Lesley Gore

Lesley Gore
Gore as a Batman guest star, 1967
Born	Lesley Sue Goldstein (1946-05-02)May 2, 1946 Brooklyn, New York City, New York, US
Died	February 16, 2015(2015-02-16) (aged 68) Manhattan, New York City, US
Cause of death	Lung cancer
Education	Sarah Lawrence College
Occupation	Singer songwriter actress activist
Years active	1963–2014
Notable work	"It's My Party" "Judy's Turn to Cry" "You Don't Own Me"
Partner(s)	Lois Sasson (1982–2015; Gore's death)
Parent(s)	Leo Goldstein Ronny Gore
Relatives	Michael Gore (brother) Alan Dean Foster (cousin)
Website	lesleygore.com
Musical career
Genres	Pop rock
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Mercury Mowest A&M

Lesley Sue Goldstein (May 2, 1946 – February 16, 2015), known professionally as Lesley Gore, was an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. At the age of 16 (in 1963) she recorded the pop hit "It's My Party", and followed it up with other hits including "Judy's Turn to Cry", "She's a Fool", "You Don't Own Me", "Maybe I Know" and "California Nights".

Gore also worked as an actress and composed songs with her brother, Michael Gore, for the 1980 film Fame, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. She hosted an LGBT-oriented public television show, In the Life, on American TV in the 2000s, and was active until 2014.

She was born Lesley Sue Goldstein in Brooklyn, New York City, into a Jewish family, the daughter of Leo and Ronny Gore. Her father was the owner of Peter Pan, a children's swimwear and underwear manufacturer, and later became a leading brand licensing agent in the apparel industry. She was raised in Tenafly, New Jersey, and was a junior at the Dwight School for Girls in nearby Englewood when she recorded her 1963 cover of "It's My Party" with Quincy Jones and it became a number-one, nationwide hit. Gore's version sold over one million copies and was certified as a gold record. It also marked the beginning of a time when fans would show up on her front lawn.