A Life Story (1958-2000)
1958-1977: Baby Nonni... 
Madonna is born on August 16, 1958. She is the first daughter of Madonna and Tony Ciccione. Part Italian and part French Canadian, she is given the nickname Nonni to avoid confusion with her mother's name. Nonni was the third of six children (Martin, Anthony, Paula Mae, Christopher, and Melanie). After losing her mother to breast cancer in 1963 and watching her father remarry, Nonni convinces her father to let her take ballet lessons and escapes to the world of dance. She later attends Rochester Adams High School and becomes a straight-A student and a member of the cheerleading squad. While studying under her private tutor Christopher Flynn, Madonna receives a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan after graduating from high school.
1978: Hello Big City!
Madonna attended the University of Michigan for two years before her ballet tutor Flynn persuaded her to drop out and move to New York to try her luck. Flat out broke and with only the clothes on her back, Madonna lived in ramshackle apartments and worked at Dunkin' Donuts and with modern dance troupes. Speaking of her move to New York, Madonna said, "It was the first time I'd ever taken a plane, the first time I'd ever gotten a taxi cab. I came here with $35 in my pocket. It was the bravest thing I'd ever done."
1979: Hitting up the Music Scene.
Barely making ends meet as a musician and model, one of Madonna's boyfriends teach her how to play the drums and guitar. She performs in several rock and punk bands. While performing as a background dancer for Patrick Hernandez (a french disco artist), she meets and becomes romantically involved with Dan Gilroy. Madonna forms her first rock band with Gilroy called The Breakfast Club. Then after launching a band called Emmy with later boyfriend Stephen Bray, Madonna begins to produce dance songs alongside Bray. Madonna's songs became popular in the local clubs of New York and they lead her to a solo contract with Sire Records.
1982: Encore...Encore!
Madonna signs a singles contract with Sire Records and releases her first song titled "Everybody". It was a crowd pleaser and it led to her meeting the in-demand DJ at the time John "Jellybean" Benitez. Benitez agrees to produce her next single "Holiday". Madonna and Benitez continue to date for 2 years before going their separate ways.The release of "Holiday" led to an appearance on Dick Clark's show American Bandstand. This performance gives her the career the spotlight and lands her on the dance charts top 20 category, though Madonna was attracting very little press attention.
1983: Success on the Borderline?
1958-1977: Baby Nonni...
Madonna is born on August 16, 1958. She is the first daughter of Madonna and Tony Ciccione. Part Italian and part French Canadian, she is given the nickname Nonni to avoid confusion with her mother's name. Nonni was the third of six children (Martin, Anthony, Paula Mae, Christopher, and Melanie). After losing her mother to breast cancer in 1963 and watching her father remarry, Nonni convinces her father to let her take ballet lessons and escapes to the world of dance. She later attends Rochester Adams High School and becomes a straight-A student and a member of the cheerleading squad. While studying under her private tutor Christopher Flynn, Madonna receives a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan after graduating from high school.1978: Hello Big City!
Madonna attended the University of Michigan for two years before her ballet tutor Flynn persuaded her to drop out and move to New York to try her luck. Flat out broke and with only the clothes on her back, Madonna lived in ramshackle apartments and worked at Dunkin' Donuts and with modern dance troupes. Speaking of her move to New York, Madonna said, "It was the first time I'd ever taken a plane, the first time I'd ever gotten a taxi cab. I came here with $35 in my pocket. It was the bravest thing I'd ever done."1979: Hitting up the Music Scene.
Barely making ends meet as a musician and model, one of Madonna's boyfriends teach her how to play the drums and guitar. She performs in several rock and punk bands. While performing as a background dancer for Patrick Hernandez (a french disco artist), she meets and becomes romantically involved with Dan Gilroy. Madonna forms her first rock band with Gilroy called The Breakfast Club. Then after launching a band called Emmy with later boyfriend Stephen Bray, Madonna begins to produce dance songs alongside Bray. Madonna's songs became popular in the local clubs of New York and they lead her to a solo contract with Sire Records.1982: Encore...Encore!
Madonna signs a singles contract with Sire Records and releases her first song titled "Everybody". It was a crowd pleaser and it led to her meeting the in-demand DJ at the time John "Jellybean" Benitez. Benitez agrees to produce her next single "Holiday". Madonna and Benitez continue to date for 2 years before going their separate ways.The release of "Holiday" led to an appearance on Dick Clark's show American Bandstand. This performance gives her the career the spotlight and lands her on the dance charts top 20 category, though Madonna was attracting very little press attention.1983: Success on the Borderline?
