrage and Exile From the Rat Pack‘s Inner Circle
As one might expect, Bishop didn‘t take his excommunication lying down either. Later in life, whenever interviews touched on the subject of Frank Sinatra, the comedian could barely contain his contempt:
"Frank was an egomaniac. He loved the image of being able to give you something – or take it away.”
"I was a pawn in his chess game – and I didn‘t like it one bit."
Clearly wounded at being frozen out by someone he considered a mentor and fan, Bishop reverted to using his acid tongue to lash out at Sinatra‘s legendary shadow. He criticized Frank‘s tempestuousness, his cavalier womanizing, the hubris that came with his success.
In Joey‘s bitter view, he was simply "thrown away" by a petty and insecure Sinatra who resented his talents posing even the mildest threat to the Chairman‘s star power atop the Strip. As Bishop himself explained in one late night talk show spot:
“I would imagine Frank was very insecure that there was suddenly someone almost as famous who might knock him down… I think Frank got worried. He wanted to be the star and would not brook any opposition."
Perhaps there was a seed of truth in Bishop‘s indignation. After all, Dean Martin could play the charming lush on stage without threatening Frank‘s crown. Lawford kept any pretensions of equal talent in check as an actor first and foremost. Even scene-stealing Sammy knew his place as a supporting talent.
But Bishop‘s comedic chops paired with his growing fame posed a more direct challenge. His acerbic ridicule didn‘t pull any satirical punches. And if Bishop no longer showed proper deference to the core hierarchy, what message might that signal to promoters, casino bosses and the rest of the Hollywood palace infrastructure propping up the Chairman?
Either way, for the prideful Bishop, exile from Frank‘s inner circle stung far deeper than just losing a regular gig. Being booted from the Rat Pack became the defining slight that haunted Joey for decades to come, irreparably damaging his esteem in showbiz royalty pecking order.
Joey Bishop‘s Later Career and Bitter Resentments
In the years that followed his falling out with Sinatra, Joey Bishop struggled to regain his former prominence without that elite celebrity cosign backing him in Vegas and Hollywood. He landed a few middling film roles like Sergeants 3 opposite the Rat Pack crew, now forced to play the uncredited outsider peeking in at his former cronies hamming it up for the cameras.
Joey also struggled through short-lived ventures like The Joey Bishop Show, his own NBC late night talk program hastily launched to compete with the likes of Johnny Carson. But high profile interviews with the likes of Marlon Brando, Bette Davis and Robert Kennedy failed to attract viewership, ending after just 33 episodes.
His longtime reputation as a Sinatra hanger-on undercut perceptions of Bishop as his own sovereign star. Without the Rat Pack machine to amplify his talents, Bishop simply couldn‘t escape Frank‘s long shadow, especially in the Nu Wave counterculture sensibilities emerging later in the 1960s.
In 1976, a desperate Bishop even turned to the schlock medium of The Gong Show to try resurrecting his career as its first host. While mocking unknown amateur talents may have played to Bishop‘s insult comic roots, the B-grade program was a far cry from the Las Vegas glory days – and frankly beneath the resume of most marquee comedians still harboring A-List aspirations.
While Joey Bishop remained an active stand-up into his elder years, still flashing the occasional caustic quip on late night talk circuits now and then for nostalgia kicks, his dismissive expulsion from Rat Pack royalty continued haunting his legacy.
All the way up to his passing in 2007, the grudge lingered raw. Bishop‘s epitaph etched “Joey Bishop: Member of the Rat Pack” almost as an indignant retort from the grave. Yet he could never fully escape Sinatra‘s shadow, forever damned to have his talents viewed in relation to what he once enjoyed but squandered among Hollywood‘s high society back in ‘60.
Lingering Questions on What Transpired Behind the Scenes
While accounts generally agree Bishop sealed his fate in abandoning the Rat Pack shows, deeper motivations likely factored into his exile given Frank‘s otherwise tolerance for eccentric personalities within his circle. Could Sinatra have turned on Bishop over more than just business obligation?
Some have theorized there lay much deeper clashes between their respective humor styles. One can imagine Frank‘s bemused tolerance fading if Bishop‘s snide wit kept hitting too close to home, especially as fellow Italian-Americans vying for top laughs against one another. Perhaps Frank simply got sick of being in the comedian‘s crosshairs despite enjoying insult comic contemporaries like Don Rickles separately.
Others have speculated Bishop‘s rapid rise to fame itself threatened the Chairman. Vain as Sinatra could be, he expected anyone entering his sphere to know their place. And Bishop‘s demands for higher compensation, perks and equal billing on the Sands lineup ahead of less established Rat Packers like Lawford may have signaled an intolerable hubris requiring removal. Hierarchy mattered profoundly in Frank‘s court.
Nevertheless, the rift between the comedy gatekeeper and Sultan of Swoon proved permanent. And for Bishop, the cost was no laughing matter. Stripped of Frank‘s imprimatur, he faded into irrelevance outside the Rat Pack‘s party bubble. Turns out even in Sin City, you don‘t cross Chairman of the Board without paying the price.
Joey Bishop and Rat Pack Discography Appendix
Best of Joey Bishop Comedy Albums
- On the Board (1961)
- Joey Bishop Says, "It‘s Great Not to Be Nominated" (1964)
- Bishop‘s Aid (1967)
Essential Rat Pack Collaborations
- Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin: Live From Las Vegas At The Sands (2005; recorded 1963)
- Frank Sinatra and Antônio Carlos Jobim: Francis Albert Sinatra & Antônio Carlos Jobim (1967)
- Rat Pack: Live and Swingin‘ (2001; recorded 1960 & 1961)
Notable Solo Albums
Frank Sinatra
- In the Wee Small Hours (1955)
- Songs for Swingin‘ Lovers! (1956)
- Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely (1958)
- Nice ‘n‘ Easy (1960)
Dean Martin
- Pretty Baby (1957)
- This Time I‘m Swingin‘! (1960)
- Dino Latino (1962)
Sammy Davis Jr.
- Just for Lovers (1955)
- Mood to Be Wooed (1958)
- As Long as She Needs Me (1963)
Peter Lawford
- Neither Too Hot nor Too Cool (1954)
- The Hit Sound of Peter Lawford (1965)
- What‘ll I Do (1977)