Lola Flores

Lola Flores
Birth name	María de los Dolores Flores Ruiz
Also known as	La Faraona
Born	21 January 1923 Jerez de la Frontera, Spain
Died	16 May 1995(1995-05-16) (aged 72) Madrid, Spain
Genres	Andalusian folklore
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	Voice, castanets
Years active	1939–1994

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Flores and the second or maternal family name is Ruiz.

María Dolores "Lola" Flores Ruiz (21 January 1923 – 16 May 1995) was a Spanish singer, dancer and actress.

Professional career

Flores was born in Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz (Andalusia, Spain). A gypsy herself, she is strongly identified with the Spanish gypsy culture. She became a famous dancer and singer of Andalusian folklore at a very young age, performing flamenco, copla or chotis and featuring in films from 1939 to 1987. Her greatest success was in folklore shows with Manolo Caracol, who was her artistic partner until 1951.

Personal life

In 1958 she married Antonio González el Pescaílla, a guitarist from Cataluña Spain who was gypsy. She had three children: Dolores (singer and actress Lolita Flores); rock musician, singer and actor Antonio Flores; and singer and actress Rosario Flores.

Lola Flores died of breast cancer in 1995, aged 72, and was buried in the Cementerio de la Almudena in Madrid. Shortly after her death, her distraught 33-year-old son, Antonio Flores, committed suicide by overdosing with barbiturate and was buried near her.

In 2007, the biography Lola, la película was made. The movie describes her early life, starting in 1931 until 1958.

Monument in her mothertown, Jerez de la Frontera