Profile Text
Isaak in 2009, photo by PrPhotos
Birth Name: Christopher Joseph Isaak
Place of Birth: San Joaquin, California, United States
Date of Birth: June 26, 1956
Ethnicity: * father – Bessarabia German * mother – Italian
Chris Isaak is an American rock musician and actor. He is known for his song “Wicked Game.”
His father, Joe Isaak, was of Bessarabia German ancestry, ethnic Germans living in Bessarabia. His mother is of Italian descent, with her family being from Liguria and Tuscany.
Chris’s paternal grandfather was John Thomas Isaak (the son of Gottfried C. Isaak and Caroline J. Leischner). John was born in North Dakota, to ethnic German parents, born in Bessarabia, then in the Russian Empire, now Pidhirne, Odessa. Gottfried was the son of Christian Isaak and Karoline Kuehn. Chris’s great-grandmother Caroline was the daughter of Johann Leischner and Louise/Louisa Grosz.
Chris’s paternal grandmother was Helen Ann Schneider (the daughter of Henry Alex Peter Schneider and Kathernia Weideman). Helen was born in Canada, to ethnic German parents from Russia. Katherina was the daughter of Conrad Weideman and Maria Catharina Olenberger.
Chris’s maternal grandfather was Ralph Bill Vignolo (the son of Giovanni “John” Vignolo and Teresa Perazzo/Perasso). Ralph was born in California, to Italian parents. Giovanni was the son of Andrea Vignolo and Maria Sturla.
Chris’s maternal grandmother was Inez Marie Bertolli (the daughter of Agostino/Augustine Geremia “Nino” Bertolli and Amelia Maria Delamora/Della Mora). Inez was born in California, to Italian parents, from Lucca, Tuscany. Agostino was the son of Pietro Bertolli and Maria Paradisa Iacopi. Amelia was the daughter of Nicola Della Mora and Maria Andreini.
Sources: http://www.webcitation.org
Obituary of Chris’s father – http://www.findagrave.com
Genealogies of Chris’s paternal great-grandparents, Gottfried C. Isaak and Caroline J. Leischner – http://www.findagrave.com
Genealogy of Chris Isaak (focusing on his mother’s side) – http://www.genealogy.com
History of Chris’s mother’s Vignolo family – http://www.genealogy.com
Chris’s maternal grandfather, Ralph Bill Vignolo, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Chris’s maternal grandmother, Inez Marie Bertolli, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org