Latest news with #ConcettaRecords
UAE Moments
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- UAE Moments
'Pretty Little Baby' Singer Connie Francis Dies at 87
Music legend Connie Francis, who gave us the catchy classics 'Stupid Cupid' and 'Pretty Little Baby,' has died at the age of 87. Her longtime friend and Concetta Records president, Ron Roberts, confirmed the news on Facebook, calling it a 'heavy and heartbreaking loss.' Just a few weeks before her passing, Connie had opened up about her health on Facebook, saying she was undergoing tests due to pelvic pain. By early July, she had moved from the ICU to a private hospital room. A Career That Shaped Pop If you grew up hearing 'Who's Sorry Now?' or caught her viral moment on TikTok through 'Pretty Little Baby,' you've felt Connie's charm. Her music dominated the 1950s and '60s, and even decades later, her songs still have fans humming along. She Leaves Behind a Son Connie is survived by her son. Her official Facebook page also shared the sad news, remembering her as a true music icon who left a timeless mark on the world.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Connie Francis, ‘Where the Boys Are' Singer and Actress, Dies at 87
Connie Francis, the actress and beloved pop vocalist who had hits with 'Who's Sorry Now?,' 'Everybody's Somebody's Fool,' 'Stupid Cupid' and 'Where the Boys Are' before her life took several turbulent turns, has died. She was 87. Ron Roberts, her friend and the president of her label, Concetta Records, shared the news Thursday on Facebook. More from The Hollywood Reporter Simon Cowell Will Look for a New Boy Band in Netflix Series Bruce Springsteen, Penélope Cruz, Bowen Yang and Walter Salles to be Honored at 2025 Academy Museum Gala Joanna Bacon, British Actress Known for 'Love Actually' and 'Breeders,' Dies at 72 'It is with a heavy heart and extreme sadness that i inform you of the passing of my dear friend Connie Francis last night,' he wrote in a note that was reposted by the official Francis account on Facebook. 'I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news.' The news comes after the star was hospitalized this month. 'I am back in the hospital where I have been undergoing tests and checks to determine the cause(s) of the extreme pain I have been experiencing,' she wrote July 2 on Facebook. Francis had recently seen an unexpected streaming surge as her 1962 tune 'Pretty Little Baby' had become one of the biggest songs on TikTok this year. As of July, it has been featured in more than 2 million TikTok videos and has nearly 85 million streams on Spotify. A New Jersey native, Francis set the tone for the likes of Madonna and Lady Gaga and 'had a powerful voice that could sound like a sob while staying on key,' San Francisco critic Neva Chonin once noted. One of the most commercially successful female singers of all time, she sold 42 million records by the time she was 26 and, according to her website, 200 million-plus records around the world during her career. On the heels of her newfound celebrity, famed MGM producer Joe Pasternak tapped Francis to portray the romantically challenged Angie, one of four co-eds on spring break in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and sing the title song for Where the Boys Are (1960). The coming-of-age film, also starring Paula Prentiss, Dolores Hart and Yvette Mimieux, was a box office hit, and her tune reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961. Francis also sang it in Italian, Spanish, French, German and Japanese during the same New York City recording session in November 1960, and it would soar to No. 1 in 19 countries. As Francis churned out one top 10 hit after another, she starred in three more MGM movies, all musicals: Follow the Boys (1963), shot on location on the French and Italian Riviera and also featuring Prentiss; Looking for Love (1964), with Jim Hutton and Johnny Carson; and When the Boys Meet the Girls (1965), featuring Herman's Hermits. Francis never wanted to be an actress, she told Nick Thomas in 2017. 'I asked the studio why they couldn't come up with a title without the word 'boys' in it!' she said. 'People knew [When the Boys Meet the Girls] was another lame Connie Francis movie and they stayed home. I was so pleased it was my last one.' (In 1984, she declined an offer from producer Allan Carr to appear in his remake of Where the Boys Are.) In 1958, Francis shot to stardom with her rendition of 'Who's Sorry Now?,' a 1923 tune written by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby that had been recorded by Bing Crosby and performed in French by Lisette Verea in the Marx Brothers' A Night in Casablanca (1946). With 'Everybody's Somebody's Fool' in June 1960, Francis became the first woman to have a No. 1 song on the Hot 100 (the chart was almost two years old at the time). She reached the pinnacle again three months later with 