1960 Winter Olympics

The 1960 Winter Olympics (officially the VIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Squaw Valley 1960) were a winter multi-sport event held from February 18 to 28, 1960, at the Squaw Valley Resort (now known as Palisades Tahoe) in Squaw Valley (now known as Olympic Valley), California, United States. The resort was chosen to host the Games at the 1956 meeting of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Squaw Valley was an undeveloped resort in 1955, so the infrastructure and all of the venues were built between 1956 and 1960 at a cost of US\$80,000,000 (equivalent to \$791,361,080 in 2022). The layout was designed to be intimate, allowing spectators and competitors to reach most of the venues on foot.

The 1960 Winter Games hosted athletes from 30 nations, competing in four sports and 27 events. Biathlon and women's speed skating made their Olympic debuts. Bobsled was not on the Winter Olympic program for the only time; the organizers had decided the events did not warrant the cost of building a bobsled venue after a poll indicated that only nine countries were planning to participate.

## Host city selection

Squaw Valley, now called Palisades Tahoe, was a struggling ski resort with minimal facilities, which made its selection to host the 1960 Winter Olympics a surprise. Wayne Poulsen and Alexander Cushing were inspired to bid for the Olympics by a newspaper article mentioning that Reno, Nevada, and Anchorage, Alaska, had expressed interest in the Games. Poulsen, president of the Squaw Valley Development Company, petitioned California Governor Goodwin Knight to support a bid to host the Olympic Games. Knight's administration agreed and recommended that the California Legislature appropriate \$1 million to the effort.

Based on the financial support received from the State of California, the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) approved the bid on January 7, 1955. Cushing and the USOC received a resolution passed by the United States Congress and signed by President Dwight Eisenhower, calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to consider Squaw Valley's bid for the 1960 Games. Preliminary reports were drafted and submitted to the IOC, which was considering bids from Innsbruck, Austria, St. Moritz, Switzerland and Chamonix, France.

Squaw Valley was provisionally awarded the right to host the Games, but IOC president Avery Brundage warned the Organizing Committee that unless more funds were secured by April 1956, the bid would be awarded to Innsbruck. Another \$4 million was committed by the state legislature, which met Brundage's requirements, and on April 4, 1956, the right to host the 1960 Winter Olympics was officially awarded to Squaw Valley. Competitors and officials from European nations were angered by the selection; they felt that the alpine ski courses were not up to specifications and that its base elevation of 6,200 feet (1,890 m) above sea level would prove too stressful on the athletes.

## Organization

Squaw Valley in 1956 consisted of one chair lift, two rope tows, and a fifty-room lodge. Cushing presented the site as a blank canvas of unspoiled environment, where a world-class ski resort could be constructed. The obscurity of the location was underscored at the closing ceremonies of the 1956 Winter Olympics. Traditionally the mayor of the current host city passes a flag to the mayor of the next host city signalling the transfer of the Games. Since Squaw Valley was an unincorporated village it had no city government. John Garland, an IOC member from California, was asked to stand in and received the flag from the mayor of Cortina d'Ampezzo.

After winning the right to host the Games, the California Olympic Commission was formed. They were given four years to build venues, an Olympic Village, and expand infrastructure. With the expansion of roads, bridges, water and electrical capacity the resort of Squaw Valley became the city of Squaw Valley. Hotels, restaurants, administration buildings, a Sheriff's office and a sewage pumping and treatment plant were all constructed to support the influx of visitors for the Games. Organizers wanted the Olympics to be intimate with the venues close to one another. The Blyth Memorial Ice Arena was built along with three outdoor skating rinks, a 400-meter speed skating oval and four dormitories to house athletes. One venue deemed impractical to build was the bobsled run. Organizers felt the lack of possible entrants and the high cost of building the run were sufficient deterrents to leave the bobsled events off the 1960 Olympic program.

Several design innovations and new technologies were used for the 1960 Games. The speed skating, figure skating and ice hockey events were held on artificial ice for the first time in Olympic history. A refrigeration plant capable of heating 4,800 homes had to be built to generate and maintain the ice. The heat generated from the refrigeration plant was used to warm spectators, provide hot water, and melt the snow off of roofs. New timing equipment provided by Longines was installed that used a quartz clock to measure to the hundredths of a second. IBM provided a computer that was capable of tabulating results and printing them in English and French. Blyth Arena, site of the opening and closing ceremonies as well as the figure skating and ice hockey competitions, was built with a 22 in (56 cm) gap in the roof, which would slide closed as the cables supporting the roof contracted during cold weather.

Funding for Cushing's initial bid to the IOC came from the California Legislature and investors in the "Squaw Valley Development Company", who were owners of the existing resort. To fund the construction, organizers turned to the federal government, which provided about a quarter of the \$80 million required to host the Games. The monies were used to build sports arenas and provide military support during the Games. Further funding was secured from private sponsorships and from the State of California. Governor Knight and his successor Edmund "Pat" Brown remained behind the project, seeing it as a means to showcase the state of California to the world.

### Television

Television was not new to the Olympic Winter Games; broadcasts of events to European audiences had begun in 1956. What was unprecedented was the sale of exclusive United States television rights to broadcast the Games. The Organizing Committee decided to sell the television broadcast rights to CBS for \$50,000. Unknown at the time was how lucrative the sale of broadcast rights would become. For example, CBS purchased the rights to broadcast the 1960 Summer Olympics for \$550,000. During the Games, CBS broadcast 15 and a quarter hours of television focusing on ice hockey, speed skating, figure skating, alpine skiing and ski jumping. The impact of television was felt during the Games; in the men's slalom event, officials who were unsure if a skier had missed a gate asked CBS if they could review tape of the event. This request gave CBS the idea for what is now known as instant replay.

## Politics

Athletic competition between the Soviet Union and United States had grown intense during the 1950s. Their opposing ideologies and interests in nations such as East and West Germany, China and North and South Korea created a delicate situation as the 1960 Winter Games approached. Of particular interest was the question of whether China would be allowed to participate. Chinese athletes last competed at the 1952 Summer Games but had since withdrawn from the IOC due to a dispute over Taiwan's participation as a separate country. The US supported Taiwan while the Soviet Union stood behind China. Given that the 1960 Games were to be held in the US, there was concern among IOC members that the host nation would not allow China or any other Communist country to take part. In 1957, IOC president Avery Brundage, an American, announced that if the US refused entry to any country recognized by the IOC, they would revoke Squaw Valley's invitation to host the Games and he would resign the presidency. The US did allow athletes from Communist countries to participate. China continued calls for Taiwan to be expelled from the IOC, demands that were refused until China broke off relations ending any hope they would participate in the 1960 Games.

Problems similar to the issue with China broke out over North Korea and East Germany. Prior to the Korean War the IOC had recognized the Olympic committee of Korea, which was headquartered in Seoul. North Korea was not recognized as a separate country by the IOC who maintained the existence of one Olympic committee. A unified team compromise was proposed but rejected by North Koreans, which meant only athletes from South Korea participated due to their prior recognition. Pressure for full recognition of East Germany continued despite the fact that both East and West Germany had participated as a unified team in 1956. One of the conditions for a unified German team was that the athletes be represented by a neutral flag. Initially West German officials refused to agree to this stipulation citing the fact that the West German flag had been used at both the 1956 Winter and Summer Games, although that flag was also used by East Germany prior to 1959. Eventually the neutral flag was adopted and a unified German team participated.

## Events

The Games were held from February 18 to 28. Medals were awarded in 27 events contested in 4 sports (8 disciplines). The sport of biathlon was added to the program as were speed skating events for women. After a poll was taken indicating that only nine countries would send a bobsled team, the organizers determined that bobsled would be removed from the Olympic program. Despite petitions from the International Bobsleigh and Tobogganing Federation to reconsider, the organizers felt they could not justify the costs of constructing a bobsled run for nine competing nations. It would be the only time in Winter Olympic history that the bobsled events were not held.

