Singers turned actresses

“Vision Quest,” 1985

This 1985 cougar romance between Matthew Modine and Linda Fiorentino featured Madonna as a club singer, singing her hit “Crazy for You.” Released one month later was Madonna’s more full-fledged debut as the title character in “Desperately Seeking Susan,” a free-spirited East Village drifter (complete with Madonna’s then-trademark of ripped clothes and ‘do-rag on her head) who changes places with a bored housewife played by Rosanna Arquette.  (Evan Agostini / Associated Press)

“The Princess Diaries,” 2001

Moore prances and sings “Stupid Cupid” as the high school’s mean Queen Bee. She’s the general tormentor of socially awkward would-be princess Anne Hathaway in this Garry Marshall film, the first of Moore’s efforts that actually appears to have made it to theaters.  (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

“Sid and Nancy,” 1986

Before there was Kurt and Courtney, there was another reigning couple of rock self-destruction: the Sex Pistols’ Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen, whose volatile relationship was immortalized in this 1986 Alex Cox film. Love auditioned for the role of Nancy, proclaiming on a self-made video, “I am Nancy.” Cox gave the part to Chloe Webb but wrote a small part for Love in the film. Love later played Larry Flynt‘s stripper-turned-wife, Althea, in “The People vs. Larry Flynt,” a biopic about Flynt’s rise to porn royalty and his legal battle against evangelist Jerry Falwell.  (Joel Zwink / For The Times)

“Jungle Fever,” 1991

The rapper, singer and sitcom star had a small role in Spike Lee‘s exegis of interracial love “Jungle Fever,” before going on to fire up the big screen in such films as “Set It Off,” “Bringing Down the House” and “Chicago.”  (Andy Lyons / Getty Images)