Madonna (18 page)

The next occurrence of outward pressure was directed at her relationship with Jellybean. Earlier that year, while she was in England, she made an offhand comment that was a preview of the future. When an inquiring reporter asked her what it was like dating someone who was also entwined in the music business, she replied, “Very tiring. When you're working—and your private relationship is falling apart, it's hard to carry on. When you're getting on, you can't stop talking about the record business and then you wonder if you have anything else in common.

After “Like a Virgin” was released, Jellybean watched Madonna's fame surpass his almost overnight. “It gets pretty crazy sometimes,” he explained at the time. “People are constantly—not clawing her—but we go to a restaurant and we can't go anyplace where she has to sit idle for too long. If we go to a movie we have to get there just before they let people in—walk into the theater and get the worst seats. We can't go to Macy's shopping. Things like that, that I never thought about before, have to be considered now. We can't go to a restaurant where it's really bright. We can't just go to any club anymore, because we have to be careful of the type of people that go to the club.”
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On November 7, 1984, there was a private party for Madonna at a popular video club called Private Eyes, on West 21st Street. It was a reception to kick off the release of her
Like a Virgin
album, and a chance for the press to mingle with Madonna. Her date for the evening was Jellybean, and the guests included Andy Warhol and designer Dianne Brill. However, when she arrived at the intimate high-tech club, she was almost immediately mobbed, so she had to be whisked up to a secluded balcony, where she could look down on the crowd and talk to her friends through the railings. Her new status was about to cut her off from dozens of people who were once considered close friends.

“I can't take the subway,” she complained that autumn. “I did till a few months ago. Now it's really a pain in the ass. I take a cab everywhere, and I hate taking cabs. I ride my bike a lot, too. It's really hard when you go to restaurants and everyone stares. I don't want people staring at me. I want to eat! Or, standing in line at the grocery store, and people are looking to see what you're buying. Or, when you're in a store and everyone wants to see what you're buying. I just leave. It turns a lot of things off to me.”
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According to Jellybean, “Right after the ‘Borderline' video, people started noticing her a lot. I mean, people used to notice her a lot—just from walking down the street. And then, people would bother her. I really shouldn't say ‘bother' her—but fans would come over all the time and want autographs and stuff. So, it was a learning experience for her, something she had to adjust to.”
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That Christmas, Madonna and Jellybean decided to get away from the hassle of her newfound notoriety in New York City. They got on a jet and breezed off to the Virgin Islands to escape the craziness. They had an extremely relaxing holiday together—until they got on the plane to come home.

“We were coming back from our Christmas vacation in St. Martin,” explains Jellybean. “On the plane, she didn't want to give any autographs at all; she was on vacation. And, I had to agree with her, it was like constantly, constantly, people hounding her—'Madonna! Madonna! Madonna!' She was in one of
those
moods. It was a really difficult plane flight, because people kept wanting to take pictures, and everybody's on vacation, so they wanted her autograph. So, I was like a security guard on the way back. These little girls kept coming over and trying to take a picture, and I kept blocking Madonna's face with a magazine. And this woman comes over and says she wanted an autograph, and it was the least that Madonna could do—because she was a pediatrician, and she works hard for her kids to buy Madonna records. It was like half of the plane was rooting for Madonna, and half of the plane was rooting for the other woman.”
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As far as their love affair was concerned, in February 1985 Jellybean philosophized, “I think that the relationship will run its course, just like any other relationship. If it was meant to be, it will last. I'm a real strong believer in fate. I think that it was really good that we ended up meeting when we met—because we helped each other through some very difficult times.”
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It was wise of Jellybean to be so levelheaded about his relationship, because he was about to become history as far as Madonna was concerned.

During this same period, Madonna was also waxing philosophical about her position on the planet. According to her, “My image—to people—I think, is that I'm this brazen, aggressive young woman who has an OK voice with some pretty exciting songs… and has the potential as an actress.”
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The acting potential was, at this time, more in Madonna's mind than in the world's image of her. But with her relentless drive—she was about to change all that.

I always said that I wanted

to be famous. I just love the glamour

and the attention.
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—Madonna

 

I
t is an acknowledged fact that Madonna has an attitude problem. Especially at the beginning of her career, Madonna behaved like a stuck-up bitch. There is a fine line between being ambitious and being downright pushy, and she often crossed it. According to her friends, if you ever provoke her, she'll treat you like you never existed, but if you can do something for her—she'll act like your best friend. Madonna rubbed a lot of people the wrong way right from the start. She can be charming if she chooses to be, but if she doesn't she can come across as cold and arrogant.

The minute she became famous, Madonna began making statements that caused people to question her motives and her sincerity. It wasn't just that she was perceived as having questionable morals; she seemed to go out of her way to look for conflicts to create. She quickly learned that the more outrageous her statements were, the more press she received.

Religious groups, especially members of the Catholic church, immediately bristled at the sight of all the crucifixes she wore—dangling from chains around her neck, her earlobes, and any number of other parts of her body. While she openly displayed several crucifixes as part of her fashion accessories, she was usually wearing them on top of outfits that would get her banned from any church, synagogue, or mosque. When asked about wearing the crucifixes, Madonna would reply, “Crucifixes are sexy because there's a naked man on them.”
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That statement was always good for maximum shock value.

She would elaborate, “When I was a little girl, we had crucifixes all over the house, as a reminder that Jesus Christ died on the cross for us.”
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Since the song that really made her an international sensation was “Like a Virgin,” another popular press query centered on the evident loss of her own virginity. How did she feel about losing it? According to her, “I didn't lose my virginity until I knew what I was doing.”
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She claimed that the negative press she began to receive was unjust. She quickly learned to confront the press head on, accusing the press of sexist double standards. “Sexy boys never get bad press,”
¹⁵
she said, citing Prince as a specific example.