Madonna's releases her first album, which is self-titled. It includes mega hits "Lucky Star", "Holiday" and "Borderline". The album's success was overwhelming. It had 13 consecutive Top 5 hits...this kind of success has only been topped by Elvis and The Beatles.
1984: Like A Virgin
Madonna releases her videos for her hit songs from her first album. She began attracting media attention after getting airtime on MTV because of her style and attitude. Madonna's image consisted of jewelry bearing the Christian cross, lace tops, skirts over capri pants, fishnet stockings, loads of cheap jewelry, and teased bleach blonde hair. Her look becomes a huge trend throughout the 80s and her behavior in performances and videos also becomes an influence among other young women.
Before releasing her second follow-up album, Madonna performs at the very first MTV Video Awards on top of a huge cake in a large white bustier and veil while
bearing her signature "Boy Toy" belt and crucifix jewelry. Madonna releases her follow up album "Like A Virgin" on November 12. It hits No. 1 on the U.S. albums chart and continues to top the charts for 6 weeks. "Like A Virgin" sells 12 million copies worldwide and is now listed by the Rock and Roll hall of fame as one of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.
1985: It's A Material World.
Madonna meets Sean Penn on the set of her video for "Material Girl", in which she impersonates Marilyn Monroe from the video "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend". The pair are photographed together later at a video club in New York. Penn travels to Michigan a few weeks later and meets Madonna's family. Later at a concert in L.A., Madonna meets Penn's parents. A small wedding of about 200 people follows that August.
Madonna breaks into mainstream film starring in Desperately Seeking Susan with Rosanna Arquette. Playing a street urchin with a wry sense of humour, Madonna's style in the movie was quickly copied by teens across America. Wearing leggings, lace gloves and bellybutton shirts, girls across America were caught up in the Madonna craze. The film also introduced another single "Into the Groove" which went on to become her first number one single in the UK.
In July, black and white pictures of a nude Madonna surfaced and are published in Penthouse and Playboy without her consent. When legal action failed to stop the pictures from being published Madonna became defiant and had no sorry words for her actions. When performing at the Live Aid concert, Madonna mocked the press by saying she would not take off her jacket in case they decided to "hold it against me ten years from now".
Madonna also begins her first U.S. tour entitled The Virgin Tour alongside the Beastie Boys this year.
1986: Papa Don't Preach!
Madonna's new husband beats David Wolinski (Madonna's pal and songwriter) and is let off with a thousand dollar fine and a year's worth of probation. Months after the ordeal, Madonna and Penn co-star in the Hollywood flop Shanghai Surprise together.
Madonna also finds time to record and release her third album
"True Blue". The album includes a ballad ("Live to Tell") Madonna wrote for the film At Close Range which Sean Penn stars in. Rolling Stone says the album "sounds as if it comes from the heart", and it went on to produce 5 singles on the Billboard Charts: "Live to Tell", "Open Your Heart", "Papa Don't Preach", "La Isla Bonita" and "True Blue". "Papa Don't Preach" also becomes a very popular music video on MTV this year.
1987: Who's That Girl?
Madonna also releases a remix album of her past hits later this year which includes the hit "You Can Dance".
1988: All The World's A Stage.
Madonna decides to star in the play Speed-the-Plow as Karen the secretary. Meanwhile a town named Pacentro, Italy begins construction of a 4 metre commemorative statue of Madonna in a bustier. It is built to celebrate that her relatives had lived in Pacentro.
1989: Like a Prayer.
Four year after marrying Sean Penn, Madonna files for divorce for the second time. In 1987 she had chosen to withdraw her first divorce threat.
Madonna releases her fourth album titled "Like a Prayer". It was co-produced by Stephen Bray and Patrick Leonard. It sells seven
million copies worldwide and produced three Top 5 singles.
Madonna signs an endorsement deal with Pepsi for 5 million dollars and feature her in a commercial featuring her new song "Like a Prayer" Two months later Madonna releases her "Like a Prayer" music video. It features the starlet singing in front of burning crosses and stigmata. Pepsi was forced to end their sponsorship deal with Madonna after they could not convince the public that the commercial had nothing that was inappropriate, though Madonna keeps the cash.
Madonna has another run-in with the Vatican when he condemns her "Like a Prayer" video publicly.
Madonna throws a party for art world types at her younger brother's New York loft and invites John F. Kennedy Jr. Many people at the party later tell the press that Madonna spent a lot of the party trying to get comfortable with John, but he left later alone to go to dinner with his girlfriend.
1990: Justify her Love?