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### Opening ceremonies

The chairman of the Pageantry Committee was Walt Disney, who was responsible for producing both the opening and closing ceremonies at Blyth Memorial Arena. He organized an opening that included 5,000 entertainers, the release of 2,000 pigeons, and a military gun salute of eight shots, one for each of the previous Winter Olympic Games. The opening ceremonies were held on February 18, 1960, at Blyth Arena in the midst of a blizzard. The heavy snow fall caused traffic problems that delayed the ceremony by an hour. The festivities began with a sustained drum roll as the flags of each participating nation were raised on specially designed flag poles. Vice President Richard Nixon represented the United States government and declared the Games open. The Olympic cauldron was lit by Kenneth Henry, Olympic champion of the 500 meter speed skating race at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo. The Olympic oath was taken by Carol Heiss on behalf of all the athletes. As the national delegations left the stadium fireworks concluded the ceremonies.

### Ice hockey

The ice hockey tournament took place at Blyth Arena and the Squaw Valley Olympic Skating Rink. Controversy over the amateur status of communist players overshadowed the event. Canadian Olympic officials objected to the use of "professional amateurs" by Eastern Bloc countries, and especially the Soviet Union. They alleged that the Soviets were giving their elite hockey players phantom jobs in the military that allowed them to play hockey full-time, which gave Soviet teams an advantage that they used to dominate Olympic hockey tournaments for more than 30 years. This issue started coming to light during the 1960 Games and would culminate in a Canadian boycott of the Olympic hockey tournament at the 1972 and 1976 Winter Olympics. The team from the United States won an improbable gold medal, defeating the favored Canadian and Soviet teams, who took silver and bronze respectively. This was the first Olympic gold medal in ice hockey for the United States and it would mark the last time a Soviet team did not win the Olympic tournament until the United States victory at the 1980 Winter Olympics.

### Cross-country skiing

There were six cross-country skiing races at the 1960 Olympics, four for men and two for women, all held at the McKinney Creek Cross-Country Complex. Soviet women swept the 10 kilometer race, which was the first medal sweep for the Soviets in cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics. They were however upset by Sweden in the 3×5 kilometer relay. Nordic countries dominated the men's competition. Swedish lumberjack Sixten Jernberg added a gold and silver to the four medals he won in 1956. He would add two golds and a bronze in 1964 to finish his Olympic career with nine medals, which made him the most decorated Winter Olympian. Finnish skier Veikko Hakulinen added a gold, silver and bronze to the two golds and two silvers he had won in 1952 and 1956.

### Biathlon

Biathlon made its Olympic debut in 1960. The precursor to biathlon, military patrol, was on the Olympic program for the first Olympic Games in 1924. It was a demonstration sport at the 1928, 1936, and 1948 Winter Olympics, though the competition was only open to members of the armed forces. Military patrol fell out of favor in 1948 due to anti-military sentiments in the post World War II era. Biathlon took its place and was instated as a full Olympic sport in 1960. It encompassed a 20 kilometer cross-country race with four shooting stations at ranges from 100 to 250 m (330 to 820 ft). Klas Lestander from Sweden became the first Olympic champion, Antti Tyrväinen from Finland and Soviet Aleksandr Privalov placed second and third respectively.

### Nordic combined

The Nordic combined competition was held on February 21 at the Squaw Valley normal hill and the McKinney Creek Cross-Country Complex. The athletes had three jumps on February 21 followed by a 15 kilometer cross-country race. German skier Georg Thoma became the first non-Nordic athlete to win the event. He would win bronze medal in the Nordic combined in 1964. Tormod Knutsen of Norway and Nikolay Gusakov of the Soviet Union placed second and third, respectively. Gusakov's wife, Maria Gusakova, competed in the cross-country events, winning a gold and silver.

### Ski jumping

There was one ski jumping event at the 1960 Games, the men's normal hill, which was held on February 28. In 1964, the competition would be expanded to include a men's large hill event. Helmut Recknagel became the first German to win the event. In 1994 he would be joined by Jens Weißflog as the only German ski jumping Olympic champions. Niilo Halonen from Finland and Austrian Otto Leodolter earned the silver and bronze medals.

### Figure skating

Held at Blyth Memorial Arena, the figure skating competition took place between February 19 and 26. Although this was not the first time figure skating had been held indoors, it would never be contested outdoors again. There were three events: men's and women's singles and the pairs competition. In the men's event, David Jenkins of the United States, brother of 1956 Winter Olympic figure skating champion Hayes Jenkins, won the gold medal. It was his second Olympic medal, having won the bronze in 1956. Czechoslovakian Karol Divín took the silver medal, and Canadian Donald Jackson won the bronze. American Carol Heiss, winner of the silver medal in 1956, became the Olympic champion in 1960. A year later she married Hayes Jenkins and starred in Snow White and the Three Stooges. Dutch skater Sjoukje Dijkstra took the silver medal; she would finish her amateur career with an Olympic gold medal in 1964. Barbara Ann Roles gave the United States its third figure skating medal of the competition when she took the bronze. The Soviet Union made its Olympic figure skating debut by sending two couples to compete in the pairs competition; the result belied the fact that Soviet skaters would soon come to dominate this event. The competition was won by the Canadian pair of Barbara Wagner and Bob Paul who had won the last three world championships. The German pair Marika Kilius and Hans-Jürgen Bäumler followed their recent European championship victory with the Olympic silver medal, and the American husband-and-wife team of Ron and Nancy Ludington took the bronze.

### Speed skating

Women were allowed to compete in the Olympic speed skating competition for the first time in 1960. Multiple nations had requested the inclusion of women's speed skating events in the program for the 1956 Games, but the request was rejected by the IOC. The issue was revisited for the 1960 Games, and since women had been competing internationally since 1936 and there was a World Championship for women's speed skating, the IOC agreed to four events; 500, 1,000, 1,500, and 3,000 meters (the same as the number of men's events). Most of the events were held on the Squaw Valley Olympic Skating Rink, which was an outdoor skating oval, and featured artificial ice, a first for the Olympic speed skating competition. Given the altitude and the artificial ice, the rink was the fastest in the world, as evidenced by Norwegian Knut Johannesen's world record in the 10,000 meter event. At 15:46.6 he was the first skater ever to break the 16-minute barrier, and eclipsed the previous world record by 46 seconds. Despite Johannesen's victory, the Soviets dominated the speed skating events, winning all but two of the races. Yevgeny Grishin won both the 500 and 1,500 meter races, though he shared the 1,500 meter gold medal with Norwegian Roald Aas. Grishin said that "watching the Soviet flag wave in the blue American sky" was the proudest moment of his life. Lidiya Skoblikova from the Soviet Union was the other double gold medalist, when she won the 1,500 and 3,000 meter events. Polish skaters Helena Pilejczyk and Elwira Seroczyńska placed second and third in the 1,500 meter event, which were Poland's only medals of the Games. They were just the second and third Poles ever to win Winter Olympic medals.

### Alpine skiing

Despite the lack of facilities at Squaw Valley, the resort did have steep mountain slopes in close proximity, resulting in some of the most difficult alpine skiing courses in Olympic history. Both men and women competed in the downhill, giant slalom and slalom with all 6 events held between February 20 and 26. The men's downhill was won by Frenchman Jean Vuarnet who changed the sport by becoming the first Olympic champion to use metal skis. Swiss skier Roger Staub won the giant slalom and Ernst Hinterseer from Austria was the slalom champion. German Heidi Biebl won the women's downhill, Yvonne Rüegg of Switzerland won the giant slalom and Anne Heggtveit from Canada won the slalom. Penny Pitou of the United States was the only multiple medal winner with two silvers in the downhill and giant slalom.

