WIKIPEDIA
LaDonna Adrian Gaines aka Donna Summer was born on December 31, 1948 in Boston, Massachusetts. She was one of seven children raised in a devoutly Christian home and sang in church at an early age. In the 60's, she was influenced by Janis Joplin, dropped out of school and became the lead singer for a band named Crow. In 1968, she auditioned for a role in the Broadway production of 'Hair' but Melba Moore won over her. When the production moved overseas, Donna was offered the role and moved to Germany. While in Germany she learned to speak German fluently. She married an Austrian actor in 1973 and they had a daughter, Mimi. The marriage ended in divorce due to Donna's extramarital affair but she kept her married name of 'Sommer' and changed it to the more English version of 'Summer'. During the 70's, she was a background singer for Three Dog Night and in 1975 came up with the idea for her 'Love To Love You Baby' song. Her inspiration was singing the song as Marilyn Monroe would have. Later in the 70's, Donna became synonymous with the disco sound at the time. She continued to release albums throughout the 80's and 90's. Today, Donna Summer passed away after a battle with lung cancer that she believed was a result of breathing in debris after the 9/11 attacks. Find the connection!
