Category Archives: 2003

Today in Madonna History: November 26, 2003

November 26, 2024 By in 2003, November Tags: , , , , , 1 Comment
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On November 26 2003, Madonna appeared on The Tonight Show (with host Jay Leno) at NBC Studios, in Burbank, California.

Madonna handed out gifts to new dad David Letterman when she appeared on the Late Show earlier in the month, and she didn’t want to leave his TV rival Leno out.

“I brought you some Thanksgiving presents.”

Madonna handed the TV host a baseball jersey and a framed illustration from her new children’s book Mr. Peabody’s Apples.

Most odd about this appearance is that Remixed and Revisited was released on November 24 and Madonna never mentioned it.  The Nothing Fails single was also released on November 21, and an upcoming single for Love Profusion (December 8) was also never mentioned.  Very few artists would skip mentioning new releases in such a high profile interview.  It makes me wonder how involved Madonna was with these releases – or if Warner Bros. was forcing the singles and the remix collection to be put out.  All Madonna chose to talk about was her marriage to Guy, her father’s winery, her children’s books and Kabbalah.  

For the record, I think this is an adorable interaction between Madonna and Jay.  She’s funny, sweet and articulate.  

Today in Madonna History: September 29, 2003

September 29, 2024 By in 2003, September Tags: , , , 1 Comment

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On September 29 2003, Madonna promoted her first children’s book, The English Roses, at the Barnes & Noble store at the Rockefeller Center store in New York, with a meet and greet.

Today in Madonna History: June 2, 2003

June 2, 2024 By in 2003, June Tags: , 1 Comment

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On June 2 2003, Madonna began filming the Hollywood music video in Los Angeles, California. The music video was directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino, and portrays Madonna highlighting the highs and lows of Hollywood.

Jean-Baptiste Mondino said this about the concept of the video:

“Some kind of artifice that Hollywood can provide, that is so wide and has a graphic story-line about it as well as some humour about it, and to show the beauty, the scariness, the sexiness and the loneliness that one’s success can be, ’cause everybody’s dreaming about Hollywood, no matter what. The expectation can be very dangerous, and maybe for somebody like Madonna, who might be at a point, to realize that to be on the top is maybe not that important. That’s what I feel about the video.”

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Today in Madonna History: May 10, 2003

May 10, 2024 By in 2003, May Tags: , , , , , , 1 Comment

On May 10 2003, Madonna’s American Life album reached #1 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart in the USA.

In 2008, Sal Cinquemani had this to say about American Life in Slant magazine:

In hindsight, American Life isn’t the masterpiece that Erotica so quickly revealed itself to be. It’s frequently self-indulgent, misguided, unpleasant, difficult to listen to, silly yet somehow humorless, but it’s also consistent, uncompromising, and unapologetic. The album is a testament to the artist’s willingness to take risks and her refusal to stay inside her comfort zone. In the grand scheme of things, the album might rank as one of the weakest in Madonna’s extensive catalog, and the ones that followed have been as good, if not better, but American Life stands as the last time Madonna seemed to make music without the primary objective of scoring a hit. It’s interesting to imagine what Madonna’s career would look like today had American Life been a success: For better or worse, that pink leotard and Justin duet might never have existed.

Today in Madonna History: April 28, 2003

April 28, 2024 By in 2003, April Tags: , , , 1 Comment

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On April 28 2003, Madonna graced the cover of People Magazine: Madonna’s Real Life

Here’s a snippet of the article that went with the cover:

Once a naughty material girl, the pop icon has turned into a doting mom and devoted wife. But she’s still making waves. Visitors to Madonna’s $6.5 million Beverly Hills mansion on a recent afternoon could stroll through and behold master-works by Picasso, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo and…resident artist Lourdes Leon, age 6. Alas, Lourdes belongs to the enfant terrible school of art, which has her famous mom clenching her teeth in frustration. “My daughter spilled black paint on the bedroom rug,” says a stressed Madonna. “We’re not really sure how it happened. She was left alone for two minutes, and, well, it’s not pretty.” So where is her husband, British film director Guy Ritchie? “He’s upstairs, working on a script,” she says. “I’m much more the disciplinarian of the house, although Guy is getting more involved.” Then, flashing a playful grin, she adds, “I’d have to fire him as a dad if he didn’t get more involved. I can’t be the hard one all the time.”

Today in Madonna History: April 19, 2003

April 19, 2024 By in 2003, April Tags: , , , 1 Comment

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On April 19 2003, Madonna.com was hacked by some “fans” that didn’t agree with her anti-download policy.

Madonna’s official website was hacked and replaced by a page with links to download the complete American Life album as well as some remixes. The hack occurred only days after Madonna tried to combat illegal trading of songs from her American Life album, by flooding the Internet with fake MP3s.

The hacker defaced the homepage with the words, “This is what the fuck I think I’m doing” — a response to MP3s circulated to confuse file traders that included only a tape-looped message from Madonna herself saying, “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” MP3s of every song from American Life were posted along with the hackers’ message.

Madonna.com was taken offline for an nearly fifteen hours after the hack.

Today in Madonna History: February 10, 2003

February 10, 2024 By in 2003, February Tags: , , , 1 Comment

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On February 10 2003, Swept Away was nominated for the following Razzie Awards:

  • Worst Picture
  • Worst Remake or Sequel
  • Worst Director (Guy Ritchie)
  • Worst Screenplay
  • Worst Actress (Madonna)
  • Worst Actor (Adriano Giannini)
  • Worst Screen Couple (Madonna and Adriano Giannini)

Madonna was also nominated for Razzies for Die Another Day:

  • Worst Support Actress
  • Worst Original Song

The Golden Raspberry Awards, or the Razzies, recognize the worst in film.