### Closing ceremonies

The Games were brought to a close on afternoon of February 28 in Blyth Memorial Arena in front of 20,000 people. Flags of the participating nations were followed by the athletes who marched as a group with no national distinctions, a tradition carried over from the 1956 Summer Olympics. The flag bearers made a semi-circle around the rostrum and the national anthems of Greece (even though the nation did not send a delegation to Squaw Valley), the United States, and Austria were played as their respective flags were raised. The Olympic Charter determinates that the Greek flag honors Greece as the originators of the Olympic Games, and it was displayed during the ceremony even despite Greece's absence, which was the only time in Olympic history that the country failed to send a team. The United States flag represented the host nation and the Austrian flag was raised because Innsbruck, Austria was to be the host of the next games. IOC president Avery Brundage declared the Games closed, at which point the Olympic flame was extinguished. The Games concluded with the release of several thousand balloons.

## Calendar

All dates are in Pacific Standard Time (UTC-8)

The opening ceremony was held on February 18, along with the first games of the Ice hockey tournament. From February 19 to 28, at least one event final was held each day.

† The numeral indicates the number of event finals for each sport held that day.

## Venues

The lack of facilities prior to the Olympics gave organizers freedom to tailor the layout of the venues to fit the needs of the athletes. Their vision was for an intimate Games in which athletes and spectators could walk between venues. This was accomplished with the exception of the cross-country events, which were held at McKinney Creek, a 12 mi (19 km) drive from Squaw Valley. In prior Winter Olympics the athletes were housed in hotels or billeted with local families. Since no such facilities existed in Squaw Valley, the organizers decided to build the first Olympic Village at the Winter Games. Competitors slept in one of four dormitories and ate together in a dining room. The complex was located centrally, with access to all the sporting facilities.

The peaks surrounding Squaw Valley were used for the alpine skiing events. The ladies' downhill and men's slalom and giant slalom were on KT-22 mountain, while the ladies' slalom and giant slalom were contested on Little Papoose Peak. Squaw Peak was the site of the men's downhill competition. Prior to the Games, concerns persisted that the courses would not meet international standards. To address these concerns, a test event was held in 1959 and the attending delegates from the International Ski Federation (FIS) left assured that the events would comply with FIS rules and specifications. Bleachers were constructed for officials, coaches and spectators, along with broadcast booths for radio and television. Papoose Peak Jumps was located on Little Papoose Peak directly opposite Blyth Memorial Arena. Designed by Heini Klopfer, the hill was innovative in that it had 40-, 60-, and 80–meter jumps. Tall trees on both sides protected athletes from the wind, and it was situated so that the sun would be at the jumper's back during the competition.

McKinney Creek Stadium was built to host all of the cross-country races, which included the biathlon and a portion of the Nordic combined competition. It consisted of a timing building, two Quonset huts for competitors and course workers, a scoreboard, and bleachers to accommodate 1,200 people. Shooting ranges were interspersed throughout the biathlon course, and were supervised by non-commissioned officers of the United States military.

Season tickets for the Games ranged from \$60 to \$250, the latter included a reserved seat at the ice arena; the daily admission fee was \$7.50.

Blyth Memorial Arena was the centerpiece of the Games. It hosted the opening and closing ceremonies jointly with Squaw Valley Olympic Skating Rink, and also hosted the figure skating competition, a few of the speed skating events, as well as most of the games in the hockey tournament. All three of the sports were held indoors on artificial ice for the first time in Olympic history. At full capacity, the arena accommodated 11,000 people, 8,500 of whom were seated. One end of the stadium could be opened and closed, depending on the event. During the ceremonies it was open to allow for the entrance of the athletes; during the competitions it was closed to accommodate more spectators. A special machine was created to resurface the ice for all three competitions. It could lay a new ice surface on the 400-meter speed skating track in 45 minutes. In addition to resurfacing the ice, the machine created the snow dividers that delineated the racing lanes. The roof was designed on a suspension principle, using cables rather than vertical supports; this removed any visual impediments for the audience, but it weakened the strength of the roof. Given the amount of annual snowfall designers planned on using heat generated by the refrigeration plant to melt the snow. There were flaws in the design and miscalculations in the load the roof could bear, and during a particularly heavy snowfall in 1983, a portion of the roof collapsed and the building was subsequently demolished.

As of 2016, three buildings from the 1960 Winter Olympics remain in Palisades Tahoe (formerly known as Squaw Valley). An expansion of the resort's village, currently in the planning stages, would see two of these buildings demolished.

## Participating nations

Athletes from 30 nations competed at the 1960 Games. South Africa competed at the Winter Games for the first time; it would be the last until 1994. Athletes from West Germany (FRG) and East Germany (GDR) competed together as the United Team of Germany from 1956 to 1964. The number at the end of each country denotes the number of athletes each country sent.

### Number of athletes by National Olympic Committees

## Medal count

Below is a list of nations that won medals at the Games:

- The host nation is highlighted in blue.

‡ Since there was a tie in the men's 1,500 meter speed skating race (like in 1956), two gold medals and no silver medals were awarded.

### Podium sweeps

## See also

- 1960 Summer Olympics
- List of 1960 Winter Olympics medal winners
- Olympic Games
- Winter Olympic Games
- Other Olympic Games celebrated in the United States
  - 1904 Summer Olympics – St. Louis
  - 1932 Summer Olympics – Los Angeles
  - 1932 Winter Olympics – Lake Placid
  - 1980 Winter Olympics – Lake Placid
  - 1984 Summer Olympics – Los Angeles
  - 1996 Summer Olympics – Atlanta
  - 2002 Winter Olympics – Salt Lake City

Multi-sport event in Squaw Valley, California, US

February 1960 sports events in the United States

History of the Sierra Nevada (United States)

Winter multi-sport events in the United States


French cruiser D'Entrecasteaux

D'Entrecasteaux was a large protected cruiser built for the French Navy in the 1890s. The only vessel of her class, D'Entrecasteaux was intended to serve as a flagship of the cruiser squadron that defended French Indochina and other possessions in the Far East. Her construction came during a period of conflict in the French naval command between factions that favored different cruiser types; D'Entrecasteaux represented the ideas of the Jeune École, who favored large cruisers for long-range operations overseas. She was armed with a main battery of two 240 mm (9.4 in) guns, the largest guns ever carried aboard a French cruiser, though their great weight, coupled with her pronounced ram bow degraded her seaworthiness. She nevertheless provided the basis for later armored cruisers.

D'Entrecasteaux was initially deployed to Indochina, where she took part in Eight-Nation Alliance operations during the Boxer Uprising, including the Battle of the Taku Forts in June 1900. Problems with her guns forced her to return to France for repairs in 1903, though she returned to Indochina for another tour from 1905 to 1909. She was modernized in 1909–1912 and served as the flagship of the Training Squadron until the start of World War I in July 1914. The ship spent much of the war in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, where she assisted in the defense of the Suez Canal from Ottoman attacks and patrolled the coast of Ottoman Syria. She was transferred for operations elsewhere after 1916, including supporting Arab rebels in the Red Sea and escorting convoys in the Indian Ocean.

After the war, D'Entrecasteaux helped to carry French troops back from the Armée d'Orient (Army of the East) before being placed in reserve in June 1919. She was struck from the naval register in 1922 and transferred to the Belgian Navy in 1923, where she served as a depot ship for three years. After briefly returning to France in 1926, she was sold to the Polish Navy in 1927, which renamed the vessel Król Władysław IV and then Bałtyk. Employed as a stationary training ship, she remained in Polish service until the German invasion of Poland in September 1939, when she was damaged by German aircraft. She was captured by the Germans and used as a barracks ship before being broken up around 1942.

