addressed teen angst and dawning feminism well before Helen Reddy first roared, before Lily Tomlin found signs of intelligent life. Her rally cry for women, “You Don’t Own Me,” became a personal declaration for the out and proud artist.
Born Lesley Goldstein, she burst on the scene at 16 with her hit “It’s My Party,” and its sequel “Judy’s Turn to Cry,” a unique pop musical storytelling arc. Gore then rejected record company advice and attended Sarah Lawrence rather than tour. She was ahead of her time, evolving from adolescent hits to emerge as a lesbian activist, later hosting episodes of the PBS series “In the Life.”
In an interview , she talked about how different the times were when she first sang, “don’t tell me what to do…”
“I just kind of lived my life naturally and did what I wanted to do…Times were very different then, so, you know, I just tried to live as normally as humanly possible. But as truthfully as possible.”
She at age 68. She leaves behind her partner of 33 years, Lois Sasson, who she talked about on the TV series. That, ultimately, was also statement of “You Don’t Own Me” to the world of the 1950s from which she began.
Follow our news and updates on , our relationship status on and our search history on . Or send us a telegram.
Joanne Ostrow is the Denver Post Television Critic. For more
