Madonna previously drummed for the Breakfast Club, a New York pop group. Randy Jackson, a later member of the band, was an American Idol judge. Dan Gilroy and Stephen Bray, both ex-boyfriends, were also members of the Breakfast Club. 1)
Madonna won the Best Actress Golden Globe Award in 1997, beating out Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, Debbie Reynolds and Barbra Streisand for her work in Evita. 2)
Madonna has appeared in 22 films as an actress. 3)
Madonna has been crowned the best-selling female rock artist of the twentieth century by the Recording Industry Association of America. With 63 million certified albums sold, she is also the second-best-selling female artist in the United States. 4)
According to Guinness World Records, Madonna is the most successful female music artist of all time, having sold over 200 million records worldwide. 5)
Madonna is the youngest of six children born to Silvio and Madonna Louise Ciccone (nee Fortin). Her mother inspired her name. 6)
Her father's second marriage to his former domestic Joan Gustafson produced a stepbrother and stepsister for her. 7)
Madonna was a member of Rochester Adams High School's cheerleading squad. 8)
Madonna worked at a Dunkin' Donuts in New York City while trying to make it as a dancer in the Big Apple. She was allegedly fired after squirting jam in the face of a customer. 9)
“Everybody,” Madonna's first single, was released on April 24, 1982. 10)
According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which inducted Madonna earlier this year, Madonna's hit album “Like A Virgin” is among the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. 11)
In addition to co-starring with Sean Penn in Shanghai Surprise, Madonna appeared onstage with her then-husband in her theatrical debut “Goose and Tom Tom” in 1986. 12)
Madonna and Sean Penn divorced on December 31, 1988. 13)
Madonna's “Confessions” tour is the highest-grossing concert tour ever performed by a female artist. 14)
Madonna is the most successful female in the pop charts in her adopted country, the United Kingdom, with more number one singles than any other female solo artist. 15)