The last rites and wrongs of the recently deceased

It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.

Ecclesiastes 7:2(NIV)

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Michael Jackson


What's WRONG? At CLUB DEAD, The bell tolls for Michael Jackson the King of Pop, dead from cardiac arrest in Los Angeles at age 50. Some people can not be described in just a few words. He was one of those people.


How to talk to your kids about MJ's death

Michael Jackson had so many personas.

There was the "Little Michael Jackson of the Jackson Five," with the purple hat and the big Afro hair, belting out pop anthems. Seldom does anyone grow up so publicly. The Jackson family --five brothers dancing and singing happy, catchy pop songs, came to national attention when Michael was still very young. Motown head Berry Gordy spread the word that Diana Ross had discovered the group, but that was so much p.r., an attempt to use her fame to endorse their talent.

There was the actor, singing and sliding his way through Oz in the role of the scarecrow in "The Wiz."

Later, after reaching legal age, and gaining control of his money, Michael teamed with producer Quincy Jones to record 1979's "Off The Wall." It won the Grammy for Best Album, and established Michael as more than just another former child star.

"Thriller" followed in 1982, and would become the biggest selling recording in history. Michael was a fan of the movie "An American Werewolf In London," especially the scary special effects. "Werewolf" director John Landis came on board to shoot the long, long "Thriller" video that sent a standard in the early days of music video. He brought "moonwalking" into our vocabularies. His performance on the Motown 25 television special was nothing short of spectacular.

There was the entrepeneur who in the early months of MTV, threated to make a statement on CBS's morning show (Jackson recorded for CBS Records) accusing the channel of racist policies for not playing his videos. And he was the man who as his carer stumbled, brought the same charge against Tommy Mottola, the head of Sony Music.

There was the elaborate hair, the one sequined glove, the huge commercial deal with Pepsi, and the explosion on the set of one of the commercials. He had become the most popular entertainer in the world, perhaps the best-know person on the planet.

There was the host of Neverland Ranch, rejoicing in a middle-aged childhood.

There was the husband, first of Lisa-Marie Presley, then of Debbie Rowe, with whom he had two children. The thought of Michael Jackson as a father unnerved more than a few people. He had always shown a fondness for young children, but his eccentricities seemed to call for caution.

There was the bleached-faced man who dangled his child over a balcony.

There was the eternal man-child sharing his bed with young boys, drawing universal scorn, then being cleared of any wrongdoing. There was the sad recluse, the one we feared would mimic Sunset Boulevard's Norma Desmond, always working toward the next comeback.

His death came unexpectedly, when he stopped breathing as he was preparing for European concert dates. Paramedics were called to the Bel Air mansion he had been renting, but were unable to fully revive him.

Whether Michael Jackson is remembered as a sucessful, accomplished entertainer, or as a pop-culture enigma, he will be mourned as few ever have.

Then again, screw him, he's dead. Let's go look for crocodiles.



StevenK

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