Connie Francis on her first television special, 1961. Photo: ABC Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Going into 1958, Connie Francis was close to giving it all away. Her singles on MGM weren’t charting, and she was seriously thinking about a career in medicine. Her father had other ideas.
He wanted her to record ‘Who’s sorry now?‘, a song Ted Snyder, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby had written back in 1923. According to her biography, his thinking was that the grown-ups already knew it and the teenagers would dance to it if it had a modern arrangement. He was right. It went out on Dick Clark’s American bandstand on 1 January 1958 and ended up at No. 4 in the US and No. 1 in the UK.
Connie Francis at a glance
- Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero on 12 December 1937, in Newark, New Jersey
- First woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, in 1960
- Toured Australia in 1961 with Bobby Vee
- Died 16 July 2025 in Pompano Beach, Florida, aged 87
Connie Francis’ net worth
Celebrity Net Worth estimated her net worth at around US$25 million when she died. Treat that with a grain of salt. As Parade noted, there isn’t much to back the figure up, and her estate’s value has never been officially confirmed.
What we do know is where the money came from. Dozens of hit records, several films and albums in a whole string of languages, over a career of more than 60 years.
The girl with the accordion
She’d been performing since she was a kid, lugging an accordion around. In December 1950, while rehearsing for Arthur Godfrey’s talent scouts, Godfrey told her to change her name to Connie Francis so people could pronounce it. He also told her to lose the accordion. She was happy to, because by then she hated the heavy thing.
After ‘Who’s sorry now?’ came ‘Stupid cupid’. A young Neil Sedaka played it for her, and she announced on the spot that he’d just played her next hit. It went to No. 14 in the US and topped the UK chart. In 1959 ‘Lipstick on your collar’ gave her a No. 5 in America.
Making chart history
In 1960 ‘Everybody’s somebody’s fool’ made Connie the first woman to top the Billboard Hot 100. She did it again that year with ‘My heart has a mind of its own’, and a third time in 1962 with ‘Don’t break the heart that loves you’, the first woman to get three. Celebrity Net Worth counts 35 US Top 40 hits between 1958 and 1964.
She also sang for the rest of the world in its own languages. Spanish, Italian, French, German, Greek, Yiddish, Japanese and more.
Her father kept steering. ‘Mama’, from the album Connie Francis sings Italian favorites, came out in November 1959, and the album got to No. 8 in the US and No. 2 in the UK. ‘Vacation’ in 1962, which she co-wrote, was her last top ten hit in America. Her Wikipedia biography credits her with more than 200 million records sold.
Hollywood came next. In the 1960 film Where the boys are she played Angie and sang the title song, written by Sedaka and Howard Greenfield. Greenfield apparently thought it was a stupid title at first. The song reached No. 4 in the US and No. 5 in Australia on the Kent Music Report, and it became her signature tune. MGM kept her busy with Follow the boys (1963), Looking for love (1964) and When the boys meet the girls (1965).
Connie Francis in Australia
Australian audiences saw her in person in 1961. Sydney promoter Lee Gordon, who brought hundreds of American acts out here between 1956 and 1962, put her on a bill with Bobby Vee. The Live Performance Australia Hall of Fame notes she was Gordon’s first young female headliner.
We haven’t been able to confirm whether she turned up on Brian Henderson’s Bandstand during that visit. If you were in the audience in 1961, or you remember seeing her on the telly, tell us in the comments.
‘Pretty little baby’ and the last chapter
Sixty-odd years after she recorded it, her 1962 song ‘Pretty little baby’ took off on TikTok in May 2025. As NBC News reported, when someone told Connie she had a viral hit, she asked what that was.
She died on 16 July 2025 in Pompano Beach, Florida, aged 87, as Variety reported. Her publicist said she’d been diagnosed with pneumonia the day before. In 2009 she was inducted into the Italian Walk of Fame. She’d written two memoirs, Who’s sorry now? (1984) and Among my souvenirs (2017). She’s now in our Rock n Roll Heaven, and if the big voices of that era are your thing, read our tribute to Roy Orbison too.
Did ‘Where the boys are’ take you back to the drive-in? Share your memories in the comments.
Frequently asked questions
What was Connie Francis’ net worth?
Celebrity Net Worth put it at around US$25 million when she died in July 2025. That’s an estimate only. Parade pointed out there isn’t much to back the figure up, and the value of her estate has never been publicly confirmed.
When did Connie Francis die?
On 16 July 2025, in hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida, aged 87. Her publicist said she’d been diagnosed with pneumonia the day before. It was only a couple of months after her 1962 song ‘Pretty little baby’ took off online.
Did Connie Francis ever tour Australia?
Yes. Sydney promoter Lee Gordon brought her out in 1961 on a bill with Bobby Vee. According to the Live Performance Australia Hall of Fame, she was Gordon’s first young female headliner.
Who wrote ‘Who’s sorry now?’
Ted Snyder, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, back in 1923. Connie recorded it at her father’s urging, and after it was played on American bandstand on 1 January 1958 it went to No. 4 in the US and No. 1 in the UK.
What was Connie Francis’ biggest hit?
In America her three No. 1s were ‘Everybody’s somebody’s fool’ (1960), ‘My heart has a mind of its own’ (1960) and ‘Don’t break the heart that loves you’ (1962). ‘Who’s sorry now?’ is the song most people link her to, and it topped the UK chart in 1958.
Was Connie Francis the first woman to top the Billboard Hot 100?
Yes. ‘Everybody’s somebody’s fool’ got her there in 1960, less than two years after the Hot 100 began in August 1958. With ‘Don’t break the heart that loves you’ in 1962 she became the first woman with three Hot 100 No. 1s.
What was Connie Francis’ real name?
Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero. She was born in Newark, New Jersey, on 12 December 1937. Arthur Godfrey suggested the name Connie Francis when she appeared on his talent show in 1950 because it was easier to say.
What languages did Connie Francis sing in?
Plenty. As well as English she recorded in Spanish, Italian, French, German, Greek, Yiddish and Japanese, among others. Albums like Connie Francis sings Italian favorites were big sellers in their own right.
Why did ‘Pretty little baby’ go viral?
In May 2025 her 1962 recording caught on with TikTok users and became a sleeper hit. When Connie was told she had a viral hit, she said her first question was what that actually meant.
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Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational and entertainment purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, music history is often based on available documentation and interpretation.
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