Madonna stars as "Breathless" Mahoney in the film Dick Tracy based on the comic books. She starred opposite Warren Beatty and they began a short-lived romantic relationship. Madonna wins an Oscar for her song "Sooner or Later" in the film and also debuts her new album
"I'm Breathless" which features her eighth number one U.S. single, "Vogue".
Madonna is given the title "America's Smartest Business Woman" in October and Forbes estimated she has made about 125 million dollars between 1985 and 1990.
Madonna begins her Blonde Ambition Tour but again runs into controversial issues when her stage performance is labelled as sinful. The Pope again urges the Italian public to boyc ott her concert performances.
Madonna releases her first greatest hits albums entitled "The Immaculate Collection". It also introduced two new hit singles "Rescue Me" and "Justify My Love", which became a number one hit dance song in the U.S. The video was banned from airing on MTV because it was deemed too sexual.
1991: Truth or Dare...?
Madonna steps out on the red carpet decked out in 20 million dollars worth of Harry Winston diamonds. She walks the carpet with new friend Michael Jackson and stays with him the whole night. At the after party she meets up with Warren Beatty.
Starring in her very first documentary film, Madonna candidly tapes the many intimate moments during her Blonde Ambition Tour and her personal life. It was titled Truth or Dare (In Bed with Madonna outside of North America) and received an R rating. The press have a field day, calling Madonna "a natural egomaniac whom stardom completes" and even Beatty said "She doesn't want to live off-camera!".
1992: A League of Her Own.
Madonna becomes a serious business woman when she establishes her own entertainment company named Maverick (consisting film produciton, a record comp any, music publishing, television, merchandising and book publishing divisions) with the help of Time Warner in a joint venture. Madonna's first release from the company was Sex, a book which had sexually explicit images taken by fashion photographer Steven Meisel (one of Madonna's regular photographers). The book cause a kerfuffle in the press and stirred up some controverst, but Sex sells 500 000 copies in the U.S. alone. Soon after she releases her fifth studio album entitled "Erotica". The album produced 6 singles; "Deeper and Deeper", "Fever", "Bad Girl", "Rain", "Bye Bye Baby" and it's title track "Erotica" which peaked at #3 on the U.S. Hot 100 tracks.
Madonna also stars in the classic baseball film A League of Their Own as Mae Mordabito, a tough-talking Italian Am erican girl not unlike herself. "This Used to By My Playground", the film's theme song, hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
1993: Introducing...the Girlie Show.
Madonna stars in two films, one being the thriller Body of Evidence, which was disliked by critics and most audiences. The second movie is the Maverich Films production. Titled Dangerous Game it is given some good reviews for Madonna's performance even though it is released straight-to-video.
Madonna also embarks on The Girlie Show World Tour near the end of '93. Dressed as a dominatrix during performances, her first ever show in Israel is protested by Orthadox Jews.
1994: Hello Mr. Letterman.
Madonna releases the single "I'll Remember" for the film With Honours. Later that year she also releases her sixth studio album "Bedtime Stories" which was a completely different approach than her previous album "Erotica". "Bedtime Stories" produces four singles; "Take A Bow", "Bedtime Story", "Secret", and "Human Nature".
Later in the year, Madonna appears on the Late Show with David Lette rman and creates an infamous performance. Using 4 letter words that needed to be censored, refusing to leave when Letterman wants to end the interview, including numerous sexual inuendos, and asking Letterman to smell her underwear, Madonna seemed to be a bit attention starved.
Madonna also begins to date Tupac Shakur, a famous rapper.
1995: A Year to Remember?
The release of "Something to Remember" (a collection of Madonna's ballads) features the hit song "You'll See" and her cover of Marvin Gaye's song "I Want You".
1996: Golden Globes are a Girl's Best Friend
Madonna discovers Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism, and jumps onto the faith train. She later attracts Demi Moore and Guy Ritchie into the practice also.
Madonna wins a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy for her role as Eva Peron in the film Evita. She also wins a Golden Globe and Academy Award forBest Orignal Song From a Motion Picture.
Lourdes Maria Ciccione Leon comes into the world on October 14th. Madonna shares her daughter with her personal trainer and the father, Carlos Leon. Withing a year of Lourdes' birth, the relationship between Carlos and Madonna ends.
1997 & 1998: Is that a Ray of Light?
Madonna releases a studio album in 1998 titl ed "Ray of Light". It debuted at number 2 in United States and the album produces two U.S. top 5 singles. These include "Ray of Light" and "Frozen". The album also wins 3 Grammys and is used by Microsoft in their advertising campain that indroduces Windows XP. The album is banned in Beligium because of accusational plagiarism issues from Salvatore Acquaviva's '93 song "Ma Vie Fout L'camp".
