Madonna at Boardwalk Hall

Madonna performs in concert at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City

Waiting somewhat impatiently for approximately an hour for Madonna to take the stage in Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the “Sold Out” concert sponsored by Caesars Atlantic City, finally got underway. The filled hall exploded at 10:30 pm when the lights dimmed and music began to play. It seems curious at best, that Madonna can seem to do no wrong to her fans even when she requests the air conditioning be turned off, or raised to a room warming temperature . The minute the Madonna stepped into the spotlight, all was forgiven and screaming, adoration and dancing began.

Madonna's fans are loyal as evidenced by the fact that this concert may be the highest grossing night for Boardwalk Hall, so far this year. Madonna has referred to her show as “part spectacle and sometimes intimate performance art,” but really it’s mostly spectacle. She can still move well and for a fifty-four year old woman, her dancing, enthusiasm and energy are only overshadowed by her on stage presence and charisma.

Every Madonna concert somehow becomes both memorable and entertaining with a mixture of production numbers, set designs, wonderful back up singers and dancers and of course the super star, Madonna herself. This 2 hour, twenty-two song evening was no different. Madonna included over the top exciting lighting, dancers, giant video screens, costume changes and cheerleaders. In addition, Madonna's antics of coming to the front stage close to her avid followers, writhing on the floor while singing, rising to her knees she revealed to the crowd a “No Fear” most likely temporary tattoo, emblazoned on her back.

The set list included a number of selections from her new album and many of the songs Madonna is known for such as, “Express Yourself,” “Holiday” and a slowed down version of “Like a Virgin.” The true crowd pleaser's were true Madonna versions of “Like a Prayer” and “Vogue” that elicited many squeals and applause. As expected, Madonna delivered once again. Her legions of loyal fans did not want the concert to end, but when it did, they were satisfied, smiling and still in love with their Madonna.

Madonna was born in Bay City, Michigan, on August 16, 1958. In 1981 she went solo as a pop singer and became a sensation in the male dominated 1980's music scene. By 1991, she had achieved twenty-one Top 10 hits in the United States and sold more than seventy million albums internationally. In January 2008, she was named the world's wealthiest female musician by Forbes Magazine.

Madonna today continues to be one of the best if not the best selling female recording artists ever. Her concerts for the most part, are always Sold Out and her ticket sales, album/CD sales continue after more than thirty years of performing. It does not appear that Madonna will be departing the pop music scene any time soon!

Madonna on Elton John feud

Madonna on Elton John feud: 'I forgive him' for insults

Madonna expressed herself about her long-running feud with Elton John during a recent concert in France.
Two weeks after John called her a “f— fairground stripper” on an Australian TV show, the Material Girl told fans at her concert in Nice, France, Tuesday that she forgave him for the insults.
In a video taken by a fan at the concert and flagged by TMZ, Madonna said she forgives her fellow musical icon — and dedicated her song “Masterpiece” to her detractor.
“I know he's a big fan of it,” Madonna says in the video. “And I know he's a big fan of mine. And you know? I forgive him. Gotta start somewhere."
Cynics, however, can read much into the 53-year-old diva’s choice of songs to dedicate. Madonna won a Golden Globe for “Masterpiece,” from her directorial effort, “W.E.” earlier this year — beating out fellow nominee "Hello Hello," John’s song with lyricist Bernie Taupin from the animated movie
"Gnomeo & Juliet." Before the awards show, John had told an interviewer, "Madonna doesn't have a f— chance of winning."
The source of John's most recent ire at the Material Girl seems to be her digs at fellow pop diva Lady Gaga — who is the godmother to John and partner David Furnish's 19-month-old son Zachary.
"She's been so horrible to Gaga," John explained on "Sunday Night."
Madonna had been videotaped during a May concert rehearsal seemlessly transitioning between her own 1989 hit "Express Yourself" and Gaga's "Born This Way." It was widely interpreted as a thinly veiled dig at the younger singer, suggesting that Gaga was copying her act.
But John has been taking potshots at Madonna since long before the Gaga incident. The music icons' feud dates back at least seven years, according to Marie Claire magazine, when the Rocket Man slammed Madge after she was named Best Live Act at the 2004 GQ Awards.
"Madonna, best f— live act? F— off," he said at the time. "Since when has lip-synching been live?"

