Today in Madonna History: August 2, 2008

On August 2 2008, Madonna appeared on the cover of Woman & Home magazine.

Here’s a snippet of Madonna talking about her work in Malawi and giving back to the world:

I first became involved with Malawi as I got to know someone who lived in the Ivory Coast. He was friends with Victoria Keelan, who had come to his rescue because there had been a water shortage in the Ivory Coast. She asked if he had an idea of someone who could help with the situation with the orphans in Malawi. He had something to do with the distribution of my children’s books in the Ivory Coast. On the back of the book it says that all the proceeds are donated to a children’s charity. So he thought, “Madonna’s interested in children”. He got in touch with me and that’s how the whole ball got rolling.

I think the criticism that celebrities face when they are tackling humanitarian issues is down to the cynicism of the public. People like to criticise. It’s human nature. But I believe that if you have one iota of compassion, you can’t ignore what’s going on. You have to figure out ways to be a part of the solution.

Everything that’s going on in the world is pretty scary. And people know we are living on borrowed time – whether it’s global warming, the 36 wars that are going on at any given time or terrorism. A lot of people in privileged positions are waking up and thinking it’s a little bit absurd to be thinking about what their next film is going to be. There is a lot of social consciousness going on and that can only be a good thing.

I certainly hope that people realise there’s a lot more to being Madonna than taking off my clothes. I hope that the SEX book [which came out in 1992] is not the only thing that I’m identified with. I have done and plan to do many other things.

Today in Madonna History: July 10, 1991

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On July 10 1991, Madonna appeared on the cover of Australian Smash Hits to promote Truth or Dare.

Today in Madonna History: June 25, 2001

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On June 25 2001, Madonna was featured on the cover of People Magazine.

Kicking off her latest tour, the Material Mom shows Barcelona she hasn’t lost a step – or her nerve.

She strutted across the stage at Barcelona’s Palau Sant Jordi stadium as a snarling punk rocker. Then she became a shotgun-wielding geisha; next, a cowgirl gyrating on a mechanical bull. Clearly, marriage and motherhood haven’t mellowed Madonna. As nannies minded daughter Lourdes, 4, and son Rocco, 10 months, at a nearby villa, husband Guy Ritchie, 32, watched from the sound-board as the 42-year-old queen of pop mesmerized 18,000 fans on June 9, opening night of her 14-week Drowned World Tour—her first since 1993. Reports backup singer Niki Haris at a postconcert party: “Madonna was very, very happy. And tired.”

Did you see Madonna live during the Drowned World Tour? Where did you see her? 

Today in Madonna History: June 5, 1986

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On June 5 1986, Madonna appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, with photos by Matthew Rolston.

Here are some outtakes from the clown session:

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Today in Madonna History: June 1, 1990

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On June 1 1990, Madonna was controversially featured grabbing her crotch and breast on the cover of Interview magazine.

Madonna was interviewed by Glenn O’Brien at the Disney Studios, where she was rehearsing the Blond Ambition Tour. Here’s a snippet from the interview:

Glenn: Let’s talk about your show.

Madonna: Let’s not. Today was a horrible day. That was the worst rehearsal.

Glenn: Well, I liked it, but I haven’t seen it when you thought it was good. I loved the number where you’re lying on the piano singing a torch song.

Madonna: You saw only one segment of the show. I’ve created five different worlds, and the set is all based on hydraulics. One is going down and another is coming up. The world changes completely. I think of it more as a musical than as a rock concert. There is a straightforward Metropolis section, like my Express Yourself video – that set with all the gears and machinery; it’s very hard and metallic. That’s the heavy-duty dance music. Then the set changes and it’s like a church. We call it the temple ruins. It’s all these columns, trays of votive candles, a cross. I do Like a Virgin on a bed, but we changed the arrangement, so it sounds Indian. Then I’m being punished for masturbation on this bed, which is, as you know, what happens. Then we do the more serious, religious-type material – Like a Prayer, Papa Don’t Preach… Then it changes to what you saw, this Art Deco ’50s-musical set. That’s when we do three songs from Dick Tracy, and then after that we do what I call the camp section. Then it gets really serious again and we go into our Clockwork Orange cabaret set.

