Madonna

A series of hit singles from Madonna's next studio albums, Like a Virgin (1984) and True Blue (1986), established her as a pop icon. She pushed the boundaries of lyrical content in mainstream popular music and imagery in her music videos, which became a fixture on MTV. Her recognition was augmented by the film Desperately Seeking Susan (1985) which was widely seen as a Madonna vehicle, despite her not playing the lead. Expanding on the use of religious imagery with Like a Prayer (1989), Madonna received critical appreciation for her diverse musical productions, while at the same time religious conservatives and the Vatican criticized her. In 1992, Madonna founded the Maverick corporation as a joint venture with Time Warner. The same year, she expanded the use of material in her work, beginning with the release of the studio album Erotica, followed by the publishing of the coffee table book Sexy and starring in the erotic thriller Body of Evidence, all of which received negative responses from conservatives and liberals alike.