What You May Not Know About Maria Callas

This month (December), Maria Callas would have been 92 years old, and almost four decades after her death, the Greek American opera singer still commands the news and media. At her peak, Callas was one of the most famous and written about women in the world.

Callas was born Maria Kalogeropoulos in New York City in 1923 to Greek immigrant parents. She impressed many as a child singer and pursued her training when her family returned to Greece. She began singing professionally in 1941 and was soon performing in major opera houses throughout the world.

Her voice is considered as one of the most dynamic in operatic history.

She died in Paris in 1977 at age 53 following a heart attack, but her persona and legendary status as a diva on and off the stage is entrenched in the public’s persona until this day.

To commemorate her 90th birthday two years ago, The Los Angeles Times published five extraordinary rumors about the soprano that have never been confirmed — nor denied. Follow are a couple of these:

1) She bore a son with Aristotle Onassis, but the child died soon after birth. Though she is believed to have been infertile, Callas was rumored to have had a love child with Onassis, the shipping tycoon and a Greek compatriot. The son was born in 1960, the rumor has it, and died hours later. Other rumors state that she had at least one abortion while she was with Onassis. Her relationship with the multimillionaire was stormy, as he is believed to have been compulsively unfaithful.

2) Callas continued her affair with Onassis during his marriage to Jacqueline Kennedy.Onassis left Callas to marry the widowed Jacqueline Kennedy in 1968. But it was widely believed that Callas continued her liaison with Onassis well into his marriage with the former first lady. “Greek Fire,” Nicholas Gage’s 2000 book about their love affair, portrays Onassis banging on Callas’ door, begging to be let back in.

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by Gregory Pappas