Josefa Flores González (born 4 February 1948), known professionally as Marisol or Pepa Flores, is a retired Spanish singer and actress who was an evolving icon in Spain since her first appearance in 1960 as a child star until her retreat from the spotlight in 1985.[1]

Marisol
Marisol in 1962
Born
Josefa Flores González

(1948-02-04) 4 February 1948 (age 76)
Málaga, Spain
Other namesPepa Flores
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
Spouses
Carlos Goyanes
(m. 1969; div. 1975)
(m. 1982; div. 1986)
Children3, including María and Celia [es]
Parents
  • Juan Flores (father)
  • María González (mother)

Early life

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Marisol was born Josefa Flores González on 4 February 1948 in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain. From early childhood, she demonstrated a love of singing and flamenco dance. In 1959 she was discovered by film producer Manuel Goyanes, who saw her on television. Marisol became a sensation both in Spain and overseas.

Professional life

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A star is born

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Her passion for dance and music was passed down to her by her grandmother Victoria. She entered a choir and dance group named Los joselitos del cante belonging to the Sección Femenina's national organization Coros y Danzas [es].[2] One of her first televised performances was seen by Mari Carmen Goyanes, daughter of producer Manuel Goyanes, who convinced her father that the girl she had seen on television was the actress and singer they needed. The producer convinced Pepa Flores's parents, and she finally signed an exclusive contract with them that made her a millionaire.

The career of Marisol, her artistic name, had just begun. She was extremely popular in Spain and Latin America. She received dance, acting, and declamation classes taught by the best teachers, with the idea of making her the star of children's and youth cinema.

In her first film, A Ray of Light (Luis Lucia, 1960), a huge merchandising campaign was organized around the new star, with books, dolls, cards, and all kinds of objects with the image of the girl. Each film premiere included a tour of Spain and Hispanic countries to promote it, with all kinds of events creating tumults and crowds at the airports. Televisions, interviews, and hundreds of photo shoots, in addition to the film shootings, prevented her from having a childhood like that of any other girl. Columbia Pictures wanted to buy the rights to Manuel Goyanes to continue exploiting her artistic career, but the producer rejected it.[3] Luis Lucia propelled her to national stardom in her two following films An Angel Has Arrived (1961) and Tómbola (1962).

As a singer

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She also established herself as a singer thanks to the songs she performed in her films. Some of her best-known songs from her first three films were "Tómbola [es]", "Corre, corre caballito [es]", "Bambina", "Ola, ola, ola [es]", "Estando contigo", "Chiquitina", and "Nueva melodía".

In 1963 she starred in Marisol rumbo a Río, where she played twins (similar to Hayley Mills in The Parent Trap) and sang "Bossanova junto a ti", "Muchachita", "¡Oh, Tony!", and "Guajiras". Marisol co-starred with Robert Conrad the 1964 film La nueva Cenicienta [es], in which she sang "Me conformo". Mel Ferrer directed her in Cabriola in 1965, where she sang "Cabriola", "¡Ay, vagabundo!", "Ya no me importas nada", and "Sevillanas". She appeared in the 1964 film Búsqueme a esa chica [es] with Dúo Dinámico. The film had biographical elements, featuring Marisol singing "Mi pequeña estrella", "Typical Spanish", and "Solo a ti". She appeared in the 1964 film La historia de Bienvenido, a story about a donkey.

As an actress

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In 1967, Marisol starred in the comedy Las cuatro bodas de Marisol [es], as the daughter of actress Isabel Garcés, and sang "La Boda", "Johnny", "Belen, Belen" (featuring Peret), and "La Tarara" (inspired by a García Lorca poem). She appeared in Solos los dos [es] (1968), where she sang "La nieve" (her most popular song in South America, composed by Juan Pardo and Rocío Dúrcal's husband, Júnior). In 1969, she appeared in the unsuccessful Carola de día, Carola de noche [es] and in the musical comedy El taxi de los conflictos [es], where she sang "Corazón contento [es]", a song composed by Palito Ortega.

Marisol received the Best Actress Award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for her role in Los días del pasado (1978). She also appeared in The Corruption of Chris Miller (1973), directed by Juan Antonio Bardem; The Girl from the Red Cabaret (1973) with Mel Ferrer, and El poder del deseo [es] (1975) with Pilar Bardem.