Madonna receives obscene twitter

Madonna receives obscene twitter from Russian official regarding her pro Pussy Riot stance

A senior ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin used an obscene Twitter post to attack Madonna on Friday after the pop star called for the release of three women who face prison over an irreverent performance in Moscow’s main cathedral.Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, a nationalist politician and former envoy to NATO, posted the tweet after Madonna told a Moscow concert audience the jailed members of punk band Pussy Riot were “courageous” and deserved to be free.
“Every ex-wh*re tends to lecture everybody with age. Especially during world tours and concerts,” Rogozin, who now leads Russia’s drive to upgrade the army and defence industry, wrote in a tweet in English.
The microblog posting was a crudely worded echo of frequent warnings by Russian officials that Moscow will not accept Western “preaching” on human rights and democracy, a message Putin has repeatedly delivered during 12 years in power.
Madonna, who is American, donned a balaclava like those worn by Pussy Riot performers during her concert in Moscow on Tuesday night and was cheered loudly when she offered her support.
Maria Alyokhina, 24, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, stormed the altar of Russia’s main cathedral on Feb. 21 and sang a “punk prayer” calling on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin, who was then campaigning to return to the presidency after four years as prime minister.
Prosecutors want a judge to sentence them to three years in prison for hooliganism motivated by religious hatred.
They have been in jail since shortly after their performance, which offended many in mostly Orthodox Christian Russia, and Kremlin critics see their trial as part of a crackdown on dissent as Putin starts a new six-year term.
The women have said the performance was meant as criticism of close ties between Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church and the clear if informal support its leader, Patriarch Kirill, gave Putin during his successful election campaign.
Western governments and rights groups have said the govermnent’s reaction to the “punk prayer” was excessive and are watching the trial closely. The judge is to give a verdict on Aug. 17.
Rogozin, who some analysts view as a potential presidential candidate in the next election in 2018, did not mention Madonna by name in the English tweet on Friday or a Russian one on Wednesday.
But few Internet users had any doubt that he was referring to Madonna, who also spoke out in support of gay rights at a concert in St. Petersburg, Putin’s home town, on Thursday night.
“She spoke about freedom, it is the state bureaucrats who are lecturing us every day on all the state channels,” a Twitter user called Alexander Oleinik wrote in response to Rogozin’s posting in Russian.
“Either take off the cross or put on your panties,” Rogozin replied. His spokeswoman confirmed the messages were genuine.
Rogozin, former leader of the nationalist political party Rodina (Motherland), also wrote ironic messages about Pussy Riot, likening their supporters to a religious sect.
Rogozin was appointed deputy prime minister late last year as part of then prime minister Putin’s drive to appeal to moderate nationalists.
He is known for his sharply worded criticism of the West and in particular of U.S. and NATO plans for a European missile shield that Moscow calls a threat to its security.
On Friday, a group of Russian Orthodox hardliners burned Madonna’s picture outside Moscow’s Christ the Saviour cathedral, where Pussy Riot staged its punk protest.

Madonna Stands Up For Jailed Former Leader Of Ukraine

Madonna Stands Up For Jailed Former Leader Of Ukraine

Madonna rallied support for the jailed former prime minister of the Ukraine last week (ends05Aug12) after quizzing the crowd at her concert soundcheck about the circumstances surrounding her incarceration.
The Material Girl was running through songs ahead of her gig in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev last Saturday (04Aug12) when she halted the rehearsals and asked locals about troubled politician Yulia Tymoshenko, who was sentenced to serve seven years behind bars in 2011 for her alleged abuse of office while in power from December, 2007, to March, 2010.
In video footage posted on YouTube.com, Madonna told the small audience, "I don't even know the actual truth, I've just heard some stories from emails... Is it true that the woman who was the former president (sic) is in jail here?"
After hearing supporters for Tymoshenko protest her conviction, Madonna replied, "If you feel so strongly, how come no one's fighting for her? You might get killed? So, this is what we call freedom? Just curious, thank you for telling me."
The singer then urged fans to stand up for Tymoshenko and called on the crowd to fight on the embattled politician's behalf, telling them: "Are you brave? Do you have courage? Are you willing to fight for what is right?"
Madonna did not repeat her comments during her Kiev show that night, but she did make headlines in Russia this week when she performed in Moscow, Russia on Tuesday (07Aug12) and voiced her support for the imprisoned members of feminist punk band Pussy Riot, who are facing prison time for performing a protest song against President Vladimir Putin in a church in February (12).
She also upset officials in St. Petersburg on Thursday night (09Aug12) as she challenged the city's gay rights legislation during a concert, handing out pink bracelets to 25,000 fans.