'My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own' and had a third chart-topper with 'Don't Break the Heart That Loves You' in March 1962. Francis accumulated many other top 10 hits, including 'My Happiness,' 'Lipstick on Your Collar,' 'Frankie' and 'Among My Souvenirs,' all released in 1959; 'Mama' — she said that was her personal favorite — and 'Many Tears Ago' from 1960; 'Together' and 'Breakin' in a Brand New Broken Heart' from 1961; and 'When the Boy in Your Arms (Is the Boy In Your Heart),' 'Second Hand Love' and 'Vacation' from 1962. Her personal life, however, was filled with tragedy. Her self-described one true love, singer Bobby Darin, was chased away by her strict father before they could elope, and she had four unhappy marriages, two miscarriages and a son that lived for only 10 days; was raped at knifepoint in a Long Island motel; her brother was murdered, gangland style; botched nasal surgery took away her singing voice for years; and she was diagnosed with manic depression and involuntarily institutionalized 17 times. 'I would like to be remembered, not so much for the heights I have reached, but for the depths from which I have come,' she often said. Concetta Maria Franconero was born on Dec. 12, 1937, in Newark, the daughter of Ida and George, a roofer who would become the dominating architect of her career. She began taking accordion lessons when she was 3, but her talents as a singer quickly became obvious. At 14, she was making demonstration records for publishers to pitch unreleased songs to popular singers — they'd say, 'C'mon Connie, give it a Rosemary Clooney sound. Give it that great Patti Page or Jo Stafford sound' — when she appeared on the CBS program Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. During rehearsals, the host had trouble pronouncing her name and suggested she go by Connie Francis. While getting stellar grades at Arts High School and Belleville High School, she appeared from 1953-55 on NBC's Startime Kids. George Scheck, a producer on that variety show, became her manager and shopped her around to record companies; after being turned down by Mitch Miller at Columbia Records and many others, she got a 20-side, two-year deal from Harry Meyerson at MGM Records. She sang for Tuesday Weld in Rock, Rock, Rock (1956) and for Freda Holloway in Jamboree (1957), but her singles were not doing well, with 'The Majesty of Love,' at No. 93, her only one to chart. With her MGM contract about to expire, she was going to accept a scholarship to study medicine at NYU when, hounded by her father, she reluctantly recorded 'Who's Sorry Now?' with 16 minutes left on her final studio session. She thought the song was 'square.' Championed by American Bandstand's Dick Clark — 'without Dick Clark, there would be no Connie Francis,' she said — 'Who's Sorry Now?' sold more than 1 million copies and spent 22 weeks on the Hot 100 in 1958. Suddenly, she was headlining the Copacabana in New York City and the Sahara in Las Vegas, starring on her own ABC special and getting 5,000 fan letters a week. Francis had further success in 1958 with the rock 'n' roll hit 'Stupid Cupid,' written by Neil Sedaka and Howie Greenfield. And when Pasternak advised her that he had commissioned the Oscar-winning songwriting team of Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen to pen 'Where the Boys Are,' she pushed for Sedaka and Greenfield to be considered, and it was their song that she performed. In 1960, Francis was named Miss Coca-Cola and made four appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. She would be showcased on the program more than two dozen times. Her 1963 song 'In the Summer of His Years,' written as a tribute to John F. Kennedy, was an early charity record, with proceeds going to dependents of the policemen injured during the assassination. In 1964, she was given a special Golden Globe for her 'international contribution to the recording world.' Later, she performed for the U.S. troops in Vietnam. For all her success, she said she passed on opportunities to record such songs as 'Strangers in the Night,' 'Somewhere My Love,' 'Danke Shoen,' 'Angel in the Morning' and tunes written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach. 'I think more songs I turned down than songs I recorded were hits,' she told Ira David Sternberg in a 2018 interview. Her father also rejected a lucrative offer from Frank Sinatra that would have had her record and make movies and TV specials for his Reprise Records. Her last song to chart came in 1969. After three years of inactivity that resulted in part from her miscarriage, Francis began a nationwide tour in November 1974 at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. On the fourth night of her engagement, she was raped in her room at a Howard Johnson Motel Lodge. She didn't appreciate that the news generated headlines around the world. 