As everyone in show business knows, even bad press is good press. A good scandal can sell as much product as a favorable review, and Madonna was well aware of that. With her typically bratty attitude she clairvoyantly proclaimed, “1985 is going to be my year. You watch!”
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In the beginning of 1985, Madonna remained mistress of her own destiny. She had learned to rely on one of Warner Records' head publicists, Liz Rosenberg, to field the mounting requests for interviews. She had also hired crackerjack lawyer Paul Schindler to represent her business deals. Through her intelligent business acumen, Madonna wanted to communicate to the music industry that she wasn't just another blonde bimbo. “I am in control of myself,” she said.
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Especially in the beginning of her career, she was a willful and abrasive girl, and she knew it. “I can be arrogant sometimes, but I never mean it intentionally,” she claimed. “I always acted like a star long before I was one.”
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Although Madonna's success in 1985 was a combination of brilliant timing and masterful strategies, several of the things that occurred were totally out of her control. Once she got the ball rolling, it was impossible to stop her fame from growing. By the time the avalanche of a year was over, anyone who didn't know Madonna must have lived under a rock.

Madonna's fame was magnified a thousand times larger than any new one-shot singer with a hit album and Number One song, mainly by the fact that as soon as she hit the top of the music charts, and became a fixture on MTV, she was also seen as a brilliant new movie star as well.

In the summer of 1984, when Madonna was signed to appear in the modestly budgeted feature film,
Desperately Seeking Susan
, no one could have predicted how successful the film was to become. A simple light-hearted screwball comedy, the movie was originally seen as a starring vehicle for promising young actress Rosanna Arquette.

With a 1930s-style plot involving amnesia, a case of mistaken identity, and a stolen Egyptian artifact, the script was fresh, light, and charming. Another interesting aspect to
Desperately Seeking Susan
was that it was very much a women's production. With the exception of executive producer Michael Peyser, the four key people involved in making the film were women: director Susan Seidelman, producers Sarah Pillsbury and Midge Sanford, and screenwriter Leora Barish.

The film was to become the first milestone for the acclaimed but relatively unproven director, Susan Seidelman. The film represented her first shot at big league movie-making and it was a gamble that has paid off. (She has directed such major features as
She-Devil
with Meryl Streep since then.) A graduate of New York University's film school, Seidelman had previously directed the popular low-budget cult film
Smithereens
, about a young woman's adventures in the East Village punk rock scene. When Susan first read the script for
Desperately Seeking Susan
, it immediately appealed to her.

It was Warner Brothers Pictures that originally had the script in development, and they were hoping to end up with Cher, Goldie Hawn, or Diane Keaton in the starring role. When producers Sanford and Pillsbury parted company with Warner, they took the project to Orion Pictures, and the ball suddenly started rolling.

According to Seidelman, “When Orion decided to do the movie, they knew that it was going to be this script, me as the director, and Rosanna as the star.”
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Arquette's role of Roberta, a New Jersey housewife who longed for adventure, was in contrast to the title role of Susan. Finding Susan was a pivotal point in the production casting.

“We were looking for somebody to play Susan,” recalls Seidelman. “I knew Madonna for a couple of years. She was beginning to get popular. I kept seeing her face when I read the script, as Susan. She seemed like an exciting choice. And, I think at first the producers and the studio people were a little nervous.”
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Producer Midge Sanford said they were looking for an unknown actress with a wild side and a strong screen presence. When the idea of using the aspiring “Lucky Star” singer was suggested, Sanford had to admit, “Madonna has an incredible look and a very strong style.”
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When co-producer Sarah Pillsbury met her, she found Madonna to be a “punk Mae West” and “a total fantasy for both men and women.”
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It was a gamble, but one they decided to bank on.

At this point,
Vision Quest
was mired down in a series of delays, so no one had it as a reference point for Madonna's reliability. Initially it was difficult for the producers to take Madonna seriously as a professional. “I think they were shocked when I showed up every morning like clockwork,” Madonna recalls.
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Seidelman had nothing but glowing things to say about Madonna's performance on camera. “There was something about Madonna. I think it's just kind of ‘her.' She's got a sort of ‘bad girl/good girl' quality that I think is real interesting. She's a little tough, but not too tough. A little ‘street,' but also, I think, really appealing. Earthy, in a way that I thought was essential to the character. I didn't want to get an actress who was going to try to put on clothes and sort of a make-believe street attitude. I thought that Madonna had an authentic quality that would be really good to try to capture on film. I was a little nervous myself, because there was a lot of dialogue in the script, and I just didn't know how well she'd do. But I had seen her in her videos. She's a performer. I think that if she can perform on video, she can perform on film. Once she had the confidence to allow herself to be uninhibited on the film, she's wonderful. There's a presence.”
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The film's unit publicist, Reid Rosefelt, echoed Seidelman's praises of Madonna: “She was always there when she had to be there. I think when people are talking about hiring somebody from the world of rock and roll for a movie, they don't believe that they ever go to sleep, or they're always at parties, or something like that. But, that's not the case with Madonna. She was really dedicated, and a real pro all the way.”
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The filming, which was done in September, October, and November of 1984, began before Madonna had appeared on the MTV Awards telecast, and before the whole “Like a Virgin” sensation exploded. The growth of Madonna's fame created an unexpected problem for the film: the possibility of alienating Rosanna. According to Susan Seidelman, Rosanna was hired as the movie's star. When the film began, Madonna was relatively unknown, but as filming progressed, so, too, did Madonna's fame. “I think Rosanna's fear was that it was going to turn into a Madonna vehicle,” Susan recalled.
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