Tony Bennett may have won 20 Grammys and a Lifetime Achievement Award. Frank Sinatra called him the “best in the business”, yet his children are the thing he is most proud of.
Bennett, born Anthony Dominick Benedetto on August 19, 1926, has a career spanning over seven decades. He is considered to be a champion of American songbook and is dedicated to the preservation of compositions by Cole Porter and others, including the Gershwins and Duke Ellington. Bennett served in World War II as a draftee and liberated a concentration camp outside Landsberg. Later, he studied with Miriam Spier in American Theatre Wing, and was signed to Columbia Records, where he released the singles “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and “Rags to Riches,” in 1953, and “Stranger in Paradise.” But his biggest breakthrough was “I left My Heart in San Francisco.”
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In 1954, the legendary jazz singer became a father for the first time with his oldest son. He was then married to Patricia Beech. In 2007, he divorced his second wife Sandra Grant and married Susan Benedetto. She would remain by his side up until his death in 2023. Bennett’s family revealed in a 2021 AARP article that he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease back in 2016. He is doing many things at 94 that people with dementia are unable to do. Gayatri Devi, his neurologist, told the website that he was a symbol of hope to anyone with a cognition disorder. Susan, his wife, said that he seemed to be in a good mood despite the fact that he didn’t know what was going on. She told AARP that he didn’t know what was happening. “He asked me, ‘What’s Alzheimer’s’? I would explain but he didn’t understand. Benedetto explained that he would tell Benedetto, “Susan, you feel great. That was all he understood — that he physically felt fine.” “So, his life didn’t change.” He was unaware of any changes that occurred.
His publicist Sylvia Weiner announced his death as follows: “Tony Bennett was born Anthony Dominick Benedetto on August 3, 1925 in Astoria Queens. He passed away earlier today in his hometown, New York City, at the age 96,” according to publications such as USA Today and People. The beloved singer was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease back in 2016. He is survived by Susan Benedetto and his daughters Johanna Bennett, Antonia Bennett, and Danny Bennett. Find out more about Tony Bennett and his children.
Tony Bennett’s Children
Meet his four kids, Danny, Dae Johanna Bennett and Antonia.
D’Andrea “Danny” Bennett
Photo of DANNY BENNETT and TONY BENNETT in 1995. PHOTO BY RON GALELLA LTD./RON GALELLA COLLECTION VIA GETTY IMAGES
Born: February 3, 1964
Danny Bennett, Tony’s oldest child, is the son he had with Patricia Beech. Danny was his father’s manager between 1979 when he was 25 years old and his retirement in 2021. In a 1999 article in The New York Times, Danny was credited with reviving his father’s career following a series substance abuse problems and poor financial decisions in the late 1970s. The paper noted that Bennett was an early Internet believer, having purchased Amazon.com, Yahoo and Microsoft stock for him and his father. Danny Bennett stated, “I learned how to produce and engineer records.” “Computers extend that.” In the early 90’s, I managed a group called Tribe at Warner Brothers. In 1992, we created a web address.”
Daegal “Dae” Bennett
DAE BENNETT, SON OF TONY BENNETT. Photo by SGRANITZ/WIREIMAGE
Born: 1955
Dae Bennett, the second child of Tony and Patricia, was born in 2005. Dae Bennett was a music enthusiast from a very young age. He joined the band Quacky Duck and His Farmyard Friends along with his brother Danny. Tony, Dae’s brother, remained in his life even after his mother and father split up in 1965. Dae’s website states: “During his years of working as a musician Dae built several small studios.” Hillside Sound, his first professional studio he opened in his late 20s, produced many international hits from artists like Rob Base, Naughty By Nature, Salt n Peppa and Teddy Riley, along with Guy and Wreckx n’ Effect, during the early days Rap and Hip Hop. All of them had many hits, and received some early Grammy nominations, in what was at the time a new Rap and Hip Hop category. Hillside Sound also hosted many of the greatest Jazz and Rock artists in the 80s and 90s. Dae took an active part in the production of the father’s records during the 90s.
Joanna Bennett
TONY BENNETT WITH DAUGHTER JOANNA. PHOTO BY RICHARD CORKERY/NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGES
Born: 1969
Joanna Bennett was born in 1971 to Tony Bennett and Sandra Grant (they divorced in 1979, but not officially until 2007). Joanna was named after Bennett’s 1964 hit song “When Joanna Loved Me,” which Bennett claimed had many famous fans. Bennett said to the Washington Post that “that tune is every man’s favourite song.” Joanna Bennet is largely kept out of the limelight. “Cary Grant and people like that tell me it’s their favourite song, which thrills me.”
Antonia Bennett
TONY BENNETT WITH HIS DAUGHTER ANTONIA. CARMEN VALEZ/RON GALELLA COLLECTION VIA GOTTY IMAGES.
Born: April 7, 1975
Antonia Bennett, Tony’s youngest child was also born to Sandra Grant. Antonia Bennett showed an interest in music at a young age, and was a natural singer. She began singing with her dad when she was four years old. “This girl has so much talent.” She is very bright and creative. I know that sounds like a proud father speaking, but it’s true. Bennett told the Washington Post in 1985 that Bennett listens well. If you correct her she won’t take anything personally. She does what I tell her to do. She is an amazing painter and singer. Antonia is a talented artist and a happy child. She was featured in her father’s 2008 album A Swingin Christmas and released her EP Natural in 2010. She and her husband Ronen Helmann have one child together, a daughter named Maya.
The Good Life: the Autobiography of Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett, the renowned recording musician, shares his personal memories of a half century, starting with his childhood in Queens during the Depression, the New York Jazz scene in the 1940s and his success in the 1990s.
