Modern Divas Boxed Set Read online

  “The comparisons are outrageous, unacceptable and crudely divisive all at the same time […] It clearly shows that when it comes to supporting Barack Obama, his fellow worldwide celebrities refuse to consider any smear or attack off limits.”

  After Obama won the presidential election, McCain’s image was removed from the video. She congratulated Obama during her performance at Petco Park. Madonna also expressed her opposition for Republican Vice Presidential candidate for 2008, Sarah Palin. In one of her performances during the tour, she shouted, “Sarah Palin can’t come to my party. Sarah Palin can’t come to my show. It’s nothing personal.” And while performing I Love New York, the line Get off my street was replaced by “You know who can get off my street? Sarah Palin! I’m gonna kick her ass if she don’t get off my street.”

  And when Madonna performed at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, she sang Like a Virgin and dedicated it to Pope Benedict XVI, saying, “I’m gonna dedicate this song to the Pope, because, I know he loves me. I am a child of God! And you know what else? …” Then she began the first line of the song.

  What was most saddening about the tour was when two workers died when the stage collapsed on them. Workers were assembling the stage in preparation for Madonna’s July 19 concert at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille. The stage collapsed, injuring eight workers and killing two. The incident led to the concert being cancelled.

  Madonna issued a statement saying, “I am devastated to have just received this tragic news. My prayers go out to those who were injured and their families along with my deepest sympathy to all those affected by this heartbreaking news.” She visited the workers injured in the accident and paid her respects at the family of the deceased ones.

  Madonna’s most recent tour, the MDNA Tour, was scheduled to begin by end of May 2012 and was expected to extend into 2012 in promotion of her most recent album, MDNA.

  Chapter 7 – Let’s Talk Business

  Madonna proved that she is not just a performer and a musician but an acclaimed businesswoman as well. From fashion design to film directing, Madonna has been a businesswoman for as long as she’s been a celebrity.

  Professor Colin Barrow of the Cranfield School of Management said that Madonna was “America’s smartest businesswoman… who has moved to the top of her industry and stayed there by constantly reinventing herself.” The London Business School described her as a “dynamic entrepreneur and complimented qualities such as her understanding of the music industry, her willingness to work hard and her ability to recognize her own limitations, among others, as key to her success.

  Acting and Directing

  Almost all musicians have gone through the phase of trying out their luck in films, and Madonna wasn’t the one to miss out on whatever opportunity awaited her in this area. She entered mainstream films in 1985 and began taking minor roles. In the 1985 romantic drama film Vision Quest, Madonna was a club singer. The movie’s soundtrack contained Madonna’s US number one single, Crazy for You.

  Madonna starred in Desperately Seeking Susan

  Next she appeared in the comedy Desperately Seeking Susan, a 1985 film that featured her song Into the Groove, her number one single in the UK. Although she didn’t bag the leading role, Madonna’s role in the movie was seen as a Madonna vehicle.

  She also starred in the film Shanghai Surprise alongside her husband at that time, Sean Penn. The film was a commercial failure. The following year, Madonna was cast in Who’s That Girl alongside Griffin Dunne. Madonna plays the character of Nikki Finn, a woman falsely accused of murder and spent four years in jail. Madonna promoted the film during the Who’s That Girl World Tour.

  As it turned out, Who’s That Girl was another commercial failure, with some calling it as one of the worst films to be released.

  Madonna next starred in Dick Tracy (1990) and took the role of “Breathless” Mahoney alongside the actor Warren Beatty playing the title role. For the film, Madonna released the soundtrack album I’m Breathless which contained her number one single Vogue and Sooner or Later, which earned the songwriter an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1991.

  The poster for the movie, Dick Tracy, where Madonna starred alongside Warren Beatty

  The movie was generally a success with seven nominations at the Academy Award and winning Best Original Song, Best Makeup and Best Art Direction.