'I didn't want to be thought of as a 'professional victim,'' she said in 1984. Francis was depressed and couldn't get out of bed for months, and in July 1976, a jury awarded her $2.6 million, finding the Howard Johnson chain responsible for her unsafe room. Surgery to widen her nasal passages in 1977 left her unable to sing for four years, and it would take three subsequent operations to restore her singing ability. 'When I lost my voice, I lost myself. It's as simple as that,' she said on her website. 'My voice was the thing that had always defined me — it was who I was. Singing was the one and only thing I was born to do. I felt like a surgeon whose hands had been amputated.' In March 1981, her younger brother, Georgie, 40, who had pleaded guilty to bank fraud charges and had given law enforcement officials information concerning alleged organized-crime activities, was shot to death in front of his New Jersey home. Her eight-year run of stays in psychiatric hospitals ended in 1991 when she said she was properly diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. In 2018, the first of her planned three-part memoir, Among My Souvenirs (The Real Story), was published. After 'dating the swingers of the world but never doing the horizontal cha-cha-cha with any of them,' Francis married publicist Dick Kanellis in August 1964 but filed for divorce five months later, citing mental cruelty. She wed beauty salon owner Izzy Marion, owner of beauty salons in Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe, in January 1971; they divorced 10 months later. She also was married to restaurateur and travel agent Joseph Garzilli from 1973-77 and to TV producer Bob Parkinson in 1985. Both of those unions ended in divorce, too. (Her romance with Darin has been revisited on Broadway in the jukebox musical Just in Time, with Jonathan Groff and Gracie Lawrence portraying the singers.) On Thursday, Lawrence appeared with her Just in Time castmates in New York's Bryant Park and performed 'Who's Sorry Now.' 'I'm going to sing a Connie song now. I implore you to listen to the real thing after [this performance],' she said. 'You'll hear resilience, character, personality, humor, tenderness and strength. You can hear all of that in her voice … which she knew. I would also say that because we're not in a Broadway theater right now, we have the unique opportunity to all sing along, which I know also would've meant a lot to her because her relationship with her fans was everything to her. So, if you know this song, 'Who's Sorry Now,' please sing along. I believe it would mean a lot to her.' Survivors include her adopted son, Joey. 'There are a lot of people who have had my success in this business,' she told Gary James in an interview conducted in the late '90s. 'There were exhilarating highs and abysmal lows. But, it was fighting to get out of those lows that I feel most proud of. 'It was a struggle to reconcile all of the tragedies that had occurred in my life, and I'd like to be known for my music. I'm always honored and privileged when people remember, and it brings back happy memories for a lot of people, and that makes me happy.' Best of The Hollywood Reporter From 'Party in the U.S.A.' to 'Born in the U.S.A.': 20 of America's Most Patriotic (and Un-Patriotic) Musical Offerings Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025 Solve the daily Crossword
See - Sada Elbalad
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- See - Sada Elbalad
Connie Francis, "Pretty Little Baby" and "Who's Sorry Now" Singer, Dies at 87
Yara Sameh Connie Francis, the chart-topping pop singer of '50s and '60s classics like "Who's Sorry Now, 'Stupid Cupid,' 'Where the Boys Are' and the recently TikTok viral 'Pretty Little Baby,' has died. She was 87. Ron Roberts — Francis' longtime friend and president of her label, Concetta Records — first announced the news in a Facebook post on Thursday night, which Francis' official account reposted. 'It is with a heavy heart and extreme sadness that I inform you of the passing of my dear friend Connie Francis last night,' he wrote. 'I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news. More details will follow later.' The acclaimed singer had recently been hospitalized for 'extreme pain,' but had posted on Facebook July 4 that she was 'feeling much better after a good night.' Francis became one of the defining female singers of the '50s and '60s, topping the charts on multiple occasions and selling over 200 million records worldwide with hits like 'Stupid Cupid,' 'Who's Sorry Now' and 'Frankie.' In 1960, she became the first woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with 'Everybody's Somebody's Fool,' and later became the first woman to have three songs hit No. 1. She recently experienced a resurgence when B-side 'Pretty Little Baby' went viral on TikTok, resulting in over 30 million new streams of the song and its entry into