Prince was one of the most popular and groundbreaking artists in popular music history. He passed away on Thursday at the age of 57.
His career spanned nearly 40 years and included instantly identifiable hit songs and a starring role in a successful movie.
But there were plenty of moments in Prince's career that you may not have known about. Listed below are 10 of them.
Prince had his own video game.
In June 1994, a CD-ROM adventure game called "Prince Interactive" was released. The game included Prince trivia and unlockable music videos. The game also included puzzles and an adventure element that allowed players to explore Prince's recording studio complex.
Prince directed two movies.
Undoubtedly, Prince's most famous film work came with his starring role in 1984's "Purple Rain," but the singer also directed two movies of his own. He directed and starred in 1986's "Under the Cherry Moon" and in 1990, he wrote, directed and starred in an unofficial sequel to "Purple Rain" called "Graffiti Bridge."
A ballet was created based on Prince's music.
In 1993, the acclaimed Joffrey Ballet created a show based on Prince's music called "Billboards." A film of the performance was released on VHS and Laserdisc.
Prince won an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
In 1985, Prince won an Oscar for the original score of "Purple Rain." In 2007, his original tune "The Song of the Heart" for the movie "Happy Feet" won him a Golden Globe.
He wrote the entire soundtrack to 1989's "Batman."
While composer Danny Elfman wrote the original score for the 1989 movie "Batman," Prince composed and performed the movie's entire soundtrack album. Prince's "Batman" soundtrack topped the Billboard charts and sold over 11 million copies. The song "Batdance" was Prince's fourth number-one hit and his last of the 1980s.
Prince blew off a chance to be part of "We Are the World."
Like many popular musicians in the mid-1980s, Prince was offered a chance to sing on the all-star charity song "We Are the World" but he turned it down. According to USA Today, the decision led to Prince's first taste of bad press and resulted in a negative downturn in his career. Prince did donate a separate original song for the "We Are the World" album called "4 the Tears in Your Eyes."
Prince wrote hit songs for other artists including the Bangles, Stevie Nicks and Madonna.
Prince wrote a long list of songs that were performed by other artists including Madonna's "Love Song," and the Bangles' "Manic Monday".
Prince wrote MC Hammer's follow-up single to "U Can't Touch This."
After MC Hammer took off in 1990 with his hit song "U Can't Touch This," he released the single "Pray," which was written by Prince. The song sampled Prince's "When Doves Cry" and was another big hit for MC Hammer.
Prince impersonated Bryant Gumbel in an appearance on the "Today" show.
On Gumbel's last day on NBC's "Today" in 1997, Prince surprised the host by appearing on the show. The singer performed a couple songs and dressed in a suit and glasses that mimicked Gumbel.
A memorable moment on TODAY: Watch Prince surprise Bryant Gumbel on his last day in 1997https://t.co/1abfqtT1HA
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) April 21, 2016
Prince was mostly responsible for Carmen Electra's career.
In 1991, Prince started dating Carmen Electra and signed her to a music contract with his record label. He produced Electra's 1993 self-titled debut rap album.
Clint Davis covers entertainment and trending news topics for the Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @MrClintDavis.