1999: Working Undercover.
Madonna follows her success from the previous album with a single titled "Beautiful Stranger" recorded for the upcoming Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me Soundtrack. On the Billboard Hot 100 it reached #9 by airplay time only!
1984: Like A VirginMadonna releases her videos for her hit songs from her first album. She began attracting media attention after getting airtime on MTV because of her style and attitude. Madonna's image consisted of jewelry bearing the Christian cross, lace tops, skirts over capri pants, fishnet stockings, loads of cheap jewelry, and teased bleach blonde hair. Her look becomes a huge trend throughout the 80s and her behavior in performances and videos also becomes an influence among other young women.
Before releasing her second follow-up album, Madonna performs at the very first MTV Video Awards on top of a huge cake in a large white bustier and veil while
bearing her signature "Boy Toy" belt and crucifix jewelry. Madonna releases her follow up album "Like A Virgin" on November 12. It hits No. 1 on the U.S. albums chart and continues to top the charts for 6 weeks. "Like A Virgin" sells 12 million copies worldwide and is now listed by the Rock and Roll hall of fame as one of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.1985: It's A Material World.Madonna meets Sean Penn on the set of her video for "Material Girl", in which she impersonates Marilyn Monroe from the video "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend". The pair are photographed together later at a video club in New York. Penn travels to Michigan a few weeks later and meets Madonna's family. Later at a concert in L.A., Madonna meets Penn's parents. A small wedding of about 200 people follows that August.
Madonna breaks into mainstream film starring in Desperately Seeking Susan with Rosanna Arquette. Playing a street urchin with a wry sense of humour, Madonna's style in the movie was quickly copied by teens across America. Wearing leggings, lace gloves and bellybutton shirts, girls across America were caught up in the Madonna craze. The film also introduced another single "Into the Groove" which went on to become her first number one single in the UK.
In July, black and white pictures of a nude Madonna surfaced and are published in Penthouse and Playboy without her consent. When legal action failed to stop the pictures from being published Madonna became defiant and had no sorry words for her actions. When performing at the Live Aid concert, Madonna mocked the press by saying she would not take off her jacket in case they decided to "hold it against me ten years from now".Madonna also begins her first U.S. tour entitled The Virgin Tour alongside the Beastie Boys this year.
1986: Papa Don't Preach!
Madonna's new husband beats David Wolinski (Madonna's pal and songwriter) and is let off with a thousand dollar fine and a year's worth of probation. Months after the ordeal, Madonna and Penn co-star in the Hollywood flop Shanghai Surprise together.Madonna also finds time to record and release her third album
"True Blue". The album includes a ballad ("Live to Tell") Madonna wrote for the film At Close Range which Sean Penn stars in. Rolling Stone says the album "sounds as if it comes from the heart", and it went on to produce 5 singles on the Billboard Charts: "Live to Tell", "Open Your Heart", "Papa Don't Preach", "La Isla Bonita" and "True Blue". "Papa Don't Preach" also becomes a very popular music video on MTV this year.1987: Who's That Girl?
As Madonna is finishing her tour Who's That Girl?, she stops in Turin Italy to perform. It was here she had her first run-in with the Vatican when Pope John Paul II urges the Italian public to stay away from her performances as Madonna sinfully mixed 
Catholicism and sexuality together (her trademark).
Catholicism and sexuality together (her trademark).Madonna also releases a remix album of her past hits later this year which includes the hit "You Can Dance".
1988: All The World's A Stage.
Madonna decides to star in the play Speed-the-Plow as Karen the secretary. Meanwhile a town named Pacentro, Italy begins construction of a 4 metre commemorative statue of Madonna in a bustier. It is built to celebrate that her relatives had lived in Pacentro.
1989: Like a Prayer.
Four year after marrying Sean Penn, Madonna files for divorce for the second time. In 1987 she had chosen to withdraw her first divorce threat.
Madonna releases her fourth album titled "Like a Prayer". It was co-produced by Stephen Bray and Patrick Leonard. It sells seven
million copies worldwide and produced three Top 5 singles.Madonna signs an endorsement deal with Pepsi for 5 million dollars and feature her in a commercial featuring her new song "Like a Prayer" Two months later Madonna releases her "Like a Prayer" music video. It features the starlet singing in front of burning crosses and stigmata. Pepsi was forced to end their sponsorship deal with Madonna after they could not convince the public that the commercial had nothing that was inappropriate, though Madonna keeps the cash.
Madonna has another run-in with the Vatican when he condemns her "Like a Prayer" video publicly.