Spotify's global and U.S. charts as well as reaching the top five of iTunes' U.S. pop songs chart. Francis then joined TikTok, where she thanked her newfound fans in a video, saying she was 'flabbergasted and excited' by the song's popularity over 60 years later. Born Connie Franconero in Newark, N.J. on December 12, 1937, Francis regularly performed at talent contests and pageants in the neighborhood and was eventually advised, before an appearance on the variety show 'Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts,' to change her last name to Francis for easier pronunciation. She had a rocky start in the music industry, with her first eight singles failing commercially after she signed to MGM Records in 1955. Though she had her first taste of success in 1957 with the Marvin Rainwater duet 'The Majesty of Love,' which broke into the Billboard Hot 100, her recording contract with MGM came to an end. Francis considered pursuing a career in medicine and was accepted into New York University, but at what was meant to be her final session, she recorded a cover of the 1923 song 'Who's Sorry Now.' Despite the song had a slow start, Dick Clark played it on his 'American Bandstand' in January 1958 and invited her to perform it on 'The Saturday Night Beechnut Show' (which would later become 'The Dick Clark Show'). The performance launched her career, and 'Who's Sorry Now' reached No. 1 on the U.K. Singles Chart and No. 4 in the U.S., resulting in MGM Records renewing her contract. After teaming up with the songwriting duo Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, Francis had a slew of charting hits comprising both original and cover songs like 'Stupid Cupid,' 'My Happiness,' 'Among My Souvenirs,' 'Lipstick on Your Collar' and 'Frankie.' She followed that with an album of Italian songs, 'Connie Francis Sings Italian Favorites,' which released in late 1959 and broadened her reach to a more adult audience. But her success with pop continued into the early 1960s, earning more hits that reached the top 10: 'Breakin' in a Brand New Heart,' 'When the Boy in Your Arms (Is the Boy in Your Heart),' 'Second Hand Love' and 'Where the Boys Are.' Francis became one of the first recording artists to regularly make albums sung entirely in other languages, including in Italian, Yiddish, German, Romanian, Spanish and Irish. Her 1960 German-language song 'Die Liebe ist ein seltsames Spiel' reached No. 1 in West Germany and led to her becoming a hugely popular artist in Europe, representing the epitome of a female American pop singer to the global masses. Even during the Cold War, her songs were played and well received in the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. In the mid-1960s, Francis' grip on the U.S. charts began to weaken as the Beatles and Rolling Stones took over. However, she remained a successful live performer and consistently sold out concerts in the U.S. and around the world. In 1969, her contract with MGM expired. The '70s brought a difficult period for Francis as she alleged she had been raped at a motel while appearing at the Westbury Music Fair in New York. Though the assailant was never found, she sued the motel chain for inadequate security and won a a $2.5 million settlement. However, the incident plummeted Francis into depression and she only recorded one album, 'Who's Happy Now?,' in 1978. She later underwent nasal surgery and lost her voice, rendering her unable to perform until 1981. That same year, her brother was killed by the mafia and Francis once again retreated from the spotlight. In 1984, she wrote about her struggles in the memoir 'Who's Sorry Now?,' which became a bestseller. During her later career, Francis continued to record music and perform live, headlining several shows in Las Vegas. She released another autobiography, 'Among My Souvenirs,' in 2017 and officially retired in 2018. Francis was married four times and was also in a relationship with singer Bobby Darin. During her third marriage to restaurateur Joseph Garzilli, she adopted a son named Joey. She was in a relationship with Tony Ferretti from 2003 until his death in 2022. She is survived by her son, Joey Garzilli. Connie Francis Connie Francis read more New Tourism Route To Launch in Old Cairo Ahmed El Sakka-Led Play 'Sayidati Al Jamila' to Be Staged in KSA on Dec. 6 Mandy Moore Joins Season 2 of "Dr. Death" Anthology Series Don't Miss These Movies at 44th Cairo Int'l Film Festival Today Amr Diab to Headline KSA's MDLBEAST Soundstorm 2022 Festival Arts & Culture Mai Omar Stuns in Latest Instagram Photos Arts & Culture "The Flash" to End with Season 9 Arts & Culture Ministry of Culture Organizes four day Children's Film Festival Arts & Culture Canadian PM wishes Muslims Eid-al-Adha News Israeli-Linked Hadassah Clinic in Moscow Treats Wounded Iranian IRGC Fighters News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Videos & Features Tragedy Overshadows MC Alger Championship Celebration: One Fan Dead, 11 Injured After Stadium Fall Lifestyle Get to Know 2025 Eid Al Adha Prayer Times in Egypt Arts & Culture South Korean Actress Kang Seo-ha Dies at 31 after Cancer Battle News "Tensions Escalate: Iran Probes Allegations of Indian Tech Collaboration with Israeli Intelligence" News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks Arts & Culture Hawass Foundation Launches 1st Course to Teach Ancient Egyptian Language Sports Get to Know 2025 WWE Evolution Results
