Category Archives: 1987

Today in Madonna History: December 14, 1987

December 14, 2022 By in 1987, December Tags: , , , , 1 Comment

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On December 14 1987, Madonna and Sean Penn appeared on the cover of People magazine.

Everyone Said It Wouldn’t Last… …And It Didn’t. After Two Years of Marriage, Madonna and Sean Penn Go Their Separate Ways.  

Well, you can’t blame Judge John Merrick. It was Merrick, now a retired justice of the peace, who performed the August 1985 marriage of Madonna Louise Ciccone and Sean “KO” Penn. “I felt they were serious about their vows,” says Merrick. “I remember a line from the ceremony: ‘Although there will be times that your moods may falter, and you’ll question each other’s motives, the faith and love that you share will help to show that your inconsistency is only for the moment.’ ”   Trouble is, for Sean, 27, and Madonna, 29, that moment seemed to persist for a little over two years. Now, after 27 months of holy matrimony and unholy acrimony, the material girl and her rebel without a pause are positively, absolutely, this-time-they’re-not-kidding headed for that crowded community called Splitsville. “The marriage is definitely over,” says Madonna’s spokesperson, Liz Rosenberg. Seconds Penn’s publicist, Lois Smith, “The two of them have called off the marriage.”

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Today in Madonna History: November 11, 1987

November 11, 2022 By in 1987, November Tags: , , 1 Comment

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On November 11 1987, Who’s That Girl, starring Madonna, was released on home video by Warner Bros.

Here’s what Madonna had to say about the performance of the film in North America:

“I think the movie did badly in America because I upstaged it with my tour. People were confused about the connection between the record, the tour and the movie because they all had the same title. I also think there are people who don’t want me to do well in both fields. I had to really fight to get any respect from the music business and now I guess there are some people who feel that I ought to be grateful for that respect and stick to music.”

Here’s what James Foley (Director of Who’s That Girl) had to say about his decision to make the film:

“I was young, I was twenty-eight. So, being given the opportunity to work on a Warner Bros. film with a huge star was attractive to me for all the wrong reasons. Everyone has a bit of Hollywood lust in them. Warner Bros. approached me because they knew I knew Madonna and she had asked for me, and was convinced to do it. At Close Range was a dark film, and going towards comedy was totally the wrong direction. But I didn’t care.”

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Today in Madonna History: October 24, 1987

October 24, 2022 By in 1987, October Tags: , , , 3 Comments

On October 24 1987, Causing A Commotion peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S.

The single spent three weeks in the runner-up position while Michael Jackson’s hit Bad ruled the chart.

Today in Madonna History: August 29, 1987

August 29, 2022 By in 1987, August Tags: , , , 1 Comment

On August 29 1987, Madonna’s Who’s That Girl single reached #1 on the Canadian Top 100 Singles chart by RPM magazine.

Today in Madonna History: August 22, 1987

August 22, 2022 By in 1987, August Tags: 1 Comment

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On August 22 1987, Madonna’s Who’s That Girl hit #1 on the USA Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales chart after being on the chart for 6 weeks.

Today in Madonna History: July 21, 1987

July 21, 2022 By in 1987, July Tags: , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

On July 21 1987, the Who’s That Girl: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album was released.

Who’s That Girl was released as the lead single from the soundtrack, it became Madonna’s sixth single to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making her the first artist to accumulate six number-one singles in the 1980s, and the first female performer to earn that many number-ones as a solo act.

The album’s second single, Causing a Commotion, was released on August 25, 1987. In the United States, the single quickly climbed up the chart, ultimately peaking at number two in the week of October 24, 1987, the same week Michael Jackson’s Bad advanced to the pole position. It remained in second position for three weeks, before descending from the chart.

The third song released from the album was the European single The Look of Love. In the United Kingdom, The Look of Love was released on December 12, 1987, and entered the UK Singles Chart at position 15.  The next week, it reached a peak of nine on the chart, her first single to miss the top five since Lucky Star in 1984.

Regarding her contributions to the soundtrack, Madonna said:

“I had some very specific ideas in mind, music that would stand on its own as well as support and enhance what was happening on-screen and the only way to make that a reality was to have a hand in writing the tunes myself… The songs aren’t necessarily about Nikki or written to be sung by someone like her, but there’s a spirit to this music that captures both what the film and the characters are about, I think.”

The only Madonna song not to be released as a single or performed live from the soundtrack was Can’t Stop. Madonna had been performing her three other songs from the soundtrack during the Who’s That Girl World Tour for over a month prior to the album’s release.

Today in Madonna History: July 14, 1987

July 14, 2022 By in 1987, July Tags: , 2 Comments

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On July 14 1987, Madonna’s second studio album, Like a Virgin was certified 7x platinum (7 million units) in the USA.

According to author J. Randy Taraborrelli, “Every important artist has at least one album in his or her career whose critical and commercial success becomes the artist’s magic moment; for Madonna, Like a Virgin was just such a defining moment”.

Madonna – Stay (Rough Mix Edit)