Iolanda Giliotti, born in Egypt to an Italian immigrant, rose to the top of stardom as a singer under the stage name of Dalida, but lived a roller-coaster personal life, the downs finally outweighing the ups and finally leading to her suicide at age 54. Accumulating hit songs ("Bambino", "Gondolier", "Paroles Paroles " "Avec le temps"), and even recognized as an actress (her dream in the first place) thanks to Youssef Chahine's "The Sixth Day", she was only occasionally happy but remained childless despite her will to become a mother. She loved many men (Lucien Morisse, Jean Sobieski, Luigi Tenco, Bernard Chanfray) but never managed to find the balance she was after. After one or two failed suicide attempts, she finally managed to take her own life, leaving thousands of fans disconsolate.
—Guy Bellinger