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I mean this on so many levels: How did I make it this far?
But I was wrong, she said gravely.
There are rules if youre a girl.
She outlined a few: Dont act too smart, make men uncomfortable or women jealous.
And finally, do not age, she said.
Because to age is a sin.
You will be criticized, you will be vilified, and you willdefinitelynot be played on the radio.
Reading reviews from the 80s and 90s, youd think sexuality was the only trick up her sleeve.
It wasnt, but even more interesting was that her sexuality never rested on the idea of being attractive.
Even back then, people liked to speculate on what might happen when Madonna was old.
Her ability to titillate will wane with time, the critic Lucy Sante wrote in 1990.
But Santes theory, as it turned out, wasnt true.
Frankly, it looked incredible.
Is this the Sunday night crowd?
Are you gonna be prudish and conservative?
Can I say bad words?
What a retro concept that bad words would move the needle!
(To be clear, I think its a masterpiece.)
What choice did Madonna ever have but to age un-gracefully?
(Did you think Id lay down and die?
she sang, her voice clear and strong, flashing a look at the crowd.
Did you?Did you?)
It was a family for whom art was a passion and a refuge.