## Background

In the mid-1880s, elements in the French naval command argued over future warship construction; the Jeune École advocated building long-range and fast protected cruisers for use as commerce raiders on foreign stations while a traditionalist faction preferred larger armored cruisers and small fleet scouts, both of which were to operate as part of the main fleet in home waters. This led to the development of two types of cruisers: medium ships of 3,000 to 4,000 long tons (3,048 to 4,064 t) and smaller ships of around 2,000 to 2,400 long tons (2,032 to 2,439 t). By the end of the decade and into the early 1890s, the traditionalists were ascendant, leading to the construction of several armored cruisers of the Amiral Charner class, though the supporters of the Jeune École secured approval for one large cruiser built according to their ideas, which became D'Entrecasteaux. They were able to leverage the acquisition of French Indochina in the 1880s, which required a permanent squadron of warships to control and defend the colony. D'Entrecasteaux was intended to serve as a flagship for the squadron, and as such, was designed with additional facilities to accommodate an admiral and his staff.

## Design

Design work on the ship began in 1891 with a version armed with four 240 mm (9.4 in) guns in the same lozenge arrangement as the contemporary pre-dreadnought battleships like Charles Martel. They were also to carry eight 138 mm (5.4 in) guns. The Conseil des Travaux (Council of Works) decided in a meeting on 7 July that displacement should be limited to 7,900 long tons (8,000 t) if possible; this limitation precluded an armament of four large-caliber guns if the latest water-tube boilers were retained. In an attempt to keep displacement under the limit, the Conseil considered scaling down the level of armor protection or reducing the caliber or number of guns. They ultimately decided to remove the amidships 240 mm guns and to supplement the ship's firepower with four more 138 mm guns.

The refined design included a sailing rig to supplement the ship's engines on long voyages overseas, but the French naval ministry issued a directive on 2 March 1892 to abandon the use of sails in cruising warships. D'Entrecasteaux's design was accordingly altered. The Conseil then issued requests for finalized designs meeting their specifications from four naval architects and three private shipyards, which were evaluated during a meeting on 29 March. Three proposals were chosen for further refinement, and after a second round, two were approved on 31 January 1893. After further evaluation, the Conseil ship proposed by the architect Amable Lagane, of the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée shipyard, on 8 November. By the time the design was finalized, weight constraints had forced Lagane to abandon water-tube boilers for fire-tube boilers, which were smaller but obsolescent.

A sister ship to D'Entrecasteaux was approved on 21 August 1895, which was to have been built to the second design the Conseil had approved, and was to have been named Jeanne d'Arc. But the new naval minister, Édouard Lockroy, cancelled the ship in early 1896 in favor of another armored cruiser without consulting the Conseil, which oversaw naval construction. Lockroy was replaced as naval minister in April 1896, and his successor, Armand Besnard, attempted to secure parliamentary approval for another D'Entrecasteaux-class cruiser, but the Chamber of Deputies refused, ending the project.

D'Entrecasteaux represented an evolutionary step between the smaller armored cruiser Pothuau and the larger armored cruisers that followed, beginning with Jeanne d'Arc. In addition, her design was used as the basis of the medium armored cruisers of the Dupleix class, which were also intended to serve overseas. D'Entrecasteaux nevertheless suffered from defects that curtailed her active career, most significantly design defects that hampered her seakeeping. The heavy main gun forward, coupled with the ram bow, caused her to ship considerable amounts of water in heavy seas.

### General characteristics and machinery

D'Entrecasteaux was 120 m (393 ft 8 in) long between perpendiculars and 120.92 m (396 ft 9 in) long overall, with a beam of 17.85 m (58 ft 7 in) and a draft of 7.52 m (24 ft 8 in). She displaced 7,995 long tons (8,123 t). Her hull had a flush deck and a pronounced ram bow, and was sheathed in teak and a copper layer to protect it from biofouling on long voyages overseas. As was typical for French warships of the period, she had a significant tumblehome shape.

The ship proved to be poorly ventilated and thus very hot in service, necessitating cooling equipment in her ammunition magazines. D'Entrecasteaux was fitted with a pair of light pole masts for observation and signalling purposes. Her superstructure was fairly minimal, consisting of a small conning tower and bridge structure forward and a smaller, secondary conning position aft. Because she was intended to serve as a flagship, she was outfitted with accommodations for an admiral and his staff. Her crew numbered 559 officers and enlisted men, and a flag staff added another 28 officers and men.

The ship's propulsion system consisted of a pair of 3-cylinder vertical triple-expansion steam engines driving two screw propellers. The engines were placed side by side amidships, each in an individual engine room. Steam was provided by five coal-burning, double-ended fire-tube boilers; four were placed further forward, ducting into two funnels, and the fifth boiler was further aft, with its own funnel. The forward set of boilers was divided into two boiler rooms. The boilers proved to be troublesome in service, particularly in comparison to the water-tube boilers used in other French cruisers.

Her machinery was rated to produce 8,500 metric horsepower (8,400 ihp) normally and up to 13,500 CV (13,300 ihp) on forced draft, for a top speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph). She reached a maximum speed of 19.2 knots (35.6 km/h; 22.1 mph) during sea trials in 1899. Coal storage amounted to 960 long tons (980 t), which allowed D'Entrecasteaux to steam for 5,500 nautical miles (10,200 km; 6,300 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

### Armament

The ship was armed with a main battery of two 240 mm (9.4 in) 40-caliber (cal.) M1893 guns, which were placed in single-gun turrets, one forward and one aft on the centerline. These guns were the largest to be installed aboard a French cruiser of any type. The turrets were electrically operated, and allowed elevation of the guns to 20 degrees. Three types of shell were carried, including a 145 kg (320 lb) cast iron projectile, along with armor-piercing and semi-armor-piercing shells, both of which weighed 170 kg (370 lb). The shells had a muzzle velocity of 830 to 865 m/s (2,720 to 2,840 ft/s), depending on the type.

These were supported by a secondary battery of twelve 138.6 mm (5.46 in) Model 1893 45-cal. guns, eight of which were carried in individual casemates in the main deck. The other four were in gun shield-protected pivot mounts on the upper deck. For close-range defense against torpedo boats, she carried twelve 47 mm (1.9 in) 3-pounder Hotchkiss guns and six 37 mm (1.5 in) 1-pounder guns.

She was also armed with four 450 mm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes, two in her hull below the waterline and the other two in trainable, deck-mounted launchers. The deck tubes were placed amidships, one on each broadside, while the submerged tubes were just aft of the forward main battery gun and were in fixed positions. These were supplied with a total of twelve Model 1892 torpedoes. They carried a 75 kg (165 lb) warhead and had a range of 800 m (2,600 ft) at a speed of 27.5 knots (50.9 km/h; 31.6 mph). She had a storage capacity for twenty naval mines, which was typical for cruisers intended to serve overseas. She had no minelaying apparatus, as the mines were only intended to be used to help defend a port, and they would have been laid by smaller boats.

### Armor

Armor protection consisted of nickel steel armor. She had a curved armor deck; on the flat portion in the central part of the ship where it protected the machinery spaces, the deck was 30 mm (1.2 in) thick. It sloped downward at the sides and increased in thickness to 80 mm (3.1 in). Toward the bow and stern, the deck was decreased slightly to 20 mm (0.79 in) on the flat and 60 mm (2.4 in) on the slopes. All of the deck armor was attached to a pair of underlying layers of 10 mm (0.39 in) thick mild steel. A second deck consisting of another double layer of 10 mm steel was above the flat portion of the main deck with a cofferdam connecting it to the main deck; this upper deck formed the roof of the secondary battery. The cofferdam was subdivided extensively to contain flooding in the event of damage.

