Died On This Date (March 29, 1985) Jeanine Deckers / The Singing Nun
themusicsover Jeanine Deckers (Born Jeanne-Paule Deckers)
October 17, 1933 – March 29, 1985
As a Belgian nun, Jeanine Deckers earned a place in pop culture due to her international hit single, “Dominique,” released in 1963. When John F. Kennedy was assassinated in November of that year, many US radio stations played the song in heavy rotation as part of their tributes to the late President. This lead to Deckers becoming a popular concert draw around the United States and beyond as well as an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in January of 1964. Hollywood took notice and cast Debbie Reynolds in a film entitled The Singing Nun which Deckers denounced as pure fiction. The following year, Sally Field was cast as the lead in a television comedy, The Flying Nun, a spoof of sorts on the film. By 1968, Deckers’ music career was over and she had left the convent to open a school for autistic children. The Belgian government came calling for their share of the profits from her first album (over $50,000), which she claimed went to the convent, making her exempt. She eventually lost the court case that ensued. Around this time she developed an addiction to drugs and alcohol and was suffering from depression and nervous breakdowns. Blaming financial problems in a note left behind, Deckers took her own life by an overdose of barbiturates and alcohol on March 29, 1985. Ironically and without her knowledge, Deckers was awarded $300,000 in back royalties that very day. The amount was significantly greater than the money she owed.