As an adult, Marisol changed her stage name to her given name, Pepa Flores and appeared in Carlos Saura's Blood Wedding (based on García Lorca's play), and in Carmen (1983). She played the title role of Mariana Pineda in the Televisión Española (TVE) series Proceso a Mariana Pineda in 1984, and was applauded for her lead role in the 1985's Caso cerrado [es] with Antonio Banderas.

Personal life and family

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On 16 May 1969, Marisol married Carlos Goyanes Perojo, son of her producer. They separated in 1972.[4][5]

In 1973, she started a relationship with dancer Antonio Gades, and she has three daughters with him. María Esteve, the eldest, is an actress, and Celia Flores [es], the youngest, is a pop flamenco singer. After her divorce from Perojo, Flores and Gades married in 1982 in Cuba and their godparents were Fidel Castro and Alicia Alonso. They divorced on 1986,[6] and Gades died in 2004. She was a sympathizer (but not a member) of the Spanish Communist Party, distancing herself from the party after her separation from Gades.

Pepa Flores is retired and lives with Massimo Stecchini, her partner since 1987, in Malaga, where she works for charitable causes.

In the wake of the Me Too movement, the claims Marisol made to Francisco Umbral and Interviú in the late 1970s about the sexual abuse she underwent as a child star resurfaced in Spanish Vanity Fair in 2018.[7]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role
1960 A Ray of Light Marisol
1961 An Angel Has Arrived Marisol
1962 Tómbola Marisol
1963 Marisol Rumbo a Río Marisol / Mariluz
1964 La nueva Cenicienta [es] Marisol
1964 La Historia de Bienvenido Marisol
1964 Búsqueme a esa chica [es] Marisol
1965 Cabriola Chica
1967 Las cuatro bodas de Marisol [es] Marisol
1968 Solos los dos [es] Marisol Collado
1969 Carola de día, Carola de noche [es] Carola Jungbunzlav
1969 El taxi de los conflictos [es] Patricia
1969 Urtain, el rey de la selva... o así [es]
1973 The Corruption of Chris Miller Chris Miller
1973 The Girl from the Red Cabaret María Marcos
1975 El poder del deseo [es] Juna
1978 Los días del pasado Juana
1981 Blood Wedding
1983 Carmen
1985 Caso cerrado [es] Isabel

Television

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Date Title Role Network Notes
23 April 1961 The Ed Sullivan Show Herself CBS, United States
24 June 1962 The Ed Sullivan Show Herself CBS, United States
19 October 1962 De Rudi Carrell Show Herself VARA, Netherlands
31 July 1965 Sábado 64 Herself
2 October 1965 Noche del sábado Herself
9 October 1966 Gran Premio Herself
October 1968 Galas del sábado [es] Herself Televisión Española, Spain
17 May 1969 Galas del sábado Herself Televisión Española, Spain
December 1969 Galas del sábado Herself Televisión Española, Spain
1969 El Irreal Madrid [es] Televisión Española, Spain
7 June 1970 Galas del sábado Herself Televisión Española, Spain
1972 360 grados en torno a... [es] Herself Televisión Española, Spain
25 November 1972 1st OTI Song Contest Herself OTI Representing Televisión Española and placing 3rd with the song Niña
Nov/Dec 1984 Proceso a Mariana Pineda Mariana Pineda Televisión Española, Spain 5 episodes, credited as Pepa Flores

Awards

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References

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Citations
  1. ^ Rincón 2019, pp. 351–352.
  2. ^ Alonso, Begoña (4 February 2021). "Marisol: dolor y gloria de Pepa Flores, la actriz más legendaria del cine español". Elle.
  3. ^ "Marisol: Cincuenta años de la creación del mito". ABC (in Spanish). 16 August 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  4. ^ "Marisol-Pepa Flores". marisol-pepaflores.com.ar (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 17 January 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  5. ^ "Los eslabones de la gran redada". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 23 June 1990. p. 3. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  6. ^ "Antonio Gades: Aprendí que "primero está lo ético y después lo estético"". La Onda Digital (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 21 June 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  7. ^ Lamarca, Eva (9 December 2018). "Marisol, un silencio a gritos". Vanity Fair (in Spanish). Condé Nast. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  8. ^ "National Syndicate of Spectacle, Spain. 1960 Awards: Special Mention". IMDb. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Pepa Flores, 'Marisol', Goya de Honor 2020". El País (in Spanish). 17 January 2020. ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
Bibliography
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Preceded by
none
Spain in the OTI Festival
1972
Succeeded by