Lesser known facts about Prince
1. His
real name was Prince.
2. His symbol actually had a name: 'Love symbol #2'
3. He took a promotional tip from Willy Wonka
In 2006, Universal hid 14 purple tickets—seven in the U.S. and seven internationally—inside Prince's latest album, 3121. Fans who found a purple ticket were invited to attend a private performance at Prince's Los Angeles home.
4. He screwed up on SNL
During Prince's first appearance on Saturday Night Live, he performed the song "Partyup"¯ and sang the lyric, "Fightin' war is a such a f*ing bore."¯ It went unnoticed at the time, but in the closing segment, Charles Rocket clearly said, "I'd like to know who the f* did it."¯ This was the only episode of SNL where the f-bomb was dropped twice.
5. He was a hell of a basketball player. Being so diminutive, quite impressive.
*Cut my teeth on Prince's music in the 80's, his androgynous look, his rated x lyrics. His take-no-prisoner in-your-face overt sexuality was captivating to observe. I was working in a Federal building in downtown Chicago when 'Purple Rain' was released. The building was 79 stories tall, hundreds of cubicles and offices. If there was 1 poster of Prince and his motorcycle from the film, there were dozens hung up on wall boards. Had a smile on my face every time I saw them.