Today in Madonna History: May 3, 2010

On May 3 2010, Madonna was featured on the cover of Interview magazine, with photos by Mert Atlas and Marcus Piggott.

Here’s a snippet of the interview between Gus Van Sant and Madonna featured in Interview:

MADONNA: Did you like working with my ex-husband? [laughs]

VAN SANT: I did. Sean [Penn] was amazing.

MADONNA: He is amazing.

VAN SANT: I haven’t really caught up with Sean since he’s been going to Haiti. I mean, it’s incredible, what he’s been doing.

MADONNA: Yup. He’s got a fire under his ass, that’s for sure. A bee in his bonnet.

VAN SANT: When I called him to see whether he would play the role in Milk, he took half a second to say yes. I guess he knew the elements were there.

MADONNA: I could see why he would be attracted to the role and be able to say yes in two seconds. Watching Milk was such a trip down memory lane for me.

VAN SANT: Yeah? Did you go to the Castro a lot?

MADONNA: I did when I was younger. But you know, what the movie triggered for me was all my early days in New York and the scene that I came up in-you know, with Andy Warhol and Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat and Kenny Scharf. It was just so alive with art and politics and this wonderful spirit. So many of those people are dead now. I think that’s one of the reasons I cried. In fact, the character that Richard E. Grant plays in the film I directed, Filth and Wisdom [2008], is this blind professor who was based on my ballet teacher, Christopher Flynn. Growing up in Michigan, I didn’t really know what a gay man was. He was the first man-the first human being-who made me feel good about myself and special. He was the first person who told me that I was beautiful or that I had something to offer the world, and he encouraged me to believe in my dreams, to go to New York. He was such an important person in my life. He died of AIDS, but he went blind toward the end of his life. He was such a lover of art, classical music, literature, opera. You know, I grew up in the Midwest, and it was really because of him that I was exposed to so many of those things. He brought me to my first gay club-it was this club in Detroit. I always felt like I was a freak when I was growing up and that there was something wrong with me because I couldn’t fit in anywhere. But when he took me to that club, he brought me to a place where I finally felt at home. So that character in Filth and Wisdom was dedicated to him and inspired by him. I don’t know why I’m bringing all this up, but I guess it’s just coming from that world in Michigan and the trajectory of my life: after going to New York and being a dancer when the whole AIDS epidemic started and nobody knew what it was. And then suddenly, all these beautiful men around me, people who I loved so dearly, were dying-just one after the next. It was just such a crazy time. And watching the world freak out-the gay community was so ostracized. But it was also when I was beginning my career. . . . I don’t know. Your movie really struck a chord for me and made me remember all that. It’s a time I don’t think many people have captured on film. It’s a time that people don’t talk about much. And even though there was so much death, for me, New York was so alive.

VAN SANT: It’s amazing that you had a person like that in your life who was such an influence.

MADONNA: Thank god! Otherwise, I don’t know if I would’ve gotten out of Michigan. I think it was Christopher and my Russian history teacher, Marilyn Fellows. The two of them, I think they were a conspiracy that god sent to me. The conspiracy of angels that gave me the confidence and helped me turn my lemons into lemonade, if you know what I’m saying. Because when you grow up in a really conservative place and you don’t fit in, it’s kind of hard. . . . You can go one way or the other.

 

Today in Madonna History: April 15, 1992

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On April 15 1992, Madonna appeared on the cover of Smash Hits magazine.

Here’s a snippet of the featured interview:

Smash Hits: So what have you been up to lately?

Madonna: I’ve just finished working on the movie A League Of Their Own, which I’m very excited about. I’ve also been working on material for my next record but that probably won’t be released for a couple of months.

Smash Hits: Are you planning any amazing tours and perhaps finally popping down to Australia along the way?

Madonna: Yes, absolutely. But right now I want to concentrate more on film. I’ve always wanted to become an actress – so I want to concentrate on film, the theatre and also dance.

Sorry for the crappy scan — if you have a better scan of this magazine cover, please let us know, thanks! – Jay