“We have lost part of our capacity...

“We have lost part of our capacity to self-reflect because Frank is gone. His music helped us understand our own lives more clearly because he was authentically honest about himself.”

--Shirley MacLaine (appeared with Sinatra in “Some Came Running” and “Can-Can” and had a cameo in “Ocean’s 11)

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“The oldest and best friend of our family is gone. Frank was loyal above all else. With him it was always loyalty first, thoughtfulness in a thousand ways . . . . We will cherish our memories of him the rest of our lives.”

--Gregory Peck

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“Words can’t express my sadness about the passing of Frank Sinatra. He was an idol to me as a great Italian-American and a great singer. He was an inspiration to me as a great actor in such films as “Some Came Running,” “From Here to Eternity,” “The Man with the Golden Arm,” “Manchurian Candidate” and many others.”

--Martin Scorcese, filmmaker

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“He was my friend. What a gift to me and my family. Everyone he touched was enriched by his extaordinary talent.”

--Robert Wagner

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“One of Sinatra’s favorite toasts to make with glass in hand was, ‘May you live to be 100 and may the last voice you hear be mine.’ The master is gone but his voice will live forever.”

--Tony Bennett

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“Frank Sinatra was the 20th century, he was modern, he was complex, he had swing and he had attitude. He was the boss but he was always Frank Sinatra. We won’t see the likes of him again. He was the big bang of pop . . . . the man invented pop music.”

--U2 singer Bono

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“Sinatra was someone I could enjoy as well as study. I was both frightened by and encouraged by his music. It’s so hard to believe he’s gone. My love and prayers go out to his wife and family. I am deeply saddened and will be for a long time.”

--Harry Connick Jr.

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“There will never be another Francis Albert Sinatra. No one will ever come close.”

--Vic Damone

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“Right from the beginning, he was there with the truth of things in his voice. His music had a profound influence on me, whether I knew it or not. He was one of the very few singers who sang without a mask. It’s a sad day.”

--Bob Dylan

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“Frank Sinatra’s voice expresses more eloquence than I can ever say in mere words.”

--Billy Joel

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“In a hundred years, they’ll be teaching Einstein’s theory to mathematicians and scientists, and in a hundred years, when people get together to study pop music, Sinatra will be taught--for his phrasing, his musicianship, his style . . . “

--Alan King

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“Frank always had the three c’s--consistency, concentration and credibility. There is no one who had the sense of lyric, the phrasing, the intonation, and most especially the role as ‘everyman’ as Frank Sinatra did.”

--Mel Torme

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“As a man, he was a master of heroic proportions. As a performer, he was the best. And as a friend, he was the ultimate. He’ll be sorely missed.”

--Ray Charles

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“Knowing Frank Sinatra was an honor and a privilege. His artistry was a great influence on me. To me, he was the greatest artist of the century.”

--Julio Iglesias

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“He was simply the best. No one else even came close.”

--Elton John

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“He’ll be remembered for his music . . . . There’s no one who had a way with a pop song like he did. He was probably the greatest interpreter of a pop song ever . . . .

--Paul Anka

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“Whether it was Barbra Streisand, Bono, Aretha Franklin or Julio Iglesia, when they’d finished recording a song, all they wanted to know was, ‘What did Frank think?’ ”

--Charles Koppelman, executive producer of Sinatra’s “Duet” albums

Times staff writers PAUL BROWNFIELD, JERRY CROWE, PATRICK GOLDSTEIN and SUSAN KING compiled these quotes.