French singer and actress Edith Piaf was born Edith Giovanna Gassion in an impoverished section of Paris in 1915. Abandoned at birth by her café-singer mother, she was taken in by her grandmother and reared in a brothel. As a child, she was blinded by complications of meningitis but recovered her sight four years later. Accompanying her father while he performed as a circus acrobat, she sang in the streets of Paris for money until she was discovered by cabaret owner Louis Leplée in 1935.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style