  In 1992, Madonna was cast in A League of Their Own and played the character of Mae Mordabito, a baseball player for an all-women’s team. She sang the film’s theme song, This Used to be My Playground, which subsequently became a Hot 100 number one single.

  The following year, Madonna again was cast in a role, this time in the erotic thriller Body of Evidence which featured scenes of sadomasochism and bondage. Her performance in the movie was derided by movie critics, noting that it was Madonna’s fourth film acting performance widely panned, after Shanghai Surprise, Who’s That Girl and Bloodhounds of Broadway.

  That same year, Madonna starred in Dangerous Game, the first production by her Maverick Picture Company. The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times praised the movie and Madonna and her co-star Harvey Keitel were both complimented for their acting.

  The most successful of all films where Madonna starred was Evita, a 1996 film adaptation of Time Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical that chronicles the life of Eva Duarte (later Eva Peron), the first lady and spiritual leader of Argentina. Before Madonna was chosen to play the title role, several actresses were considered for the role, with Webber favoring an actress of Spanish descent to play the role and suggested Charo. Meryl Streep was offered the role but the production was delayed. Madonna, meanwhile, had been campaigning for the part. Shortly before filming began, some people objected to Madonna playing the part. She didn’t back down until she got the part. She also secretly met with Argentina president during that time to ask for the right to film at the Casa Rosada.

  The film was a success, having been nominated for five Academy Awards and winning the award for Best Original Song with You Must Love Me. The film was also nominated for five Golden Globe awards and won Best Picture – Comedy or Musical, Best Original Song for You Must Love Me and Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical, Madonna. Evita became one of the National Board of Review’s Top Ten Films of the Year.

  Madonna was cast as Eva Peron in the film Evita; the film earned her a Guiness World Record title for “most costume changes in a film”

  Madonna also won a Guinness World Record title for “Most costume changes in a film” for changing costumes 85 times (including 39 hats, 45 pairs of shoes, and 56 pairs of earrings). The record was previously held by Elizabeth Taylor for the film Cleopatra with 65 costume changes. She also released three singles from the film’s soundtrack, including You Must Love Me, Don’t Cry For Me Argentina.

  After winning Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical for the film Evita, Madonna won the Razzie Award for Worst Actress in her next film, The Next Best Thing, where she starred with Rupert Everett and Benjamin Bratt. The film was a commercial flop but the soundtrack produced a number one single, American Pie, Madonna’s cover of Don McLean’s 1971 song.

  Another commercial flop was Swept Away, a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Madonna’s then-husband, Guy Ritchie. Madonna starred as a rich and arrogant woman who went on a cruise with her husband and found herself stranded on a deserted island with the ship’s first mate.

  The movie received negative reviews with a 5% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and described Madonna as lacking acting skills. In addition, the film achieved five awards at the 2002 Golden Raspberry Awards for Worst Picture, Worst Actress for Madonna, Worst Remake or Sequel, Worst Screen Couple, and Worst Director for Guy Ritchie.

  In 2008, Madonna tried her hand in directing for the film Filth and Wisdom, a movie revolving around three friends and their aspirations. Madonna said that it was her husband who inspired her to create the screenplay for the film. The Times complimented that Madonna had “done herself proud” and The Daily Tel
egraph said that the film was “not an entirely unpromising first effort [but] Madonna would do well to hang on to her day job.”

  Overall, the film was given negative reviews. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian commented, “Well, it had to happen. Madonna has been a terrible actor in mnay, many films and now – fiercely aspirational as ever – she has graduated to being a terrible director” with Jonathan Romney of Screen International saying that “Madonna simply cannot direct actors.”

  In December 2007, Madonna was one of the five inductees for the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

  Madonna directed her second film, W.E., which chronicles the affair between King Edward III and Wallis Simpson. It premiered at the 2011 Venice Film Festival and received mixed reviews. She contributed the ballad Masterpiece for the soundtrack and won her a Golden Globe award for Best Original Song.

