Donna Summer

Born: 1948-12-31

Donna Summer (born LaDonna Adrian Gaines; December 31, 1948 – May 17, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the "Queen of Disco", while her music gained a global following. Influenced by the counterculture of the 1960s, Summer became the lead singer of a psychedelic rock band named Crow and moved to New York City. In 1968 she joined a German adaptation of the musical Hair in Munich, where she spent several years living, acting, and singing. There, she met music producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, and they went on to record influential disco hits together such as "Love to Love You Baby" and "I Feel Love", marking Summer's breakthrough into international music markets. Summer returned to the United States in 1976, and more hits such as "Last Dance", her version of "MacArthur Park", "Heaven Knows", "Hot Stuff", "Bad Girls", "Dim All the Lights", "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)" with Barbra Streisand, and "On the Radio" followed. Summer amassed a total of 42 hit singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 in her lifetime, with 14 of those reaching the Top 10. She claimed a top-40 hit every year between 1975 and 1984, and from her first top-ten hit in 1976, to the end of 1982, she had 12 top-ten hits (10 were top-five hits), more than any other act during that time period. She returned to the Hot 100's top five in 1983, and claimed her final top-ten hit in 1989 with "This Time I Know It's for Real". She was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach the top of the US Billboard 200 chart and charted four number-one singles in the US within a 12-month period. She also charted two number-one singles on the R&B Singles chart in the US and a number-one single in the United Kingdom. Her most recent Hot 100 hit came in 1999 with "I Will Go with You (Con te partirò)". While her fortunes on the Hot 100 waned in subsequent decades, Summer remained a force on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart throughout her entire career. Summer died on May 17, 2012, from lung cancer, at her home in Naples, Florida. She sold over 100 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. She won five Grammy Awards. In her obituary in The Times, she was described as the "undisputed queen of the Seventies disco boom" who reached the status of "one of the world's leading female singers." Moroder described Summer's work on the song "I Feel Love" as "really the start of electronic dance" music. In 2013, Summer was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In December 2016, Billboard ranked her sixth on its list of the "Greatest of All Time Top Dance Club Artists". Description above from the Wikipedia article Donna Summer, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.


Placeholder

Thank God It's Friday

as Nicole Sims
Released: 1978-05-19

It's Friday and everyone is going to the hot new disco. The Commodores are scheduled to play if...

Movie page

The Sparks Brothers

as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Released: 2021-06-18

Take a musical odyssey through five weird and wonderful decades with brothers Ron & Russell...

Movie page

Love to Love You, Donna Summer

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2023-02-21

The extraordinary story of disco queen Donna Summer through a rich archive of unpublished film...

Movie page

Hit Man Returns - David Foster & Friends

as Self
Released: 2011-03-11

Hitman Returns was filmed before a sold out crowd last year at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas....

Movie page

The Sensational Shocking Wonderful Wacky 70's

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1980-01-04

A look back at the people, events, music, and trends of the 1970s.

Movie page

La TV des 70's : Quand Giscard était président

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2022-01-07

In May 1974, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing became President of the Republic and wanted to bring about...

Movie page

Rhythm Divine - History of Disco Music

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1992-09-20

The evolution of disco music through interviews and clips - Acid House, House, Disco, Funk,...

Movie page

Rona Barrett Looks at 1978

as uncredited
Released: 1979-01-01

Rona Barrett looks back at 1978 and reflects on the news and entertainment highlights of the...

Movie page

Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's

as Self
Released: 1998-06-19

In 1995, Chasen's closed its doors after 60 years of serving chili to movie stars and visiting...

Movie page

Donna Summer - Live and More Encore!

as Self
Released: 1999-12-21

Since her '70s heyday as disco's reigning diva (and one of its most adventurous artists), Donna...

Movie page

Burt Sugarman's The Midnight Special: 1976

as Self
Released: 2006-06-01

Live performances from a television music show that aired late night on the NBC-TV network the U.S.

Movie page

Soul Divas

as Self
Released: 2007-12-15

Three generations of powerful soul divas come together in this glittering collection of...

Movie page

Women in Rock

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 1986-01-01

All the legendary women of rock 'n' roll are brought together in this stunning collage of...

Movie page

Disneyland's 30th Anniversary Celebration

as Self
Released: 1985-02-18

Broadcast on NBC February 18, 1985, the Disneyland 30th Anniversary Celebration was hosted by...

