The Madonna File
There are a lot of things you already know about Madonna, the Material Girl who became a pop star and cultural icon more than 20 years ago.
You probably already know that the three shows of her “Re-Invention” tour in San Jose at HP Pavilion Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday are hot tickets, despite top face-value prices of $300.
You probably also know that, as the name of her tour reflects, Madonna re-creates her image every few years: from twentysomething sexual temptress to 45-year-old mother of two and children’s book author.
But did you know?
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Her birth name: Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone
She was born: Aug. 16, 1958, in Bay City, Mich.
Her father: Silvio Ciccone was a design engineer for Chrysler/General Motors.
Her mother: Madonna Ciccone died of breast cancer when Madonna was 5.
More family: She is one of eight children.
She attended the University of Michigan, on a dance scholarship.
She danced with the Alvin Ailey troupe.
In 1979 She joined a disco band, the Patrick Hernandez Revue. She performed with a group called the Breakfast Club and then with a band called Emmy.
Her daughter: Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon is now 7.
Lourdes’ father: Carlos Leon was Madonna’s fitness trainer.
Madonna’s son: Rocco is now 3. Rocco’s father, Guy Ritchie, Madonna’s husband, is a filmmaker.
Guinness World Records counts Madonna as the most successful female solo artist, with 16 solo albums selling more than 150 million copies and charting 35 Top 10 singles.
She made $80,000 for her part in the movie “Desperately Seeking Susan” and $2.5 million for the movie “Body of Evidence”.
“Bedtime Stories” in 1994 was Madonna’s first single not to make it into the Top 40. (It was written by Björk.)
She once said: “I know I’m not the greatest singer or dancer, but that doesn’t interest me. I’m interested in being provocative and pushing people’s buttons.”
Her IQ: Widely estimated to be 140.
Her religion: Kabbalah, a form of Jewish mysticism.
On the money: Wall Street Journal managing editor Paul Steiger once wrote in a column for the paper: “The bottle-blonde singer, dancer, songwriter, actor, author, single mother of two, marketing genius and entertainment conglomerator has been a hero of mine ever since 1985.”
Madonna “Re-Invention Tour”
Where: HP Pavilion, 525 W. Santa Clara St., San Jose
When: 8 p.m. Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday
Tickets: $45-$300; www.ticketmaster.com
Article by Marian Liu, MercuryNews