  Entertainment Company

  In 1992, Madonna founded her own entertainment company, Maverick as a joint venture with Time Warner, and consisted of a record company (Maverick Records), a film production company (Maverick Films), and associated music publishing, book publishing and other related divisions. Maverick Records prospered from Madonna’s efforts. Madonna partnered with Time Warner, which paid her an advance of $60 million and additional 20% royalties from the music proceedings.

  In 2007, Madonna departed from Warner Bros. Record and signed a $120 million, 10-year contract with Live Nation and subsequently became the founding artist for the music division, Live Nation Artists.

  Clothing Line

  Madonna collaborated with the Swedish clothing retailer H&M to establish the clothing line M by Madonna, launched internationally in 2006. It sold leather trench coats, cream-colored calf-length pants, sequined shift dresses and cropped jackets. H&M described Madonna’s collection as “timeless, unique and always glamorous style.”

  In August 2010, Madonna launched a Material Girl brand of clothing which the proud mother designed with her daughter, Lourdes. The clothing line was inspired by the 1980s and reflected Madonna’s punk-girl style and released under the Macy’s label. Macy’s has since expanded the line to 300 of its stores. After the clothing line went on sale, Madonna was sued by apparel manufacturer L.A. Triumph Inc, saying that they have been using the name Material Girl and selling clothes under the name since 1997. They then demanded that Madonna stop her clothing line from selling.

  In November 2011, Madonna partnered with Iconix Brand Group, Inc. and formed MG ICON and announced the release of a fashion brand called Truth of Dare by Madonna and included underclothing, footwear and accessories.

  Fitness Center

  For her next venture, Madonna partnered with her manager, Guy Oseary, and founder and CEO of 24 Hour Fitness, Mark Mastrov to open a series of fitness centers around the world. She named it her Hard Candy Fitness after her Hard Candy album. Mastrov said, “Our goal is to create an environment inspired by Madonna’s vision and high standards of what the ideal gym would be. Hard Candy Fitness will be a reflection of Madonna’s point of view and will reflect her input on every detail including music space, light and other design cues. Madonna’s touch will be everywhere.”

  A Hard Candy Fitness membership stand in Mexico

  The first gym was opened at Mexico City in 2010.

  Writing Books

  Madonna has also tried to venture in authoring her own books, beginning with the highly controversial Sex, the first installment with her $60 million multimedia deal with Time Warner. Authors Allen Metz and Carol Benson described the book as “an oversized, overpriced coffee-table book of hard-core sexual fantasies sure to separate the wannabes from the wanna-be-faraways.”

  For the book, Madonna, aiming for high-art erotica, teamed up with Steven Meisel and art director Fabien Baron. Madonna served as the producer, taking the role of dominatrix and sex evangelist Dita Parlo. Madonna said, “These are erotic short stories and erotic imaginings, visual and literary, and I’ve cast myself in the role in terms of pictorials.”

  She wanted to empower woman, claiming that “Sexual repression is responsible for a lot of bad behavior” and viewed that sex is a taboo subject because the Western world has kept mum about the subject. She also wanted to bring attention to the power in sex. Charles Melcher, a copublisher, stated that Madonna “was talking about gentle and hard, soft and violent. She was playing out all those elements in the book. That was reflected in the materials: uncoated, soft paper on the inside and a hard metal binding on the outside.”

  More than a million copies were sold. Each copy was numbered and the book was encased in a zipped Mylar bag and ring-bound with metal covers. Initially, the team had difficulty figuring out how the book would appear. Madonna wanted it to be sealed, “something you had to violate in order to get into it and enjoy,” Nicholas Calloway, copublisher, said. They thought of various clasps before finally deciding to present a sealed bag “as a reference to a condom package.”

