SINGER

Florence Foster Jenkins

1868 - 1944

Photo of Florence Foster Jenkins

Icon of person Florence Foster Jenkins

Florence Foster Jenkins (born Narcissa Florence Foster; July 19, 1868 – November 26, 1944) was an American socialite and amateur coloratura soprano who became known, and mocked, for her flamboyant performance costumes and notably poor singing ability. Stephen Pile ranked her "the world's worst opera singer ... No one, before or since, has succeeded in liberating themselves quite so completely from the shackles of musical notation." Despite – or perhaps because of – her technical incompetence, she became a prominent musical camp cult-figure in New York City during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Cole Porter, Gian Carlo Menotti, Lily Pons, Sir Thomas Beecham, and other celebrities were counted among her fans. Read more on Wikipedia

Her biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Florence Foster Jenkins is the 168th most popular singer (down from 67th in 2019), the 1,180th most popular biography from United States (down from 404th in 2019) and the 67th most popular American Singer.

Florence Foster Jenkins was a New York heiress who became famous for her lack of musical talent. She was known for singing songs with a terrible voice to audiences who were too polite to tell her she was terrible.

Memorability Metrics

Loading...

Page views of Florence Foster Jenkins by language

Loading...

Among SINGERS

Among singers, Florence Foster Jenkins ranks 168 out of 4,381Before her are Kenny Rogers, Falco, Halla Margrét Árnadóttir, Toni Braxton, Sylvie Vartan, and Manu Chao. After her are Tony Bennett, Barbara Strozzi, Lisa Marie Presley, Ofra Haza, Sofia Rotaru, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.

Most Popular Singers in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1868, Florence Foster Jenkins ranks 37Before her are Edmond Rostand, Charles Maurras, Henrietta Swan Leavitt, Annie S. D. Maunder, Louis Couturat, and Vittorio Monti. After her are Huo Yuanjia, Scott Joplin, Josephine Bakhita, Stefan George, Pompeu Fabra, and Felix Hausdorff. Among people deceased in 1944, Florence Foster Jenkins ranks 56Before her are Giovanni Gentile, Max Jacob, Eduard Dietl, Nikolai Vatutin, Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim, and Princess Mafalda of Savoy. After her are Leo Baekeland, Ida Tarbell, Cécile Chaminade, Jakob von Uexküll, Jean Giraudoux, and Mildred Harris.

Others Born in 1868

Go to all Rankings

Others Deceased in 1944

Go to all Rankings

In United States

Among people born in United States, Florence Foster Jenkins ranks 1,180 out of 20,380Before her are Bill Evans (1929), L. Ron Hubbard (1911), Robert Wagner (1930), James Cromwell (1940), Sting (1959), and John J. Pershing (1860). After her are Ray Manzarek (1939), Ginger Rogers (1911), John Brown (1800), Tony Bennett (1926), Paul Allen (1953), and Tina Fey (1970).

Among SINGERS In United States

Among singers born in United States, Florence Foster Jenkins ranks 67Before her are Chester Bennington (1976), Suzi Quatro (1950), Kris Kristofferson (1936), Tori Amos (1963), Kenny Rogers (1938), and Toni Braxton (1967). After her are Tony Bennett (1926), Lisa Marie Presley (1968), Roberta Flack (1937), Billy Joel (1949), Jon Bon Jovi (1962), and Usher (1978).