Hype Malaysia
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hype Malaysia
'Pretty Little Baby' Singer Connie Francis Passes Away At 87
Many singers have left their mark on the music industry, and their legacies continue to live on. This artist, iconic in her own right, will not only be remembered by fans from her era but also by the new generation discovering her through social media. If you've spent any time on TikTok or Instagram for the past two months, you've most likely come across countless videos using the 1962 song 'Pretty Little Baby'. It was reported that Connie Francis, the singer behind the viral hit, has sadly passed away. She was 87 years old. Earlier this month, Connie Francis reassured fans that her health was improving after being hospitalised for severe pain she was experiencing. Sadly, yesterday (Thursday, 17th July), Ron Roberts, a longtime friend and president of Concetta Records, confirmed the news that the icon had passed away the night before. 'I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news,' he wrote in a statement that was also shared on the singer's official Facebook page. The cause of death has yet to be disclosed. Connie Francis is well known for many of her hits, including 'Stupid Cupid' — famously covered by Mandy Moore in 'The Princess Diaries' — 'Where the Boys Are', and the recently viral 'Pretty Little Baby'. The 1962 song has been featured in countless TikTok and Instagram videos, often used to celebrate newborns or express appreciation for a loved one. It has also become popular in more playful and comedic content. Regardless of the context, the world has fallen back in love with the track. After the song went viral, Connie admitted to PEOPLE that she wasn't sure what the sudden attention meant, revealing that she had even forgotten about the song's existence until she was reminded of it. Nevertheless, she expressed her gratitude to those who showed appreciation for her music. Just two months after 'Pretty Little Baby' went viral, fans are now mourning the death of the icon. We'd like to extend our deepest condolences to her singer's loved ones. May they have the strength to get through this difficult time. Let us all remember Connie by enjoying the viral song one more time. Sources: Facebook, PEOPLE, MalayMail
Irish Independent
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
‘Pretty Little Baby' singer Connie Francis dies aged 87
The news of her death was confirmed yesterday by her close friend Ron Roberts, who is also the president of her record label, Concetta Records. 'It is with a heavy heart and extreme sadness that I inform you of the passing of my dear friend Connie Francis last night,' Roberts wrote in a statement posted on Facebook. 'I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news. More details will follow later.' Francis had been forced to cancel a scheduled US Independence Day appearance with radio host Cousin Brucie earlier this month after being taken to hospital in severe discomfort. On July 2, she wrote in a social media update: 'Hello everyone – as many of you may now have learned through Cousin Brucie's Facebook page, I am back in hospital where I have been undergoing tests and checks to determine the cause(s) of the extreme pain I have been experiencing. '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 endeavour to keep you updated. Love, Connie.' Francis, who was born Concetta Franconero in Newark, New Jersey, in December 1937, rose to fame in the 1950s and 1960s, becoming one of the most successful female recording artists of her era. While many of her best-known songs were recorded decades ago, she recently experienced a surprising resurgence in popularity thanks to social media. Her track Pretty Little Baby, which originally was not released as a single, has become a viral favourite on TikTok and Instagram Reels in 2024, featured in videos by celebrities including Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian. According to Billboard, US weekly streams of the song jumped from 17,000 in April to 2.4 million by May. Speaking about the track's renewed popularity in May, Francis admitted she 'didn't even remember the song'. She told People: 'I had to listen to it to remember. To think that a song I recorded 63 years ago is touching the hearts of millions of people is truly awesome. It is an amazing feeling.'
