Today in Madonna History: April 20, 1991

April 20, 2020 By Jay in 1991, April Tags: Charts, Crazy For You, Holiday, Jean-Baptiste Mondino, Remix Videos, Rescue Me, Stéphane Sednaoui, UK 1 Comment

On April 20 1991, Rescue Me peaked at #3 on the UK Singles Chart after making its debut at #4 the previous week. It slid to #5 in its third week before falling out of the Top 10.

Rescue Me was the third single release from The Immaculate Collection in the UK, where it was issued in between re-releases of Crazy For You and Holiday.

Because the photo on international pressings of Rescue Me had already graced the cover of the Crazy For You reissue, Warner UK chose to market the single using an alternate shot taken from Jean-Baptiste Mondino’s June 1990 spread in Harper’s Bazaar. Ironically, the international Rescue Me cover photo was snapped on the set of the Mondino-directed music video for Justify My Love, although not by Mondino himself. It was instead photographed by another (future) Madonna music video director, Stephane Sednaoui.

Today in Madonna History: April 19, 1997

April 19, 2020 By Jay in 1997, April Tags: You Must Love Me 1 Comment

On April 19 1997, Madonna’s You Must Love Me spent its final week on Billboard’s Hot 100 Single Sales chart, after peaking at #14 on January 25 1997.

Today in Madonna History: April 18, 2017

April 18, 2020 By Jay in 2017, April Tags: A League Of Their Own, Geena Davis, Penny Marshall, Rosie O'Donnell, This Used To Be My Playground, Tom Hanks 1 Comment

On April 18 2017, the 25th Anniversary Edition of A League Of Their Own was released on Blu-ray.

This is the press release for the anniversary edition of the hit film:

Celebrate the 25th anniversary of this hilarious and beloved comedy starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna. Hanks stars as Jimmy Dugan, a washed-up ballplayer whose big league days are over. Hired to coach in the All-American Girls Baseball League of 1943 – while the male pros are at war – Dugan finds himself drawn back into the game by the hearts and heroics of his all-girl team, led by the indomitable Dottie Hinson (Davis). Lori Petty, Rosie O’Donnell and Jon Lovitz round out the all-star roster. Based on the true story of the pioneering women who blazed the trail for generations of athletes.

Has it really been 25 years since Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna hit one out of the park with the all-American comedy A League Of Their Own? On April 18, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the iconic, memorable and relevant comedy favorite when A League Of Their Own returns to Blu-ray in an all-new special anniversary edition.

This anniversary edition includes the all-new bonus featurette “Bentonville, Baseball & The Enduring Legacy of A League of Their Own,” an unforgettable visit to the annual softball game at the Bentonville Film Festival, featuring all-new interviews with Geena Davis, and more. The Blu-ray also includes hilarious and insightful archival special features, including 15 deleted scenes, a documentary featuring interviews with the cast and filmmakers, Madonna’s This Used To Be My Playground music video and a filmmaker commentary.

Synopsis:
Celebrate the 25th anniversary of this hilarious and beloved comedy starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna. Hanks stars as Jimmy Dugan, a washed-up ballplayer whose big league days are over. Hired to coach in the All-American Girls Baseball League of 1943 – while the male pros are at war – Dugan finds himself drawn back into the game by the hearts and heroics of his all-girl team, led by the indomitable Dottie Hinson (Davis). Lori Petty, Rosie O’Donnell and Jon Lovitz round out the all-star roster. Based on the true story of the pioneering women who blazed the trail for generations of athletes.

Directed and Executive Produced by Penny Marshall from a screenplay by Lowell Ganz & Babaloo Mandel and based on a story by Kim Wilson & Kelly Candaele, A League Of Their Own is produced by Robert Greenhut and Elliot Abbott.

Today in Madonna History: April 17, 2001

April 17, 2020 By Jay in 2001, April Tags: Charlotte Gainsbourg, David Torn, Guy Sigsworth, Lyrics, Mark Stent, What It Feels Like For A Girl, WIFLFAG 2 Comments

On April 17 2001, Madonna’s What It Feels Like for a Girl – the third single from Music was released by Maverick Records. The song was written by Madonna, Guy Sigsworth and David Torn, who was credited later, while production was handled by Madonna, Guy Sigsworth and Mark Stent. The spoken intro, recited by Charlotte Gainsbourg, is an excerpt from the 1993 film The Cement Garden.

Lyrics:

Girls can wear jeans
And cut their hair short
Wear shirts and boots
Cause it’s okay to be a boy
But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading
Cause you think being a girl is degrading
But secretly
You’d love to know what it’s like
Wouldn’t you?
What it feels like for a girl

Silky smooth
Lips as sweet as candy, baby
Tight blue jeans
Skin that shows in patches

Strong inside but you don’t know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak

Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world for a girl

Hair that twirls on finger tips so gently, baby
Hands that rest on jutting hips repenting
Hurt that’s not supposed to show and
Tears that fall when no one knows
When you’re trying hard to be your best
Could you be a little less

Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world for a girl
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
What it feels like for a girl

Strong inside but you don’t know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak

Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world for a girl
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world for a girl

In this world
Do you know
Do you know
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
What it feels like in this world

Today in Madonna History: April 16, 2003

April 16, 2020 By Jay in 2003, April Tags: American Life (Album), Controversy, Jonas Åkerlund, Music Videos 4 Comments

On April 16 2003, Madonna released an edited version of the American Life video on VH-1.

The edited version (also called the “flag” version) featured Madonna singing in front of a backdrop of ever-changing flags of different countries.

Today in Madonna History: April 15, 1991

April 15, 2020 By Jay in 1991, April Tags: Academy Awards, Bob Mackie, Harry WInston, Michael Jackson, Oscars, Sooner or Later, Spago, Truth or Dare 3 Comments

On April 15 1991, Madonna and Michael Jackson were featured on the cover of People magazine as The Oddest Couple.

Here’s an excerpt from the article:

It may have been just a one-night stand, but when Pop’s Billion Dollar Boy and the Queen of Steam strutted their stuff at the Oscars, they were, for one brief moment, the brightest star couple of all.

As anyone burdened with stardom knows, finding a date for the Oscars can be an enormo pain. After all, really famous folk simply can’t be seen with some sweet nobody who waves “Hi Mom” at the camera and spends the evening worrying about credit-card approval at Spago.

And so it was, when Madonna and Michael Jackson, Earth’s top pop stars, faced the who-is-famous-enough-to-be-seen-with-me quandary, they hit on the perfect solution. Since they were already planning a duet for Michael’s upcoming album, Dangerous, and since they both happened to be on all Hollywood’s collagen-enhanced lips anyway—he for his ballyhooed “billion-dollar” contract with Sony, she for her upcoming, already controversial self-ploitation film, Truth or Dare-why not date…each other?

Big dates can also become big disasters, however. So a week before the Oscars, the couple met at L.A.’s Ivy restaurant to plan and, perhaps, trade makeup tips. By Oscar night, all was ready. Michael looked positively legendary in gold-tipped cowboy boots, a blinding diamond brooch and—in a dramatic sartorial departure—two gloves. Madonna, awash in peroxide and pluck, diverted at least some of the attention from her low-cut, pearl-encrusted Bob Mackie gown with $20 million in diamonds, on loan from jeweler Harry Winston. They entered L.A.’s Shrine Auditorium and promptly collected their well-deserved Best Seat honors—front row, two on the aisle.