Though there have been many imitators and pretenders to the throne in the 30+ years that she’s been reigning as the Queen of Pop, very few have ever even come close to accomplishing the sort of cultural longevity and impact. With her forward thinking and countless reinventions, Her Madgesty is responsible for single-handedly crafting the template for the modern pop diva—give or take a Cher. (Hey, everyone can count someone else as inspiration, right?)
In honor of Madonna turning the big 6-0 today—and as a way of thanking her for all she’s done to essentially deliver the soundtrack of our lives—we’re taking stock of a remarkable life well lived (and only just getting started, if you ask us), one crazy fact at a time.
2. One of six children, Madonna is named after her mother, who died of breast cancer when the future superstar was only five years old. To distinguish her from her mother, she was referred to “Little Nonni.”
3. A straight-A student, Madonna received a dance scholarship to the University of Michigan.
4. In 1978, Madonna dropped out of college and hightailed it to New York City with only $35 to her name. (Or so the legend goes. According to her brother Christopher Ciccone, she arrived in the Big Apple with more money and contacts.)
5. Trying to make ends meet while studying at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Madonna took work wherever she could find it, including a Dunkin’ Donuts. She was reportedly fired for squirting jam in a customer’s face.
7. A year or so later, she left the band (and Gilroy) to form Emmy with new boyfriend Stephen Bray. Their music caught the attention of Sire Records founder Seymour Stein, who offered her a singles deal.
8. Madonna’s first single, “Everybody,” was released on October 6, 1982. Her debut album, Madonna, was released in July 1983, earning her her first top 10 hit, “Borderline,” in 1984.
9. Her oft-imitated iconic ’80s look (think lace tops, skirts over capri pants, fishnets, lots of bracelets, lots of crucifixes) was actually the creation of stylist and jewelry designer Maripol.
10. She’s single-handedly responsible for setting the bar for all other artists at the MTV Video Music Awards with her iconic performance of “Like a Virgin” at the cable network’s first-ever ceremony in 1984.
13. Her 2008 Sticky & Sweet Tour was so successful, she broke the record she’d set only two years earlier with her Confessions Tour. It still remains the highest-grossing concert tour of all time by a female artist.
14. In 1990, Madonna was nominated to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. However, she showed no interest of accepting and the invitation expired.
15. Madonna has appeared in 19 films over the course of her career, with her starring turn in the 1996 film adaptation of the musical Evita earning her a Golden Globe.
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17. Roles Madonna sought out: Catwoman in Batman Returns, Ginger (Sharon Stone‘s role) in Casino, and Rachel (Whitney Houston‘s role) in The Bodyguard.
18. Roles Madonna turned down: Leading roles in Showgirls (Can you even imagine?!) and The Fabulous Baker Boys.
19. Madonna has been a vegetarian since the age of 15.
20. She suffers from brontophobia, which is a fear of thunder and lightning.
21. She’s been married twice; first to actor Sean Penn from 1985-89 and then to British director Guy Ritchie from 2000-08.
22. The album True Blue was dedicated for Penn.
23. Gwyneth Paltrow served as the maid of honor during her Scottish wedding to Ritchie.
24. Madonna is the only artist to have performed at Live Aid in 1985, Live 8 in 2005, and Live Earth in 2007.
25. She published her first children’s book, The English Roses, in 2003. She’s since published a total of 10.
27. In 1989, she signed a $5 million dollar endorsement deal with Pepsi tied to the release of her “Like a Prayer” music video, but after the uproar caused by the controversial video and its blasphemous Catholic imagery, the deal was called off and the commercial never even aired.
28. During a 1994 appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, she uttered the f-word 13 times and handed her panties over to the late-night host, asking him to smell them. The appearance ranked as one of the most-bleeped single episodes in the show’s history.
29. In 2010, along with manager Guy Oseary and Mark Mastrov, the founder and CEO of 24 Hour Fitness, Madonna ventured in the fitness business with her series of health clubs called Hard Candy Fitness, named after her 2008 album Hard Candy.
30. She hates the color orange.
32. Thanks to her mother’s French-Canadian ancestry, Madonna is a distant relative of Céline Dion‘s.
33. Her very first tour was supported by none other than The Beastie Boys.
34. “Vogue” was originally only going to be a B-side because Madonna didn’t believe it was a strong enough song to be released as a single.
35. When she released her Sex book in 1992, full of explicit photos of the Material Girl, it proved to be so popular that a re-print had to be ordered within 48 hours and it topped the New York Times bestseller list within a week.
37. The first song to ever make a strong impression on her was Nancy Sinatra‘s “These Boots Are Made for Walkin,” which she told Time Magazine in 1985 summed up her own “take-charge attitude.”
38. In 2004, after dedicating herself to Kabbalah, she adopted the name Esther, which means “star” in Persian.
39. With 38 entries, Madonna has the most Top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
40. Until 2011, she held the record for the shortest amount of time for a solo artist to achieve 20 top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100. She was usurped by Rihanna.
42. She’s been nominated for induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame three times, for the 2014, 2016, and 2017 ceremonies, but continues to come up short.
43. She was, however, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008—her first year of eligibility.
44. In 2005, she suffered three cracked ribs, a broken collarbone, and a broken hand following a fall from her horse outside her home in London.
45. She has directed two feature films, 2007’s Filth and Wisdom and 2011’s W.E., neither of which received the warmest of receptions from critics or audiences alike.
46. Of 28 Grammy nominations, Madonna’s taken home seven trophies.
47. She once dated Vanilla Ice, but found herself incredibly jealous, calling him in the middle of the night to see if he was cheating on her. The relationship only lasted eight months.
48. Other suitors of note include: Warren Beatty, Tupac, Dennis Rodman, Lenny Kravitz, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and—believe it or not—John F. Kennedy, Jr.
49. For years, the domain name Madonna.com was used by a porn company. In 2000, the singer successfully took them to court and got the web address back.
50. The Pope actually asked people not to attend her 1990 Blond Ambition World Tour, due to her simulated masturbation during “Like a Virgin.”
51. In 2017, she opened the Mercy James Institute for Pediatric Surgery and Intensive Care in Blantyre, Malawi. The hospital was named after her adoptive daughter.
53. Her 2005 single “Hung Up,” which featured a sample of ABBA’s “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight),” is only one of two instances that the Swedish pop group have allowed their work to be used in such a capacity.
54. In 2007, after announcing her departure from Warner Bros. Records, Madonna became the first artist to sign with the Live Nation in a $120 million, 10 year 360 deal.
55. In 2017, she left New York City behind and began a new chapter of her and her adopted children’s lives as residents of Lisbon, Portugal.
57. She made her Broadway debut in 1998 playing Karen in David Mamet‘s play Speed-the-Plow.
58. She holds the distinction of being the world’s richest recording artist, with a net worth estimated somewhere around $800 million.
59. She also holds the title of most pre-orders in a single day on iTunes thanks to MDNA‘s placing in pre-order charts in 50 countries across the world in 2012.
60. In 2006, scientists named a species of microscopic water-dwelling organisms known as the “water bear” after Madonna and there’s reason for her to be proud that they bear her name. The water bear is basically invincible, able to live upwards of 120 years without food or water while withstanding conditions that would kill most other living species. Fitting, no?
Happy birthday, Madonna!
Source: E! News