Madonna and Elton John: Inside their decade-long feud

Madonna and Elton John's latest feud is nothing new. For years, their remarks have been playing out on a public stage.
John, for one, doesn't hold back when he talks to the media, oftentimes spewing controversial remarks about the "Queen of Pop."
Just this month, he said Madonna's "career is over," calling the 53-year-old singer a "fairground stripper."
Here's a look at what has gone down between the two stars -- and one-time friends -- over the past decade:
November 2002 - John bashed Madonna's theme song for the 007 movie, "Die Another Day," calling it "the worst Bond tune ever."
"It hasn't got a tune," John, 65, told the U.K.'s Sky News. "James Bond themes are usually very camp and this one's different ... They should have gone for somebody like Lulu and Shirley Bassey, or maybe I'm in that league?"
He added, "I don't think it's the best Madonna record and I'm a big fan."
October 2004 - John famously slammed Madonna at the 2004 Q Awards in London. During the show, hosted by British music magazine Q, John said he was surprised to see Madge nominated in the best live act category.
"Since when has lip-synching been live? Anyone who lip-synchs in public on stage when you pay 75 pounds to see them should be shot. Thank you very much," he said while accepting the classic songwriter award. "That's me off her Christmas card list, but do I give a toss? No."
Madonna's spokesperson Liz Rosenberg released a statement shortly after, explaining: "Madonna does not lip-synch nor does she spend her time trashing other artists. She sang every note of her Re-Invention tour live and is not ashamed that she was well paid for her hard work ... Elton John remains on her Christmas card list whether he is nice ... or naughty."            
John then spoke with Access Hollywood about his comments, saying he was "unfair."
"You know, I just said what I said and I've been meaning to say it for a long time," John said. "It was probably a bit unfair on Madonna, because a lot of people lip-synch worse and their whole show is lip-synched. Her show is not wholly lip-synched but there's an element to it." John went on to praise the singer's talent, saying, "Madonna is a great artist, she's a great writer, she's a great performer, she makes great records and I just want to leave it at that."
Later that month, he told Entertainment Weekly, "I don't want to escalate it because I like Madonna. She's been to my house for dinner. It was something that was said in the heat of the moment, and probably should not have been said." John added, "Would I apologize to her if I saw her? Yeah, because I don't want to hurt any artist's feelings. It was my fault. I instigated the whole thing. But it applies to all those bloody teenage singers."
August 2005 - Madonna and John were still on rocky ground a couple of years later. "I did send her two Christmas cards and they both came back," John told the U.K.'s Daily Telegraph in December 2005.
December 2005 - It appeared as though Madonna still wouldn't forgive John for accusing her of lip-synching in concert. The New York Post reported that John tried to make amends by inviting her to perform at his and David Furnish's bachelor party in London. But John reportedly told his guests, "Madonna, the miserable cow, wouldn't do it."
Madonna's spokeswoman responded, "Madonna wishes Elton all the best, and hopes married life will make him a happier person."
February 2011: And in 2011, John didn't change his tune on lip-synching. When Rolling Stone asked him how he feels about it, he said, "Anyone who lip-syncs should be shot. Just take 'em out on the street and shoot 'em. I think Madonna 's a fantastic showgirl -- show-woman -- and I'm a big fan of some of her records. I didn't want to hurt her feelings, and subsequently I've made up and apologized. I think she paved the way for everybody, but I am right. I'm right. Live means live."
January 2012 - Things got heated at the beginning of this year when John's partner, David Furnish, got involved. John and Madonna were competing against each other in the best original song Golden Globe category, and after Madge's win, Furnish, blasted the singer in a private message on Facebook, which was later deleted. He reportedly wrote: "Madonna. Best song???? F**k off!!!"
"Madonna winning best original song truly shows how these awards have nothing to do with merit," Furnish added. The British filmmaker called Madonna's acceptance speech embarrassing in its narcissism, noting that her criticism of Lady Gaga "shows how desperate she really is."
John, meanwhile, launched into the Madonna bashing even before the ceremony began, telling Carson Daly that Madonna had "no f---ing chance" of winning the honor. When asked if "those were fighting words," he said, "No, those are accurate words."
After her Golden Globes win, Madonna laughed off John's comments while chatting with the press backstage, saying, that John "speaks to me for the next couple of years. He's been known to get mad at me, so I don't know. He's brilliant, and I adore him, so he'll win another award. I don't feel bad."
Furnish later spoke up about the incident, saying his comments were taken the wrong way.
"My passion for our film 'Gnomeo & Juliet' and belief in Elton's song really got my emotional juices going," he said. "But I must say for the record that I do believe Madonna is a great artist, and that Elton and I wish her all the best for next week's premiere of the film 'W.E.'"
July 2012: John reignited the Madonna feud this summer in an interview with  Molly Meldrum, which aired on Australian TV.
John said, "Why is she such a nightmare? Sorry, her career is over. Her tour has been a disaster and it couldn't happen to a bigger [expletive]."
"If Madonna had any common sense, she would have made a record like 'Ray of Light,' stayed away from the dance stuff and just been a great pop singer and made great pop records, which she does brilliantly. But no, she had to prove that she was like ...," he said, not specifying. "And she looks like a [expletive] fairground stripper."

