In late 1977, a University of Michigan dance student named Madonna Louise Ciccone posed nude at $10 an hour for photographer Herman Kulkens.
Less than 10 years later, she was a household name.
Check out the dark haired teenager with the flinty eyes, clad in nothing but a man’s striped shirt and tie and chewing seductively on a pair of glasses:
The steely expression she honed en route to becoming one of the world’s biggest star, amassing an fortune of up to $500 million, is already present.
This is the least revealing of a number of images set to be auctioned from her younger days. In others, Madonna, now 55, is nude as the day is long.
One shot shows her standing naked with her back to the camera with just a wide-brimmed hat on her head – and a blanket draped around her legs.
Another shows her naked and brushing another model’s hair.
The Madonna nude pictures would go on to be at the center of a legal battle in 1985 when Penthouse and Playboy both attempted to print them.
They were published, following a series of lawsuits and disputes over their ownership. They remain controversial to this day, with an auction looming.
In fact, the sensational pics are among the treasure trove left behind by Penthouse founder Bob Guccione who died of cancer in 2010 at age 79.
They are now owned by Wall Street trader turned entrepreneur Jeremy Frommer, who bought Guccione’s entire estate from his creditor last year.
For Madonna, the publication of the nude photos would not have come a shock. She posed naked for three photographers between 1978 and 1980.
Madonna’s publicist Liz Rosenberg said “Madonna has acknowledged in past interviews that she did pose nude for art classes when she was a model.”
“Her feeling is she’s never done anything she’s ashamed of.”