With the 11th anniversary of Laura Branigan’s death on Wednesday, fans of the “Gloria” singer want to set the record straight. She wasn’t 47 when she died of a brain aneurysm, she was 52.
One superfan in Sweden, Stig Persson, told me he spent a year researching her childhood in Armonk during the ’50s: her years at Byram Hills High School, where she graduated in 1970, and her time at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, which she graduated from in 1972.
“Laura’s biography was a mess. Much was written to suit a history that Laura was born in 1957,” Persson said.
“Please let fans, readers and the rest of the world know that Laura Ann Branigan was born July 3, 1952.”
The 11th annual “Spirit of Love” celebration honoring Branigan is Saturday at the Hilton Garden Inn in Ronkonkoma, LI.