Madonna, was born on 16 August
1958 to Silvio, 'Tony' P. Ciccone (an Italian-American Chrysler
engineer and Madonna Louise Fortin (a woman with French Canadian
ancestry living in Bay City, Michigan). Madonna was the third of
six children born to this union. Sadly,
Madonna Louise (Madonna's mother) died of breast cancer when Madonna
was only five years old (1 December, 1963). Her father would later
marry the family house keeper and father two more children. Madonna
was raised by a Catholic family in the Detroit suburbs of Pontiac
and Rochester Hills.
Madonna attended Rochester Adams High school where she excelled
in sports, was a member of a cheerleading squad and enjoyed a
four point grade average (straight A's or full marks).
Madonna and all her siblings were forced by their father to
take music lesson and so after a few months of piano,
Madonna managed to sway her father into letting her take ballet
classes instead, where she proved her talents as a dancer.
In 1976, Madonna completed her high school education (equivalent
to secondary school in the UK) where she received a dance
scholarship to the University of Michigan. It is here that she
met ballet teacher Christopher Flynn who not only mentored her
in the field of dance but provided her first exposure to gay
discotheques (A nightclub that features dancing to recorded or
sometimes live music and often has showy decor and elaborate
lighting), a scene that would later have considerable impact
on her style and music.
|