 

Madonna Faces Lawsuit

Madonna Faces Lawsuit in France Over Swastika Use 

 

A recent concert in Paris has proven to have fallout for Madonna who is expected to be sued by France's Front National party for screening a video with an image of right wing politician Marine Le Pen with a swastika superimposed on her face.
 Madonna screened the footage in Tel Aviv earlier this year, and the FN party spoke out against the music star,  but chose not to pursue her in court, threatening only that if she brought the video to France, there would be trouble.  Le Pen warned, "If she does that in France, we'll be waiting for her."
 Despite the warnings, Madonna has crossed the French borderline with the video and screened it for the more than 70,000 people who attended her concert on Saturday at the Stade de France.
 The video was projected onto a huge screen and includes Le Pen's face and also Madonna's and those of other public figures like Pope Benedict, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Hu Jintao and Sarah Palin during the singer's performance of "Nobody Knows Me." Watch below.
 Le Pen's face appears for just a few seconds with a swastika superimposed on it before the video cuts to the image of a man resembling Adolf Hitler.
 "We can't accept this!" FN vice-president Florian Philippot told French press of what she called a "very serious insult," adding: "Marine Le Pen is defending her own honor, but also that of the Front National's members, its supporters and its millions of voters."
 Le Pen's team says a private plaintiff's case for public insult will be presented to the Paris courts in the coming days.
 No word yet on what Le Pen is seeking in damages, but her father, FN leaders Jean-Marie Le Pen, spoke out in Lyon in early June recommending that his daughter  "ask Madame Madonna -- and everyone who organized her international show -- for $1 million."
 "Showing Marine Le Pen's image with a swastika is like saying she is a nazi," the FN party's lawyer Me Wallerand de Saint-Just told Gallic press.
 French anti-racism group SOS Racisme, however, has come out to support Madonna, calling the video "resolutely anti-racist and feminist" and showing that "that the fight against discrimination is a fundamental combat," the group said in a statement.
 While the FN have not been shy about their anti-Semitic or racist leanings in the past,  Le Pen has made concerted efforts to branch away from her father Jean-Marie's legacy and even managed to win over 20% of voters during the first round of France's Presidential elections this year.
 Madonna is scheduled to perform another concert in Nice on August 21 as part of her multi-city tour that includes more than 80 performances.

 

Celebrity Childhood Homes

Celebrity Childhood Homes: Where Madonna, Jimmy Fallon and Kate Hudson Grew Up

Madonna

Although international phenomenon Madonna prefers to spend most of her time at her homes in London and New York, she grew up in a brick home in the neighborhood of Rochester Hills, about thirty minutes outside Detroit, MI. Madonna’s childhood home is a two-story brick Colonial with 4 bedrooms and 2 baths, which the singer shared with seven siblings before leaving for fame and fortune at age 18. Madonna’s father and stepmother moved out in July 2001, selling the home for $270,000. In 2008, the home burned, reportedly due to arson, and sat empty until it sold for $91,700 in early 2012.

Jimmy Fallon

Before he cracked jokes on “Saturday Night Live” and as the host of “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” Fallon was like most kids: Days spent playing in the backyard of his childhood home in upstate New York. Fallon’s childhood home in Saugerties is now available for a new family (and perhaps future comic) to move in. The 3-bedroom, 2-bath home has 1,780-square-feet of living space, hardwood and ceramic floors, a large country kitchen, and upstairs study.

Farrah Fawcett

Before she was one of “Charlie’s Angels,” blond beauty Farrah Fawcett was the daughter of an oil man in Corpus Christi, TX. Fawcett’s 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom childhood home was recently given a nice facelift with new paint, tile, carpeting, lighting and bathroom fixtures before it was listed on the market earlier this year for $215,000. It also boasts an updated kitchen and fresh landscaping and new driveway.

