In 1964, Frank Sinatra was filming on location in Hawaii for the movie “None but the Brave” when he nearly drowned.

His co-star, Brad Dexter, quickly intervened and saved his life. As a result of this heroic act, Sinatra offered Dexter the position of vice president at Sinatra Enterprises.

However, their relationship ultimately soured over Sinatra’s third marriage.

The incident occurred when Sinatra and Ruth Koch, the wife of screenwriter Howard Koch, were swimming in Hawaii and got caught in a riptide.

Dexter rushed out of the house to help them, but both Sinatra and Koch were unconscious. Dexter fought to keep them out of the crashing waves and prayed for help to arrive.

He slapped them and pulled them out of the water, trying to get them to breathe.

Fortunately, lifeguards reached the group and brought Sinatra and Koch back to shore on their boards.

When Dexter emerged from the water, both were still unconscious. He performed CPR on Sinatra, helping to clear the water from his lungs.

After Sinatra vomited the water out, the lifeguards took over. Jilly Rizzo, a close friend of Sinatra, ran up to Dexter and called him a hero, saying that Sinatra would have died without his intervention.

Dexter received a Red Cross medal for his rescue efforts and was offered a job at Sinatra Enterprises.

According to Gay Talese’s 1966 article “Frank Sinatra Has a Cold”, Dexter and Sinatra were nearly inseparable.

Dexter occupied a plush office near Sinatra’s executive suite and was constantly searching for literary properties that could be turned into new starring roles for Sinatra.

However, despite their initial closeness, Dexter felt that Sinatra was somewhat embarrassed to have been rescued by him.

Sinatra did not like feeling indebted to others, as evidenced by his reaction to Dexter shortly after the incident.

Dexter walked into the room while Sinatra was on the phone with his daughter. Sinatra looked up at Dexter, who could see that he was in shock, with bloodshot eyes and the expression of a stunned ox.

When their eyes met, Sinatra didn’t know what to say. He was embarrassed. He hung up the phone and said, “My family thanks you.”

It was a strange remark, almost as if Dexter had put Sinatra in the uncomfortable position of having to thank him for saving his life.

Despite this awkward moment, Sinatra and Dexter went on to work on the film “The Naked Runner” together.

Dexter was the producer and Sinatra was the lead. However, their relationship ended during the filming of the movie in 1966.

Sinatra announced that he was going to marry Mia Farrow and Dexter tried to talk him out of it. According to the LA Times, Sinatra never returned to the set after that.

When Dexter finished the film and returned home, he learned that he had been fired from his position at Sinatra Enterprises.