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Rosie O’Donnell says the foundation of her decades-long friendship with Madonna was built on a deeply personal connection.
The comedian recently shared that they became “sisters” after discovering both were named after mothers who died of b***** cancer during their childhood.
Speaking about their relationship during a recent interview with People, O’Donnell said, “I’d never met another woman whose mother died and they’re named after the mother. When you go to the grave site, you see your name on the tombstone. When we met, it was the first thing I said: ‘My mom died when I was young, and I was named after her too.’ It’s like we became sisters at that moment.”
Madonna’s mother, Madonna Louise Ciccone, died in 1963, when the then-future-singer was five years old. O’Donnell’s mother, Roseann Teresa Murtha, on the other hand, passed away in 1973, when O’Donnell was 10. O’Donnell’s real name is Roseann, meaning both stars share their late mothers’ names.
During the interview, O’Donnell also reflected on their different parenting styles. She shared that Madonna maintained much stricter rules at home than she did. She further recalled that when two of Madonna’s six children, Lourdes and Rocco, came over for playdates, her approach was far more relaxed.
“She ran a very tight ship. I had a very not tight ship. Her kids Lola and Rocco would come over for a playdate, and I’d give them an ice pop and turn on the cartoons,” O’Donnell told People.
The longtime friends first worked together in the 1992 film A League of Their Own. O’Donnell previously opened up about meeting Madonna during a 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
She said she wasn’t expecting to meet the singer until the film’s director Penny Marshall called her into the office while she was in baseball rehearsals for the film.
According to O’Donnell, Marshall told her Madonna was coming in to audition and said, “If she likes you, and she likes me, maybe she’ll do the movie. Don’t be nervous.” O’Donnell admitted that she immediately wondered, “Don’t be nervous? What do you say to her? How do you connect to her?”
O’Donnell ultimately decided to tell Madonna about losing her mother at 10 and being named after her, adding that “on her gravestone is my name as well.”