D'Entrecasteaux's conning tower was heavily armored with 230 mm (9.1 in) of nickel steel on the sides, also backed by two layers of 10 mm mild steel. The tower's roof consisted of two layers of 25 mm (0.98 in) of steel. Her semi-elliptical main battery turrets received the same level of protection on the front, but thinned at the sides and rear to 190 mm (7.5 in) with the same mild steel backing. Their supporting barbettes were 170 mm (6.7 in) above the battery deck and 120 mm (4.7 in) below. Each casemate consisted of 52 mm (2 in) plating with the double 10 mm backing.

## Service history

### French career

D'Entrecasteaux, named for Admiral Antoine Bruni d'Entrecasteaux, was built at the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée shipyard in La Seyne-sur-Mer. She was ordered on 8 November 1893 and was laid down in June 1894, was launched on 12 June 1896, and was commissioned on 1 January 1898 to begin sea trials. During testing on 28 April, one of her boilers burst, scalding four stokers badly and delaying her completion by six months. The ship was completed in early 1899 and was placed in full commission on 15 February. She was immediately ordered to the Far East to join the Division navale d'Extrême-Orient et du Pacifique occidental (Naval Division of the Far East and Western Pacific) and serve as its flagship, where she replaced the old ironclad Vauban. After departing on 6 April, she reached Saigon in French Indochina on 12 May, where she joined the protected cruisers Descartes, Pascal, and Jean Bart. Rear Admiral de Courejolles hoisted his flag aboard D'Entrecasteaux on 1 June and she thereafter embarked on a long voyage around East Asia, sailing as far north as China.

She took part in the colonialist response to the Boxer Uprising in China in 1900, joining in the Battle of the Taku Forts in June as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance. During the bombardment, she suffered problems with her main battery guns' breech blocks and locking mechanisms. These deficiencies compelled D'Entrecasteaux's return to Toulon for repairs; she arrived there on 9 January 1901. There, her main battery guns were removed and sent to the factory in Ruelle to have new breech blocks installed; the work lasted until June. While D'Entrecasteaux was in Toulon, Rear Admiral Charles-Jesse Bayle replaced de Courejolles as the divisional commander, and he brought with him Captain Louis Dartige du Fournet as his flag captain. She then returned to East Asia, arriving in Saigon on 8 August. The ship spent the next two in the region, taking cruises in Chinese and Japanese waters in 1901 and 1902 before returning to Toulon in 1903, being decommissioned there on 12 February for a major overhaul that lasted through 1905.

After emerging from the shipyard, D'Entrecasteaux was recommissioned on 1 September 1905, and sailed on 25 November 1905 for French Indochina, by way of a brief assignment to the Indian Ocean command. She then moved to the Naval Division of the Far East and Western Pacific. On 15 August, she resumed flagship duties when Rear Admiral Boisse transferred from the protected cruiser Guichen. The unit also included the armored cruisers Bruix and Dupetit-Thouars, the protected cruiser Alger, four gunboats, and five destroyers. D'Entrecasteaux served on the station for the next four years, and during this period, she was involved in the unsuccessful attempt to re-float the armored cruiser Chanzy on 20 May 1907, which had run aground off the coast of China. D'Entrecasteaux departed Saigon on 25 October 1909 to return to Toulon.

The French Navy considered converting D'Entrecasteaux into a training ship for naval cadets following her return home in 1909 to replace the armored cruiser Jeanne d'Arc, but the plan came to nothing. She instead was decommissioned on 1 January 1910, to undergo an extensive overhaul that included repairs to her propulsion system and her hull. Cooling systems for her secondary battery magazines were also installed, along with improved fire-control systems, a new Barr & Stroud rangefinder, and a wireless telegraphy compartment. Her torpedo tubes were also removed, as she had never used them. The ship was recommissioned on 1 January 1912 to serve as the flagship of the Training Division of the Mediterranean Squadron, replacing the old battleship Brennus in that role, and flying the flag of Rear Admiral Bertrand Sourrieu. D'Entrecasteaux was in turn replaced by the battleship Suffren on 15 November 1913, and she was decommissioned ten days later. In early 1914, the navy considered using D'Entrecasteaux to replace Pothuau as a gunnery training vessel, but the changes had not been made by the outbreak of World War I in August.

#### World War I

At the start of World War I in August 1914, D'Entrecasteaux was part of the Division spéciale, along with Pothuau and the old pre-dreadnought battleships Jauréguiberry and Charlemagne. Both of the cruisers required refits before they would be ready for active service, which were completed by the end of the month. On 5 November, France and Britain declared war on the Ottoman Empire, and D'Entrecasteaux was sent to the coast of Ottoman Syria, arriving there on 29 November to join the Division de Syrie (Syrian Division) with the armored cruiser Amiral Charner. The two cruisers were tasked with patrolling the 600 km (370 mi) length of coastline between Jaffa to Alexandretta.

D'Entrecasteaux was sent to Port Said at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in January 1915 to reinforce the defenses there against an impending Ottoman attack. During this period, on 31 January, French naval forces in the region were reorganized as the 3e Escadre (3rd Squadron) and D'Entrecasteaux became the flagship of now-Vice Admiral Dartige du Fournet. She and the old coastal defense ship Requin played a critical role in defeating the Ottoman infantry in their assault on 3 February. Their gunfire broke up the advancing Ottoman columns and Requin silenced the Ottoman heavy artillery battery. D'Entrecasteaux fired a total of five 240 mm shells and thirty-six 138 mm rounds at a range of 6,300 to 6,700 m (20,700 to 22,000 ft) in the course of the action. The next day, Dartige du Fournet transferred to the pre-dreadnought Saint Louis.

On 25 March, D'Entrecasteaux bombarded Ottoman positions in Gaza. In late April, fears that the Ottoman Empire was planning an attack on the Suez Canal prompted the French to send D'Entrecasteaux, the protected cruiser D'Estrées, and Jeanne d'Arc to Port Said to reinforce the warships supporting the land defenses of the canal. No attacks materialized, and the ships were sent to bombard Ottoman positions along the coast to force them to disperse their units rather than make attacks on the Suez Canal. Dartige du Fournet also established a set of three patrol zones to cover the Syrian coast on 6 May, and D'Entrecasteaux was assigned to the first sector, which covered the area between the Suez Canal and Tyre. The French declared a blockade of the coast on 25 June. The ship was detached for a refit in Brest late in the year. As additional forces arrived in the region, the French reorganized the squadron into two divisions, D'Entrecasteaux being assigned to the 2nd Division in November. She became the flagship of Rear Admiral Henri de Spitz, though she did not arrive on the Syrian coast until 20 December.

Vice Admiral Frederic Moreau, the squadron commander by early 1916, opposed continuing patrols of the Syrian coast, as Ottoman maritime traffic had essentially stopped and he could not justify the expenditure of coal. The sinking of Amiral Charner by a German U-boat on 8 February strengthened his position, and further patrols were curtailed. D'Entrecasteaux was again detached in March for another refit. After its conclusion, the ship was assigned to the Moroccan Naval Division, but on 14 September, the protected cruiser Lavoisier arrived in Tangier to relieve her. D'Entrecasteaux was sent to Ethiopia with Pothuau in October in response to unrest in the country, but pressure from Britain, which feared that France was trying to assert influence in the country, led the French to withdraw the cruisers.