Madonna throws a party for art world types at her younger brother's New York loft and invites John F. Kennedy Jr. Many people at the party later tell the press that Madonna spent a lot of the party trying to get comfortable with John, but he left later alone to go to dinner with his girlfriend.
Madonna stars as "Breathless" Mahoney in the film Dick Tracy based on the comic books. She starred opposite Warren Beatty and they began a short-lived romantic relationship. Madonna wins an Oscar for her song "Sooner or Later" in the film and also debuts her new album
Madonna is given the title "America's Smartest Business Woman" in October and Forbes estimated she has made about 125 million dollars between 1985 and 1990.
Madonna releases her first greatest hits albums entitled "The Immaculate Collection". It also introduced two new hit singles "Rescue Me" and "Justify My Love", which became a number one hit dance song in the U.S. The video was banned from airing on MTV because it was deemed too sexual.
Madonna steps out on the red carpet decked out in 20 million dollars worth of Harry Winston diamonds. She walks the carpet with new friend Michael Jackson and stays with him the whole night. At the after party she meets up with Warren Beatty.
Starring in her very first documentary film, Madonna candidly tapes the many intimate moments during her Blonde Ambition Tour and her personal life. It was titled Truth or Dare (In Bed with Madonna outside of North America) and received an R rating. The press have a field day, calling Madonna "a natural egomaniac whom stardom completes" and even Beatty said "She doesn't want to live off-camera!".
1992: A League of Her Own.Madonna becomes a serious business woman when she establishes her own entertainment company named Maverick (consisting film produciton, a record comp any, music publishing, television, merchandising and book publishing divisions) with the help of Time Warner in a joint venture. Madonna's first release from the company was Sex, a book which had sexually explicit images taken by fashion photographer Steven Meisel (one of Madonna's regular photographers). The book cause a kerfuffle in the press and stirred up some controverst, but Sex sells 500 000 copies in the U.S. alone. Soon after she releases her fifth studio album entitled "Erotica". The album produced 6 singles; "Deeper and Deeper", "Fever", "Bad Girl", "Rain", "Bye Bye Baby" and it's title track "Erotica" which peaked at #3 on the U.S. Hot 100 tracks.Madonna also stars in the classic baseball film A League of Their Own as Mae Mordabito, a tough-talking Italian Am erican girl not unlike herself. "This Used to By My Playground", the film's theme song, hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Madonna stars in two films, one being the thriller Body of Evidence, which was disliked by critics and most audiences. The second movie is the Maverich Films production. Titled Dangerous Game it is given some good reviews for Madonna's performance even though it is released straight-to-video.
Madonna also embarks on The Girlie Show World Tour near the end of '93. Dressed as a dominatrix during performances, her first ever show in Israel is protested by Orthadox Jews.
1994: Hello Mr. Letterman.
Madonna releases the single "I'll Remember" for the film With Honours. Later that year she also releases her sixth studio album "Bedtime Stories" which was a completely different approach than her previous album "Erotica". "Bedtime Stories" produces four singles; "Take A Bow", "Bedtime Story", "Secret", and "Human Nature".
Later in the year, Madonna appears on the Late Show with David Lette rman and creates an infamous performance. Using 4 letter words that needed to be censored, refusing to leave when Letterman wants to end the interview, including numerous sexual inuendos, and asking Letterman to smell her underwear, Madonna seemed to be a bit attention starved.
Madonna also begins to date Tupac Shakur, a famous rapper.
1995: A Year to Remember?The release of "Something to Remember" (a collection of Madonna's ballads) features the hit song "You'll See" and her cover of Marvin Gaye's song "I Want You".
Madonna discovers Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism, and jumps onto the faith train. She later attracts Demi Moore and Guy Ritchie into the practice also.
Lourdes Maria Ciccione Leon comes into the world on October 14th. Madonna shares her daughter with her personal trainer and the father, Carlos Leon. Withing a year of Lourdes' birth, the relationship between Carlos and Madonna ends.
Madonna releases a studio album in 1998 titl ed "Ray of Light". It debuted at number 2 in United States and the album produces two U.S. top 5 singles. These include "Ray of Light" and "Frozen". The album also wins 3 Grammys and is used by Microsoft in their advertising campain that indroduces Windows XP. The album is banned in Beligium because of accusational plagiarism issues from Salvatore Acquaviva's '93 song "Ma Vie Fout L'camp".
Madonna follows her success from the previous album with a single titled "Beautiful Stranger" recorded for the upcoming Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me Soundtrack. On the Billboard Hot 100 it reached #9 by airplay time only!
Holy Awesome!
ReplyDeleteWholly Awesome!