Kate Hudson

Most celebrities move on from their childhood home. Except if you grew up the kid of Hollywood stalwarts. In 2011, actress Kate Hudson purchased the Pacific Palisades home she grew up in. The home was built in 1935 and owned by Hudson’s mother Goldie Hawn and stepfather Kurt Russell in the 1970s. They sold it and it was expanded to 7,000 square feet by new owners before Hudson bought it back for $5.3 million. Coincidentally, Hawn and Russell still live nearby and Hudson also owns the home next door.

Michael Jackson

Source: People.com

The King of Pop’s first home in Gary, IN has long been famous as part of the Jackson 5′s history-making story about the rise from poverty to international fame. The home was tiny, measuring just 672 square feet with 2 bedrooms and 1 bath. To apartment dwellers, that may not seem so bad, but considering that all eleven members of the Jackson family lived there, the space was the definition of cramped. The Jacksons moved out to Hollywood following the success of the Jackson 5, and in the latter years of Michael Jackson’s career, the home became a shrine of sorts. The home has not been sold and is likely still owned by the Jackson clan.

Mitt Romney

Source: Politico

Presidential candidate Mitt Romney spent the first five years of his life in this 5,500-square-foot home in the upscale Detroit Palmer Woods neighborhood before moving to Detroit’s Bloomfield Hills suburb.  Although Detroit real estate has been hard hit in the past few years, Palmer Woods real estate remained steady as a high-end neighborhood. However, even an upscale location couldn’t save Romney’s childhood home from foreclosure or the wrecking ball. After falling into disrepair in 2009, the house was one of 3,000 Detroit homes razed in the city’s renewal plan.

 

Madonna shows she’s no lady (Gaga)

Pop superstar Madonna kicked off a new world tour on Thursday wishing peace on the Middle East, even as she showcased grim dance routines depicting violence and bloody gunmen among her more colourful numbers.

Madonna, 53, mixed hit songs over three decades in music with tunes from her recent album, MDNA, before a packed audience, and she took a sly dig at younger diva, Lady Gaga.

“She’s not me!” Madonna belted out at the end of Express Yourself, which she had reworked to include a sampling of Lady Gaga’s recent Born This Way. 

That song from Lady Gaga, who emerged on the pop music scene about four years ago and has enjoyed a huge following, was noted by many fans and critics as being very similar to Madonna’s late 1980s dance club smash.

Since Lady Gaga, 26, released Born This Way, there has been speculation that a generational challenge was in the works and comedians have poked fun at any imagined rivalry between the two women.

Despite occasional light-hearted touches such as a baton-twirling routine in cheerleader formation and a psychedelic homage to Indian philosophy, the dominant mood at Thursday’s concert in Tel Aviv seemed more grim, with a stage shrouded in black and red and costumes that often appeared ominous.

Like a Virgin, a dance tune that helped propel Madonna to stardom as risqué pop ingénue in the 1980s, was performed as a mournful cabaret with violin accompaniment. At one point, the singer was trussed up and hoisted into the air by four male dancers, then lowered on to a platform as though into a volcano – a virgin sacrifice.

For Gang Bang, Madonna wrestled with armed intruders whom she then dispatched with a pistol – their “blood” spattering across an enormous video backdrop. In a routine for Revolver, she wielded a Kalashnikov rifle, used by many modern-day insurgents, while one of her dancers favoured an Israeli Uzi.

The exertions never sapped her confident singing, though she did become somewhat breathless during remarks to the audience at Ramat Gan stadium on Tel Aviv’s outskirts. “I chose to start my world tour in Israel for a very specific and important reason. As you know, the Middle East and all the conflicts that have been occurring here for thousands of years – they have to stop,” she said to cheers.

A devotee of Jewish mysticism, Madonna had dubbed the first leg of her 28-country MDNA tour the “Peace Concert” and distributed free tickets to some of the Palestinians who attended from the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem.

Among them was a woman named Yasmine, who declined to give her last name in light of Palestinian calls to boycott the Madonna concert and other cultural events in Israel. She offered a mixed assessment of the show. “I wasn’t a fan of the intro. It was too aggressive and massacre-like,” Yasmine said. “Her (Madonna’s) speech about peace and the mention of Palestine was heartfelt, though.”

Avihay Asseraf, an Israeli who dedicated a Facebook page to Madonna’s visit, was more sanguine about the darker displays.

“That’s how she chose to express herself this time,” he said. “Ultimately this is a show, a spectacle, and it’s all for fun.” – Reuters