“Pretty Little Baby” Singer Connie Francis Passes Away at 87.

Pop singer Connie Francis has died at 87. The first female singer to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100, she was known for her hit single “Who’s Sorry Now?” and for singing the theme song and appearing in the 1961 film, Where the Boys Are.

Connie Francis sold over 40 million records before she was 25. Sixteen of them went gold. Her number one hit, “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool,” came out in 1960. Her acting career was brief; She appeared in a short string of undistinguished romantic comedies, and within a few years, her life became touched more by tragedy than success.

In 1967, one of her closest friends was strangled to death in her home. That same year, Francis underwent a cosmetic procedure meant to narrow her nose. But it damaged her ability to sing.

In 1974, Francis was raped at knifepoint and beaten at a Howard Johnson motel after singing at a music festival in Westbury, New York. She successfully sued the company for failing to provide adequate security. At $2.5 million, it was then one of the largest awards ever in a rape case.

Francis went back to performing. She formed her own record company and worked for years. Even after retiring to Boca Raton, she still made occasional appearances into her 80s. Recently, Francis gained social media fame earlier this year because of the resurgence of her song “Pretty Little Baby,” which went viral on TikTok.