In late 1916, Ottoman forces had made significant progress toward defeating the Arabs who had rebelled against Ottoman rule at the instigation of the British. Vice Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss requested French assistance in the form of D'Entrecasteaux and Pothuau, which the French Navy dispatched to the Red Sea to provide fire support to the beleaguered Arab forces. The two cruisers operated out of Port Suez; one was on station at either of the main Arab cities of Jeddah and Rabegh while the other replenished coal at Port Suez. On 11 February 1917, the cruisers were released from these duties, as the Arabs had secured their position and the cruisers were needed elsewhere. They were then sent to the Gulf of Aden to strengthen the vessels available for convoy escort in the Indian Ocean. They were joined there by D'Estrées. D'Entrecasteaux and D'Estrées escorted convoys from Madagascar to Djibouti through May. D'Entrecasteaux was sent home for another refit in July, her place in the area eventually being taken by the protected cruiser Du Chayla.

### Postwar career and service in the Belgian and Polish navies

D'Entrecasteaux was sent to Durazzo and Cattaro on 25 January 1919 as part of the fleet that monitored the transfer of ex-Austro-Hungarian Navy ships to the victorious Allied powers. On 5 September 1919, she was assigned to the training division based in Brest. She was later involved in the repatriation of elements of the Armée d'Orient (Army of the East) from Macedonia. On 2 July 1920, the ship was placed in reserve at Brest and was decommissioned on 1 June 1921. She was struck from the naval register on 27 October 1922 and transferred temporarily to the Belgian Navy the following year, being towed to Zeebrugge on 24 May 1923. She was used as a depot ship for ex-German torpedo boats that had been abandoned in Belgium after the war, serving in that role until mid-1926, when the Belgians disbanded the torpedo boat flotilla. The Belgians had made significant reductions in their naval budget and had no further need for the cruiser. The ship was towed to Cherbourg on 4 February, where she remained until 7 March 1927, when the French sold her to the Polish Navy.

In the early 1920s, the Polish Navy had explored the possibility of buying a cruiser from France to strengthen the nascent Polish fleet. The naval command initially wanted a vessel that could be used as a submarine tender to support their submarines, but the early plans fell through. After the Poles purchased D'Entrecasteaux, she was renamed Król Władysław IV (Polish for: King Władysław IV) and was then towed to Gdynia. The Minister for Military Affairs, Daniel Konarzewski, renamed her Bałtyk (Polish for Baltic Sea) on 17 September 1927. By that time, the ship was armed with only six of her 47 mm guns; plans in the late 1920s to rearm her with a battery of eight 75 mm (3 in) anti-aircraft guns to use her as a floating anti-aircraft battery came to nothing due to fears that she would be too vulnerable to air attack. The vessel was instead used as a stationary training ship in Gdynia beginning in early 1929. She became the headquarters for the naval specialists school on 1 April 1930, and during this period, she served as the flagship of Commander Józef Unrug.

During the German invasion of Poland that began on 1 September 1939, Bałtyk was hit by a bomb on her quarterdeck, which started a small fire. The Poles positioned the ship to block the entrance to the military port at Gdynia. Her crew remained aboard to help defend Gdynia from German bombers before abandoning her on 11 September as she was a large target in the harbor. Her crew thereafter served ashore and saw action at the Battle of Kępa Oksywska. German artillery bombarded the ship on 16–17 September, and on the 19th, German forces occupied the port and seized the ship. She was then used as a barracks ship by the Germans. The ship was ultimately broken up for scrap by the Germans starting in 1941; the work was completed by August 1942.

Protected cruiser of the French Navy

Naval ships of Poland captured by Germany during World War II


Beautiful Stranger

"Beautiful Stranger" is a song by American singer and songwriter Madonna. It was released on May 19, 1999, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records as a single from the soundtrack of the film, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. Madonna co-wrote and co-produced the song with William Orbit. The soundtrack for Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me was a much expected release and Madonna's song was chosen by the album's executive producers to promote it. "Beautiful Stranger" has appeared on two separate Madonna greatest hits collections: GHV2 (2001) and Celebration (2009). Musically, "Beautiful Stranger" is a psychedelic pop and disco song that features heavily reverberated guitars and bouncy drum loops. Its lyrics tell the tale of a romantic infatuation.

The song received positive feedback from music critics who praised the production and Madonna's progress with her music, following her critically acclaimed album Ray of Light (1998). It was a commercial success reaching the top of the charts in Canada, Finland, Iceland and Italy, number two in the United Kingdom and top-ten in many markets. Although the song was not commercially released in the United States, it reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to airplay. It reached number one on the US dance charts. "Beautiful Stranger" also earned Madonna her fifth Grammy Award, winning the trophy for Best Song Written for Visual Media.

The song's music video, directed by Brett Ratner, prominently features Madonna singing in a club, visited by Mike Myers as his character Austin Powers. At the end of the video Madonna seduces Myers and goes off in his car. It won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Video from a Film in 1999. Madonna performed the song on her 2001 Drowned World Tour, and it has been covered by some artists, including a critically acclaimed version by Australian rock band DMA's.

## Background and release

Madonna and Canadian actor Mike Myers had previously collaborated for an episode of Saturday Night Live in 1991, when the singer hosted the show and invited Myers' character, Wayne Campbell to play a game of truth or dare, while pitching her documentary Madonna: Truth or Dare. According to Gwen Ihnat from The A.V. Club, the "creative partnership [between them] works because Madonna, though serious, always seems game, and Myers, though frequently goofy, is also creatively inventive". In 1999, the singer was chosen to contribute a single on the soundtrack for Myers' second film about the spy character Austin Powers, titled Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. Madonna's former boyfriend, British screenwriter Andy Bird, was reportedly the inspiration for "Beautiful Stranger."

The soundtrack to The Spy Who Shagged Me led to the teaming up of two music executives, Warner Bros. Records senior vice president Danny Bramson and Madonna's Maverick Records' co-owner Guy Oseary; both of them served as executive producer on the soundtrack. By May 1999, expectations were already high for the release, so the producers decided to include Madonna's track along with a song from a number of other high-profile artists like R.E.M., Lenny Kravitz and Mel B from the Spice Girls.

As recalled by Oseary, there was intense competition among artists to have their songs placed in the soundtrack, with one manager connected to the project describing the fight for the first potential single release as "a blood bath". The main intention of the producers was to have the artists contribute music which would abide by the predominant 1960s mood of the film. Ultimately, it was decided that "Beautiful Stranger" was suitable for this, and it was chosen as the first single from the soundtrack. However, Madonna's recording company Warner Bros. decided not to release any CD single or remix singles to accompany the release in the United States, only promo 12-inch discs were sent to the dance club DJs. The song was only released to the CHR top 40 radio for airplay on May 19, 1999. In the United Kingdom, the single was released on June 7, 1999, as a CD single, 12-inch single, and cassette single, while in Canada, a CD was issued on July 20, 1999. "Beautiful Stranger" has appeared on two separate Madonna greatest hits collections: GHV2 (2001) and Celebration (2009). On May 21, 2021, Madonna released the "Beautiful Stranger" remix EP to all digital and streaming outlets.

## Recording and composition

Recording for "Beautiful Stranger" took place in February 1999 at the Guerilla Beach Studios in Los Angeles, California, as well as the Enterprise Studio in Burbank, California. Along with writing and producing the song with Madonna, Orbit also played the keyboards and the guitar on the track. Damian LeGassick did the programming and additional keyboard while Emma Fowler played the flute. The engineering team included Pat McCarthy, Mark Endert and Dave Chelsea, with McCarthy also mixing the track. Jeff Gregmay and Wassim Zartek were the assistant recording engineers. According to the sheet music published by Musicnotes.com, "Beautiful Stranger" is set in common time and is composed in a key of F major with a mid dance tempo of 128 beats per minute. The song begins with a basic sequence of E–B–F–A–C before moving to the main chord progression of Csus4–C7.

