A letter in which pop legend Madonna gives a detailed response in the aftermath of her famous appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman in the mid-90s is set to go up for auction, with early reports saying the letter is expected to fetch several thousands of dollars from one of her die-hard fans, according to TMZ .
The handwritten note that is dated as May 1994 will be going on the auction block before the end of the month, with Boston-based auction house RR Auction, who has made news recently after auctioning off certain personal items that once belonged to Princess Diana, in charge of the proceedings. This isn’t the first time the letter has been made public, as Madonna herself published the letter on her own website previously with very little response.
The letter details an appearance on the show during which Madonna dropped the f-bomb no less than 14 times throughout her interview with Letterman, as well as handing Letterman a pair of panties and requesting that he smell it. It became one of the show’s defining moments, making Letterman appear as uncomfortable as he had ever been. The episode became the most censored episode of a late-night talk show in television history. Madonna’s letter details the sexism that she felt she faced in response to her swearing on television.
At one point in the letter, she details that if a male celebrity had gone on the show and used the same language, singling out the particularly foul-mouthed 90s fixtures Andrew Dice Clay and Snoop Dogg as examples, “no one would have given a f***.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBm5kzTYfNU
Madonna goes on to explain that as a woman in America, she is expected to behave in a certain “ladylike” way despite her fame and success, something her male peers are under no constraint to do. “In this country, you are not allowed to be a girl, look good, have a point of view and have a good time all at once,” wrote Madonna. “Need I say more.”
Current projections from RR Auction have the letter selling for an amount somewhere between two and three grand, but as is the case with celebrities that have the dedicated following of Madonna, personal items such as this can catch fire on the auction market and sell for much higher than the early projections.
The live auction for the letter is currently scheduled for September 25, but until then, bids for the letter can be made online starting on Thursday.
