CONNIE FRANCIS DEAD
From
Roger@21:1/5 to
All on Thu Jul 17 11:25:14 2025
"Daily Mail" - London 17.7.25
Connie Francis has died aged 87, it has been reported.
The legendary pop and country singer's death was confirmed by her friend
Ron Roberts on Thursday, just weeks after Connie was admitted to
hospital in Florida.
In a statement shared on Facebook, Ron penned: 'It is with a heavy heart
and extreme sadness that i inform you of the passing of my dear friend
Connie Francis last night.
"I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to
learn of this sad news. More details will follow later."
Her sad passing comes shortly after her 1962 song Pretty Little Baby
went viral on TikTok, putting her back in the charts for the first time
in over 60 years.
As news of her death circulated, tributes came flooding in from fans on
X (formerly Twitter) as they expressed their sadness at her loss.
Earlier this month, TMZ reported that Connie had been admitted to a
Florida hospital, though the reason for her hospitalization wasn't known
at the time.
It was said that she was admitted to the intensive care unit after
experiencing 'extreme pain'. She had reportedly been dealing with
orthopedic health issues over the last few years, which doctors had been monitoring regularly.
At the time, the performer, who was said to have been confined to a
wheelchair amid her pain, was forced to cancel an appearance on Cousin Brucie’s Independence Day radio show.
Addressing her absence on his show, Connie later penned on Cousin
Bruce's Facebook announcement: 'I had hoped to take part in Brucie's
show for Independence Day, having had to cancel a previous slot a few
weeks ago when receiving treatment on my hip.
'Sadly, I had to let him know that I again had to withdraw. My thanks
for your many get well soon messages. I will endeavor to keep you
updated. Love, Connie.'
Shortly afterwards, Connie confirmed she had been moved from intensive
care to a 'private room' following a series of tests, with the star
going on to thank her fans for their well wishes.
Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero into a large Italian family, the
singer was encouraged by her family to perform at an early age.
She changed her name to Connie Francis on a suggestion during an
audition for Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, appearing on NBC's Startime
Kids as a teenager.
While she had minor success in her 20s with singles such as The Majesty
of Love and You, My Darlin', You,' she considered leaving music for a
career in medicine.
At the insistence of her father, she recorded a cover of the 1923 song
Who's Sorry Now in late 1957, which would sell over 1 million copies in
1958.
She recorded a slew of hit records throughout the 1960s, though her rape
in a Jericho, New York hotel lead her into more than a decade of
seclusion and refuge.
Her sad passing comes shortly after her 1962 song Pretty Little Baby
went viral on TikTok , putting her back in the charts for the first time
in over 60 years
+
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From
DianeE@21:1/5 to
All on Thu Jul 17 08:28:43 2025
From the NYTimes:
Petite and pretty, Ms. Francis had an easy, fluid vocal style, a
powerful set of lungs and a natural way with a wide variety of material:
old standards, rock ‘n’ roll, country and western, and popular songs in Italian, Yiddish, Swedish and a dozen other languages.
Between 1958 and 1964, when her brand of pop music began to fall out of
favor, Ms. Francis was the most popular female singer in the United
States, selling 40 million records. Her 35 Top-40 hits during that
period included 16 songs in the top 10, and three No. 1 hits:
“Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool,” “My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own” and “Don’t Break the Heart That Loves You.”
She was best known for the pulsing, emotional delivery that coaxed every
last teardrop from slow ballads like “Who’s Sorry Now?”, and made “Where
the Boys Are” a potent anthem of teenage longing. Sighing youngsters
thrilled to every throb in “My Happiness” and “Among My Souvenirs.”
“What struck me was the purity of the voice, the emotion, the perfect
pitch and intonation,” said Neil Sedaka, who wrote “Stupid Cupid” and “Where the Boys Are” with Howard Greenfield. “It was clear, concise, beautiful. When she sang ballads, they just soared.”
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