"Beautiful Stranger" is a psychedelic pop and disco song and begins with a musical instrumentation reminiscent of "Light My Fire" (1967) by The Doors and "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (1967) by The Beatles. The song's main structure is backed by guitar, while drums come in during the choruses. Around the 1:06 mark, there is a hint of mellotron and flute being played like The Beatles' 1967 songs "Strawberry Fields Forever" or "The Fool on the Hill". The song has similar composition to Madonna's endeavors with her previous album Ray of Light, mixed with psychedelic music. USA Today's Ken Barnes has suggested that the chorus, riff, instrumentation and structure of "Beautiful Stranger" were based on American rock band Love's 1966 single "She Comes in Colors". The band's record company—Rhino Records—executive Gary Stewart stated that "Certainly, the riff and instrumentation [of 'Beautiful Stranger'] are reminiscent of 'She Comes in Colors,'" and that the "da da da da da" chorus on the track seems to be based upon "an instrumental flourish that's an integral part of the [Love] record. It may be a conscious or an unconscious homage." Madonna denied any such influence, claiming that she had never heard of Love.

According to Michael Paoletta from Billboard, "no fierce-ruling club DJ in 1999 would [have] dared play the original jangly rock-etched version of the song". Hence the song was remixed by Victor Calderone, who kept the basic structure of the song, while mixing it with tribal infused beats. Unlike many of his then releases—where he removed the bulk of the song's lyrics for remixing—with "Beautiful Stranger" he kept them. Paoletta described the remixes as "if Calderone fully understands the importance of a song and understands how best to unite deft beats and a dazzling vocal performance." The remixes include a rock-leaning version as well as Calderone's Club and Radio mixes.

## Critical reception

"Beautiful Stranger" received generally positive reviews. Chuck Taylor from Billboard denoted the song as a "new shift in the wind for [Madonna]", calling it another creative high for her. He also complimented the production saying that "this latest partnership with [Orbit] taps into a walloping romp of guitars and enough cascading organs to prompt an urge to listen to your Monkees collection." Taylor ended the review with positive feedback for Madonna's vocals, likening them to those for the Evita album, along with commending the chorus. In a different article for Billboard talking about the song's remixes, Paoletta described the track as "effervescent blast of psychedelic electronica". Writing for the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Gino DeLa Paz found it "cute but forgettable". Gwen Ihnat, from the entertainment website The A.V. Club, labeled it as "Madonna's best song that never appeared on one of her regular albums [...] a psychedelic pop confection that offered a few of her most indelible hooks". Ihnat also wrote that "although less ethereal than 1998's Ray of Light, ['Beautiful Stranger'] is just as dance-floor ready [...] dance flute has never sounded so enticing, and Madonna's voice so sweetly seductive". AllMusic's Jose F. Promis listed the track "as one of the singer's more memorable moments, coupling 1960s go-go rock with 1990s electronica, resulting in nothing less than a true slice of old fashioned rock & roll"; Promis also praised the two Calderone mixes.

Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani gave the song a rating of B- and wrote: "Like any good throwaway track, 'Beautiful Stranger' doesn't pretend to be much more than it is. Whiny guitars and flutes abound, Madonna and Orbit concocted a perfect theme song for friend Mike Myers's cooky Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. Playful, wispy and ultimately forgettable". In August 2018, Paul Schrodt from the same magazine, placed it at number 53 on his ranking of the singer's singles, calling it "the antithesis of Ray of Light. The hooky, psychedelic track is more accessible than Madonna’s previous work with Orbit. The innocuous lyrics could’ve been ghostwritten for anyone, but the song endears due to Madge’s playful delivery and Orbit’s sonic details". Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly, declared it as the "song of the summer", and praised it for being "a piece of psychedelic pop at once so 60s and so 90s that to sully it with a 'shagalicious' joke would be an insult... The way [Madonna] has of making her voice merge into indistinguishability with the surging instrumentation in the chorus, the way she sings the title phrase with an ache in her voice, that's at once urgent and playful." Matthew Jacobs from The Huffington Post ranked the song 22 on their list of "The Definitive Ranking Of Madonna Singles". Medium's Richard LaBeau called it a "bold, clever and interesting bridge between the Ray of Light and Music eras". In March 2023, Billboard ranked the song as Madonna's 88th greatest ever, with Andrew Unterberger writing: "Madonna's still in too reflective a mindset to go full incense and peppermints with it, but she's game enough to meet Orbit's woozy reverb-soaked groove..."

Louis Virtel, from TheBacklot.com, placed "Beautiful Stranger" at number 36 of his list "The 100 Greatest Madonna Songs"; he felt that "Orbit's psychedelic styling suit Madonna's groovy wistfulness perfectly". Author Phil Dellio wrote in his book Interrupting My Train of Thought that although "Beautiful Stranger" had similarities to Madonna's own "Ray of Light" (1998), it had "better melody, better vocal, better light show. It's about the trippiest, most propulsive above-ground dance music since the first two minutes of Led Zeppelin's 'How Many More Times'." J. Randy Taraborrelli wrote in Madonna: An Intimate Biography that Madonna's 2000 song "Amazing", from her eight studio album Music sounded like a cousin to "Beautiful Stranger" with its inspired composition. While ranking Madonna's singles, in honor of her 60th birthday, The Guardian's Jude Rogers placed "Beautiful Stranger" at number 34, calling it a "gorgeously slinky, impish love song". In a list of the "99 Best Songs of 1999", Rolling Stone writer Rob Sheffield placed the track at number 27 and praised it for being "the most shagadelic disco hit by a megastar shimmying into the big 4-0", adding that "Madonna has never sounded so loose, so lithe, so funny". The song received a Grammy award at the 42nd ceremony, in the category of Best Song Written for Visual Media. It was also nominated in the category of Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. It was also nominated for a Golden Globe award for Best Original Song, but lost to Phil Collins's "You'll Be in My Heart". At the 2000 ASCAP Pop Awards it was awarded the Most Performed Song. It also won the Ivor Novello Award for Most Performed Work, while also being nominated for Best Contemporary Song. The 1999 MTV Europe Music Awards also nominated the track in the category of Best Song. "Beautiful Stranger" was nominated as Favorite Song From a Movie at the 1999 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

## Chart performance

In the United States, "Beautiful Stranger" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 78 on June 12, 1999. It was Madonna's first soundtrack single to chart on the Hot 100 since her rendition of "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" reached number eight in March 1997. "Beautiful Stranger" also debuted at number 28 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart. It gradually climbed up the Hot 100 and peaked at number 19 on July 13, 1999, on the strength of radio airplay only. Promis said that the relative low placement was due to the CD singles not being released. "Beautiful Stranger" was successful on the Billboard dance charts, reaching number one on the Dance Club Songs chart. It placed at number 31 on the year-end ranking for Dance Club Songs in 1999. In Canada, "Beautiful Stranger" was able to top both the RPM Top Singles and Adult Contemporary charts, while also reaching a peak of number four on the Dance/Urban charts. While the song was commercially released in Canada, it was ineligible to chart on the Canadian Singles Chart as Warner did not submit the necessary barcode information to Nielsen SoundScan.

In Australia, "Beautiful Stranger" debuted at number eight on the ARIA Charts, and reached its peak of number five the next week, staying there for two weeks in total. It gradually descended down the charts, present within the top 50 for a total of 16 weeks. It was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipment of 35,000 copies of the single. At the year end tabulation, the song ranked at number 34 on the Singles chart. In New Zealand, "Beautiful Stranger" debuted at its peak position of number five. The single gradually descended down the charts, and was present for a total of 14 weeks.

