Connie Francis, ‘Pretty Little Baby’ singer and actress, dead at 87

Connie Francis, a pop singer and actress whose hits such as “Who’s Sorry Now?” became a soundtrack for a generation of teens in the 1960s, has died. Archive Photos/Getty Images via CNN Newsource

Connie Francis, a pop singer and actress whose hits such as “Lipstick on Your Collar” and “Who’s Sorry Now?” became a soundtrack for a generation of teens in the 1960s, has died, according to a post from her publicist and friend, Ron Roberts.

She was 87.

“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 post on a verified Facebook page for Francis. “I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news.”

Francis was recently hospitalized for pain issues and had to cancel some appearances earlier this month, according to posts she shared on social media.

The singer’s hit “Pretty Little Baby” had recently gotten attention from a much younger generation, thanks to a TikTok trend.

Francis participated with a post of her on with the song on the platform.

“First time I’ve lip-synched to this 63-year-old recording of mine!” the caption read.

Francis also shared a video to thank other artists, including Timothée Chalamet, Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift, for “paying tribute” to her and her song.

Born Concetta Franconero in Newark, New Jersey, a young Francis won first prize on Arthur Godfrey’s popular television series “Startime Talent Scouts,” which led to her singing on his show for several years as a teen.

Godfrey convinced her to adopt the stage name “Connie Francis” as he told her it was easier to pronounce than her birth name.

Success didn’t come easy at first for the singer, who was rejected by multiple labels before signing with MGM in 1955. That company released her first single, “Freddy.”

Disappointed in her career, Francis almost quit to go to college before her father convinced her to record a song that had been around before, “Who’s Sorry Now?”

Other popular tunes followed, including “Lipstick on Your Collar,” “My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own” and “Don’t Break the Heart That Loves You.”

Francis also found success on screen, starring in the films “Where the Boys Are” “Follow The Boys” in 1963, “Looking For Love” in 1964 and “When The Boys Meet The Girls” 1965.

It was not something she herself was a fan of, Francis revealed during a 2017 interview.

“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.”

Francis faced challenge, including what came to be known as her “decade of tragedy.”

In 1974, Francis survived a rape and robbery in her hotel room following a performance at the Westbury Music Fair in Westbury, New York. She subsequently sued the hotel and won, but the attack led the singer into a deep depression.

Three years later, nasal surgery caused Francis to lose her singing voice, which took her subsequent surgeries and lengthy time to recover.

Her beloved brother, George A. Franconero, was murdered in 1981 at the age of 40. According to an article from The New York Times dated March 7, 1981, he was an attorney who “had twice given law enforcement officials information concerning alleged organized-crime activities” and was “shot several times in the side of the head by two men” who “were said to have approached him as he scraped ice from the windshield of his car in his driveway.”

She also was treated for bipolar disorder.

Francis wrote about her hard times in her 1984 autobiography, “Who’s Sorry Now.”

In a conversation about her book with Oprah Winfrey around its release, Francis also reflected on the joy she experienced through her career.

“One of the things I wanted the book to show was that every time there’s a story about me, it reads like a Greek tragedy, and I don’t want people to feel like I’m capitalizing on so many tragedies that did occur in my life,” she said. “My life has really been a Cinderella life with the exception of the last 10 years.”