Marisol (actress)

Josefa Flores González (born 4 February 1948), known professionally as Marisol or Pepa Flores, is a retired Spanish singer and actress who was an evolving icon in Spain since her first appearance in 1960 as a child star until her retreat from the spotlight in 1985.

Early life
Marisol was born Josefa Flores González on 4 February 1948 in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain. From early childhood, she demonstrated a love of singing and flamenco dance. In 1959 she was discovered by film producer Manuel Goyanes, who saw her on television. Marisol became a sensation both in Spain and overseas.

A star is born
Her passion for dance and music was passed down to her by her grandmother Victoria. She entered a choir and dance group named Los joselitos del cante belonging to the Sección Femenina's national organization Coros y Danzas de España. One of her first televised performances was seen by Mari Carmen Goyanes, daughter of producer Manuel Goyanes, who convinced her father that the girl she had seen on television was the actress and singer they needed. The producer convinced Pepa Flores's parents, and she finally signed an exclusive contract with them that made her a millionaire.

The career of Marisol, her artistic name, had just begun. She was extremely popular in Spain and Latin America. She received dance, acting, and declamation classes taught by the best teachers, with the idea of making her the star of children's and youth cinema.

In her first film, A Ray of Light (Luis Lucia, 1960), a huge merchandising campaign was organized around the new star, with books, dolls, cards, and all kinds of objects with the image of the girl. Each film premiere included a tour of Spain and Hispanic countries to promote it, with all kinds of events creating tumults and crowds at the airports. Televisions, interviews, and hundreds of photo shoots, in addition to the film shootings, prevented her from having a childhood like that of any other girl. Columbia Pictures wanted to buy the rights to Manuel Goyanes to continue exploiting her artistic career, but the producer rejected it. Luis Lucia propelled her to national stardom in her two following films An Angel Has Arrived (1961) and Tómbola (1962).

As a singer
She also established herself as a singer thanks to the songs she performed in her films. Some of her best-known songs from her first three films were "Tómbola (song)", "Corre, corre caballito", "Bambina", "Ola, ola, ola", "Estando contigo", "Chiquitina", and "Nueva melodía".

In 1963 she starred in Marisol rumbo a Río, where she played twins (similar to Hayley Mills in The Parent Trap) and sang "Bossanova junto a ti", "Muchachita", "¡Oh, Tony!", and "Guajiras". Marisol co-starred with Robert Conrad the 1964 film La nueva Cenicienta, in which she sang "Me conformo". Mel Ferrer directed her in Cabriola in 1965, where she sang "Cabriola", "¡Ay, vagabundo!", "Ya no me importas nada", and "Sevillanas". She appeared in the 1964 film Búsqueme a esa chica with Dúo Dinámico. The film had biographical elements, featuring Marisol singing "Mi pequeña estrella", "Typical Spanish", and "Solo a ti". She appeared in the 1964 film La historia de Bienvenido, a story about a donkey.

As an actress
In 1967, Marisol starred in the comedy Las cuatro bodas de Marisol, as the daughter of actress Isabel Garcés, and sang "La Boda", "Johnny", "Belen, Belen" (featuring Peret), and "La Tarara" (inspired by a García Lorca poem). She appeared in Solos los dos (1968), where she sang "La nieve" (her most popular song in South America, composed by Juan Pardo and Rocío Dúrcal's husband, Júnior). In 1969, she appeared in the unsuccessful Carola de día, Carola de noche and in the musical comedy El taxi de los conflictos, where she sang "Corazón contento", a song composed by Palito Ortega.

Marisol received the Best Actress Award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for her role in Los días del pasado (1978). She also appeared in The Corruption of Chris Miller (1973), directed by Juan Antonio Bardem; The Girl from the Red Cabaret (1973) with Mel Ferrer, and El poder del deseo (1975) with Pilar Bardem.

As an adult, Marisol changed her stage name to her given name, Pepa Flores and appeared in Carlos Saura's Blood Wedding (based on García Lorca's play), and in Carmen (1983). She played the title role of Mariana Pineda in the Televisión Española (TVE) series Proceso a Mariana Pineda in 1984, and was applauded for her lead role in the 1985's Caso cerrado (1985 film) with Antonio Banderas.

Personal life and family
On 16 May 1969, Marisol married Carlos Goyanes Perojo, son of her producer. They separated in 1972.

In 1973, she started a relationship with dancer Antonio Gades, and she has three daughters with him. María Esteve, the eldest, is an actress, and Celia Flores (singer), the youngest, is a pop flamenco singer. After her divorce from Perojo, Flores and Gades married in 1982 in Cuba and their godparents were Fidel Castro and Alicia Alonso. They divorced on 1986, and Gades died in 2004. She was a sympathizer (but not a member) of the Spanish Communist Party, distancing herself from the party after her separation from Gades.

Pepa Flores is retired and lives with Massimo Stecchini, her partner since 1987, in Malaga, where she works for charitable causes.

In the wake of the Me Too movement, the claims Marisol made to Francisco Umbral and Interviú in the late 1970s about the sexual abuse she underwent as a child star resurfaced in Spanish Vanity Fair in 2018.


 * Victoria (Grandmother)
 * Maria Gonzalez (Mother) – Juan Flores
 * Josefa Flores González (Marisol) – Antonio Gades
 * Maria Esteve (Daughter)
 * Celia Flores (singer) (Daughter)
 * Tamara Gades (Daughter)

Awards

 * 1960 – Prize of the National Syndicate of Spectacle, Spain (Sindicato Nacional del Espectáculo): ″Special Mention″ for her performance in A Ray of Light.


 * 1972 – 3rd position OTI Festival prize for her song "Niña".
 * 1978 – Best Actress Award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival for the film Los días del pasado directed by Mario Camus.
 * 2020 – Honorary Goya Award