In the United Kingdom the song debuted at its peak of number two on the UK Singles Chart with first-week sales of over 135,000 copies. The song spent 16 weeks on the singles chart, with seven of those being within the top 20. "Beautiful Stranger" also became one of the most played songs on UK radio, receiving over 2,462 plays per week, breaking the previous record held by Cher with her single "Believe". According to the Official Charts Company, the song has sold 535,000 copies in the United Kingdom as of August 2016 and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). Across Europe, "Beautiful Stranger" reached the top twenty of the charts in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Scotland, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, while reaching the top of the charts in Finland and Italy. It received a silver certification in France for shipment of 125,000 copies. The song reached a peak of number two on the European Hot 100 Singles chart, also ranking number two in the 1999 year-end tabulation behind Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time".

## Music video

The song's accompanying music video was directed by Brett Ratner and filmed at Universal Studios in Los Angeles in May 1999. Madonna had previously shown interest in working with Ratner after seeing his video for D'Angelo's "Brown Sugar" (1995). Her make-up was done by Kevyn Aucoin, with whom she had previously worked on her music video for "The Power of Good-Bye". According to Ratner, it was a rather jovial shooting:

> Mike was in character the entire time. He and Madonna really had a great chemistry together. This video shows her absolutely hysterical sense of humour, and it's great for everyone to see that side of her. This was by far the most fun I've ever had making a video.

The video begins with Myers as Austin Powers, receiving a call from his boss Basil Exposition (Michael York), who warns him against a dangerous spy describing her as a "master of disguise". The screen of his car depicts five images of Madonna wearing different looks, and Exposition clarifies that she has been "seducing our top agents". He also warns Powers "whatever you do don't fall in love. We've already lost 007 and 008". As the video continues, Powers finds Madonna at a club performing in front of a crowd, which includes Verne Troyer in character as Mini-Me. As he watches her perform, Powers finds himself fantasizing about the two of them dancing in front of a white background with psychedelic fluorescent whirls. He also imagines her in the passenger seat of his car, where she dances suggestively for him and playfully teases him whilst he is driving through London at night.

According to Ratner, Myers was not comfortable with these scenes, as he felt it was too sexual and inappropriate; he even asked him to cut that particular shot. Madonna on the other hand, thought it was fun and convinced the director to keep it. The video ends with Powers' car fantasy, with Powers telling Madonna “You’re going the right way for a smacked bottom”, to which Madonna replies “I hope so”. Author Georges Claude Guilbert wrote in his book, Madonna as Postmodern Myth, that "Beautiful Stranger" denoted one of the series of looks reinvented by Madonna around that time, and was a "radical" change from the geisha look of her previous video for "Nothing Really Matters", released the same year. Matthew Rettenmund wrote in his Encyclopedia Madonnica that "Madonna probably gave very little thought [behind the video]" but he felt that it was better than being a "couple of steps above a clips compilation".

At the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards, the video was nominated in the categories of Best Female Video and Best Cinematography, and won for Best Video from a Film. It also received a nomination for Best Pop Clip of the Year at the 1999 Billboard Music Video Awards. The clip won Best Cinematography and Best Make-Up at the 2000 MVPA Awards; it was also nominated for Soundtrack Video of the Year. At the 1999 VH1 Fashion Awards, the video received a nomination in the category of Most Stylish Video. The video can be found on the Madonna compilations, The Video Collection 93:99 (1999) and Celebration: The Video Collection (2009).

## Live performances and covers

Madonna performed "Beautiful Stranger" on her 2001 Drowned World Tour, where it was the fourth song on the setlist. It began with an introduction by Myers as Austin Powers on the video screens, the singer then asked the crowd "Do I make you horny?" (one of Powers' catchphrases) before performing the song. She was joined by backup singers Niki Haris and Donna DeLory, who also contributed with background vocals on the track. Costumes for the performance included spiked dog collars, Swarovski crystal-encrusted bracelets and tattered tops; Madonna herself wore a sleeveless black top, crossover top with one net sleeve, jeans with zips and bondage straps and a tartan kilt. The backdrop during the performance displayed scenes from the movie and psychedelic fluorescent whirls. It also featured a lost technician at the end and elements of "Soul Bossa Nova (Dim's Space-A-Nova)", another song from the film's soundtrack. On September 15, 2001, the tour's final date, Madonna's then husband Guy Ritchie joined her onstage as the lost technician. Michael Hubbard from MusicOMH noted that "things quickly hotted up with [...] 'Beautiful Stranger'". The performance on August 26, 2001, at The Palace of Auburn Hills, outside of Madonna's hometown of Detroit was recorded and released in the live video album, Drowned World Tour 2001.

On October 26, 2008, Madonna performed a snippet of "Beautiful Stranger" as the request song during the Chicago stop of her Sticky & Sweet Tour. An a cappella version of the song was also performed during the Nashville stop of her Rebel Heart Tour in January 2016. In December 2016, Madonna performed "Beautiful Stranger" during her Tears of a Clown show as part of a benefit dinner for her charity, Raising Malawi, at Miami, Florida.

Jon Auer, co-founder of the American power pop band The Posies, recorded a cover of the song on his 2001 solo EP 6 1⁄2. Website Stereogum listed the cover at number five on their list of The 20 Best Indie Rock Madonna Covers. A 2007 folk music tribute compilation to Madonna, entitled Through the Wilderness, features a cover of the song by Golden Animals. Australian rock band DMA's covered the song during their BBC Radio 1 sessions with Annie Mac on March 8, 2016. Michelle Geslani from Consequence of Sound website praised the cover saying that it would "undoubtedly be hailed as yet another successful entry in DMA's young career" and described the cover as "easily tweaking the swirling, retro number into a psychedelic, arena-ready anthem". Michael Carr from Music Feeds magazine also praised the cover saying "Lending itself surprisingly well to the boys’ shoegazey brit pop treatment, the lads absolutely nail it... To be honest though, they kind of won on song choice alone".

Most recently, American punk band Skating Polly released a cover of the song on the 2020 re-release of their album, The Make It All Show, as one of the bonus tracks. The band had previously covered the song on their 2016 tour.

## Track listing and formats

- US 12-inch promo vinyl 1

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Club Mix) – 10:12
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Radio Mix) – 4:00
3. "Beautiful Stranger" (New Club Edit) – 5:12
4. "Beautiful Stranger" (LP Version) – 4:22

- US 12-inch promo vinyl 2

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Club Mix) – 10:13
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (Album Version) – 4:21
3. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Radio Mix) – 4:04
4. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Dub Mix) – 6:22

- US and UK promo CD

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (William Orbit Radio Edit) – 3:58
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (LP Version) – 4:22

- UK 7-inch and cassette single, European 2-track CD

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (LP Version) – 4:22
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Radio Mix) – 4:00

- European, UK, Japanese, and Australian CD single

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (LP Version) – 4:22
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Club Mix) – 10:12
3. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Radio Mix) – 4:00

- Digital single (2021)

1. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Club Mix) – 10:12
2. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Dub Mix) – 6:21
3. "Beautiful Stranger" (Calderone Radio Mix) – 4:03
4. "Beautiful Stranger" (New Club Edit) – 5:13
5. "Beautiful Stranger" (William Orbit Radio Edit) – 3:56

## Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel are adapted from Beautiful Stranger promo single liner notes.

- Madonna – vocals, songwriter, producer
- William Orbit – songwriter, producer, guitar, keyboards
- Victor Calderone – additional producer, remixer
- Emma Fowler – flute
- Damian LeGassick – keyboards, programming
- Pat McCarthy – engineering
- Mark Endert – engineering
- Dave Chelsea – engineering
- Jeff Gregmay – assistant engineering
- Wassim Zartek – assistant engineering

## Charts

### Weekly charts

### Year-end charts

## Certifications and sales

## Release history

## See also

- List of number-one singles of 1999 (Canada)
- List of number-one singles of 1999 (Finland)
- List of number-one hits of 1999 (Italy)
- List of number-one dance singles of 1999 (U.S.)

1999 single by Madonna

Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media

Song recordings produced by William Orbit