Movie page

Donald Duck's 50th Birthday

as Self
Released: 1984-11-13

Donald is shown in both animated and costumed form, interacting with emcee Dick Van Dyke and...

Movie page

Walt Disney World's 25th Anniversary Party

as Self
Released: 1997-02-28

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the most magical place on earth!

Movie page

Songs From the Neighborhood: The Music of Mister Rogers

as Self
Released: 2005-01-01

Included with the CD is a bonus DVD featuring a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the...

Movie page

Do I Look Like a Lady? (Comedians and Singers)

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2016-10-16

Do I Look Like a Lady? (Comedians and Singers) presents a dynamic checkerboard of moving image...

Movie page

Best of Night of the Proms Vol. 2

as Self
Released: 2007-01-01

Movie page

High Energy: Disco on Amphetamines

as Self - Singer (archive footage)
Released: 2019-02-19

By the end of the seventies, disco music, considered too mainstream, was dead. But DJs and dance...

Movie page

VH1 Divas 2000: A Tribute to Diana Ross

as Self
Released: 2000-04-11

Diana Ross, Faith Hill, Mariah Carey and Donna Summer headline VH1 Divas 2000: Tribute to Diana...

Movie page

The Donna Summer Special

as Self
Released: 1980-01-27

A variety special that showcased the musical talents of singer and actress Donna Summer.

Movie page

Les Enfants de la Pop 80's

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2012-10-22

Movie page

Stock Aitken Waterman: Legends of Pop

as Self
Released: 2023-01-21

Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman were the producers who came, SAW and conquered the UK...

Movie page

Donna Summer - Live & More Collection

as uncredited
Released: 1999-01-01

About the film: It's hard to write something about SUCH artists, it seems that all the words...

Movie page

A Hot Summer Night with Donna

as Self
Released: 1983-10-23

This 90 minute show captured Donna Summer's 1983 "Hard For The Money" Tour, and was recorded at...

Movie page

Donna Summer - Live from New York

as uncredited
Released: 2008-01-01

The DVD is a re-release of the concert from 02/28/1999. The peculiarity of this edition is the...

Movie page

Disco Europe Express

as Self - Singer (archive footage)
Released: 2019-09-15

Despite its Afro-American origins, the history of disco music, the soundtrack of the seventies,...

Movie page

Donna Summer: Live

as Self
Released: 2005-01-01

Movie page

Family Matters

as Aunt Oona
First aired: 1989-09-22

A long-running dramedy centering on the Winslow family, a middle-class African American family...

TV Show page

The Mike Douglas Show

as Self
First aired: 1961-12-11

The Mike Douglas Show is an American daytime television talk show hosted by Mike Douglas that...

TV Show page

Viña del Mar International Song Festival

as Self - Musical Guest
First aired: 1963-02-14

A yearly musical contest organized by the municipality of Viña del Mar, Chile which takes place...

TV Show page

Champs-Elysées

as Self
First aired: 1982-01-16

TV Show page

Intimate Portrait

as Self
First aired: 1993-11-14

Intimate Portrait is a biographical television series on the Lifetime Television cable network...

TV Show page

Les Rendez-vous du dimanche

as Self
First aired: 1975-01-12

A talk show presented by Michel Drucker

TV Show page

Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest

as Self
First aired: 1972-12-31

A much cherished annual tradition since 1972, the show includes special musical performances,...

TV Show page

Disco

as Self
First aired: 1971-02-13

Disco was a pop music program that aired in Germany on the ZDF network from 1971 to 1982. It...

TV Show page

Il était une fois Champs-Élysées

as Self (archive footage)
First aired: 2022-12-21

TV Show page

The Early Show

as Self
First aired: 1999-11-01

The Early Show is an American morning television show which was broadcast by CBS from New York...

TV Show page

TV Story Superstar

as Self (archive footage)
First aired: 2020-01-23

TV Show page

70 Years of Youth Revolt

as Self (archive footage)
First aired: 2020-11-21

A look back at the social movements, revolts and youth subcultures from the post-war period to...

TV Show page

Van Oekel's Discohoek

as Self
First aired: 1974-05-30

Van Oekel's Discohoek was a Dutch television show, aired on VPRO in 1974-1975. The show, written...

TV Show page

The Grammy Awards

as Self
First aired: 1959-11-29

An awards show honoring the achievements of the members of the professional music recording...

TV Show page