  Madonna had the idea for the metal cover, but making a metal book proved to be a challenge. Melcher recalled, “We bought a million and a half pounds of aluminum, a pound for every book. We had to do front and back covers, and each one had to be rolled, stamped, and ionized. I don’t recommend metal for books. It was a hugely difficult process.” Priced at $49.95, the reader is taken through 128 pages of artfully explanatory photos of sexual fantasies and fetishes. The book is not for the faint of heart, for it explores some charged sexual themes such as sadomasochism, bondage, and lesbianism.

  For those who have read the book, they might say that Sex wasn’t shocking at all, especially coming from Madonna, one of only few who had the nerve to publicly explore these territories. As authors Metz and Benson wrote, “sex is play and this is still her playground.”

  Madonna also authored children’s books, the first being The English Roses

  After the release of her Sex books, Madonna ventured into authoring children’s books after signing a contract with Callaway Arts & Entertainment. The first of the five books was titled The English Roses, published in 2003, and talks about four English schoolgirls and explores the subjects envy and jealousy. Kate Kellway from The Guardian said, “Madonna is an actress playing at what she can never be – a JK Rowling, an English rose.” The book debuted at number one on The New York Best Seller list and set the record for being the fastest-selling children’s picture book of all time.

  Chapter 8 – Wife and Mother

  Madonna’s journey to fame wasn’t a smooth road. It involved risks, heartbreaks, being turned down and so many sacrifices. But time and again, she has made a name for herself in the music industry and around the world as a musician, performer and businesswoman.

  Some people who have worked for and with Madonna have mixed opinions about her. Some say she is a bitch, knowing what she wants to do and doing anything to get it, wearing what she wants to wear, and getting her own way no matter what. And most of all, she likes to touch on taboo subjects that has always led to controversies. But Madonna has gone a long way before she was able to fully control her career.

  In studying Madonna’s life, it’s easy to see how childhood events shaped her to be the woman she is now. Her mother’s death was the event in her life, and it changed her relationship with her family, particularly with her father, and how she looked at things as she grew older. Her Catholic upbringing also reflected in her performances even though she continually turned her back on her religion. She is a brave woman, going for what she believes in even if a lot of people disapprove of it.

  Madonna can be described as a brave woman for the way she presented herself as a liberated woman who flaunted her sexuality despite negative reactions from a lot of people. She became the template for the artists who followed in her footsteps as pop stars with catchy songs and provocative image.

  But Madonna is not just a pop icon. Performing is not her entire life. She would discover, later on, that there was more to being just a famous Queen of Pop. She would discover that upon her failed marriages
and celebrated motherhood.

  Sean Penn

  Madonna met the actor Sean Penn on the set of her Material Girl video shoot. The actor, who had built up a reputation as a young hothead, appeared unmoved on their first meeting. And so was Madonna, who was by then a rising star. Their meeting was lukewarm, and Madonna was then getting made up between shots.

  The A-list couple, Madonna and Sean Penn, met on the set of her Material Girl video shoot

  But as Madonna’s previous relationship with John Benitez turned sour, she began spending time with Sean. They dated for a while and didn’t consider marriage until after a few months. James Foley, film director and Sean’s best friend, said, “Suddenly they were madly in love and inseparable and couldn’t wait to get married. She became the center of Sean’s life.”

  Madonna and Sean lived in the West Coast for a while. Sean became her domineering force in her life, her artistic alter ego. Later on, it would be evident that Sean’s single-minded vision was the complete opposite of hers. Having brought up in Hollywood, he was largely unimpressed by fame and big names in the industry. He was as rebellious and ambitious as Madonna was.

  They eventually decided to get married, but Sean didn’t know how much of the press attention would focus on him. He recalled, “She was in the process of becoming the biggest star in the world. I just wanted to make my films and hide. I was an angry young man. I had of demons and don’t really know who could’ve lived with me at the time.”

  Their wedding day, set on her 27th birthday in Point Durne, near Malibu Beach, was a crazy event. The big names in the entertainment industry attended, including Cher, Carrie Fisher, Andy Warhol, and Christopher Walken. Some of Madonna’s old friends from New York were not invited.