The King Is Dead, by Michael Davis – Straight No Chaser #123
June 26, 2009 Michael Davis 3 Comments
As of 9:34 Thursday June 25, 2009 the evening Michael Jackson died I have received 23 calls asking me how I was. Friends of mine were concerned how I was doing. That’s how big a fan I was of Michael Jackson (MJ).
I supported MJ when everyone was jumping on his back. In fact I can remember the day I had my first criticism of him. I was watching the 20/20 interview with a group of people when MJ said; “It’s OK to share your bed with a child.”
Everyone in the room was shocked but even more shocked when I said; “That stupid motherfucker!” NO ONE in that room could believe that I the biggest fan of MJ had turned against him. But I had not turned against him I just thought he said something stupid and he had. The group thought I had joined the bandwagon of people calling Mike ‘Jacko.’ Nope not me, I got mad but never waivered. I’m loyal like a puppy I could care less what other people were saying about him. I got upset when HE said something I knew was going to be a problem and it was.
I was still a fan, always have been. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him a number of times and working with him. In fact the painting running here for the second time was produced for CBS records for a Jackson’s promo piece.
Over the last few years nobody has made more fun of Michael Jackson than Black Comedians. That’s fair. I’ve said myself that Mike was his own worst enemy, and the shit he did was pretty funny. I mean come on he was a hoot when it came to certain things. There’s a well know comic who I can’t mention because a friend of mine may be producing a movie with him. This comic’s routine about MJ is just raw and everyone who hears it cracks up, I think most things are funny this was not. This routine was just cruel. I’ve said a few times that people LOVE to jump on others when they are down. Well this comic is pretty hot now, but as sure as I am that in 100 years people will still remember MJ I’m just as sure that nobody will remember this comic.
Now that’s comedy.
On the day that Michael Jackson died -very few people are calling him Jacko, many in the black community who turned their back on MJ saying he was a child molester and wanted to be white are now signing his praises.
I’m amazed at that, O.J. Simpson who had as much to do with the black community as I do with Martians was embraced by the black community during his legal troubles and the same community shunned MJ. MJ has raised MILLIONS for the United Negro College Fund and never made a peek about it. I don’t what O.J. did but I’m pretty sure MJ did a lot more.
Well the King Of Pop is dead and now 24 people have asked me how I am.
I’m like millions of other fans that never waivered never doubted the gloved on, I’m bad.
Reg
June 26, 2009 - 8:01 am
Michael, yours was a soul that was ensnared by the curse of fame perhaps as no other human has had to endure…..Here’s my remembrance of the talent, showmanship, and childhood that you never really had… “I’ll Be There”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehal1eUG1jk
Little Boy Lost – R.I.P.
What’s everybody’s favorite video from this amazingly talented entertainer…that never knew what it meant to have a normal existence?
Martha Thomases
June 26, 2009 - 8:25 am
When (I think) Thriller came out, there was a poster of Michael in the subway, a full length photo of him dressed in a suit, reclining. He was one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever seen.
Which is why I always felt sad when he had so many plastic surgeries. What kind of hideous self-hatred must he have experienced to want to change his looks? Look how cute he is in your painting!
I don’t know if he was a child molester. At best, he said and did things that enabled other pederasts. I think this is part and parcel of the self-hatred reflected in his face.
But the man could write a song, he could sing and he could dance. Maybe he sacrificed the joy in his life, but he sure delivered it in his art.
pennie
June 26, 2009 - 8:55 am
Who of us in the public can really know what makes someone tick–especially as high-flying as MJ?
Reg, I’ve always believed there was great truth your comment about fame. Look at how early fame has ravaged so many who were celebrities at such early ages.
The thing is, MJ just never appeared to be comfortable in his skin; he seemed to be carrying a heavy load. His talents had that double edge to them–the touches of the muse made him at once incredibly creative and self-destructive. At least it appeared that way from the outside. I have no special insights into this volcano that erupted, then lay dormant, The bright luster on stage was all too often eclipsed by his theatrical antics off-stage. Maybe he just never had an opportunity to be a kid.
It just appeared that he was disconnected. The disconnect was apparent in so many ways. But we all know how appearances can be deceiving.
Mike Gold
June 26, 2009 - 10:25 am
You folks are very charitable towards a man who, despite his massive talent, got little boys loopy on Jesus Juice, got naked, and took them to his bed. By his own admission. He saw nothing wrong with that. By his own admission. Sexual sociopath. By his own admission.
Damn. I feel a column coming on.
Rick Oliver
June 26, 2009 - 10:46 am
“but as sure as I am that in 100 years people will still remember MJ…”
If anyone still remembers MJ 100 years from now, it will be for reasons similar to the reason that people might still remember Fatty Arbuckle.
AFAIK (and correct me if I’m wrong; I didn’t really pay much attention to his career), he didn’t write the music, and I don’t think he could play any musical instruments. So he could sing and dance. In the amazing talent department, that puts him right up there with Brittany Spears.
Not to make this about famous outrageous black musicians, but I hope the number of people who remember Prince 100 years from now is far greater than the number who remember MJ.
pennie
June 26, 2009 - 11:06 am
Rick, I share your hopes. I can’t dance a lick like MJ, nor do I possess his theatricality, vocal range or gymnastics. But when it comes to sheer legendary musicality, MJ never rocked my world like Prince did/does. Jackson was a deeply troubled pop star and like others, I recognize his influence on the public. Prince stirs my universe. But MOTU’s column (lots of Michaels in the room), was not a comparison but his own fast tribute.
Mike G and Martha, your comments are where my problem with MJ circle. I abide many variances in human behavior. Child molestation is the number one I don’t and will never condone, MG, if you’re germinating and masticating, I’ll hold that thought.
David Quinn
June 26, 2009 - 11:49 am
Thought of you when I heard, Michael. Knew you would have something to say.
Troubled, troubled man, MJ — and yet he lit up so many lives with his music. And you know that when the next (Chinese) astronauts walk on the moon, they are going to camera-phone home MJ moon-walk videos. His moves travelled like that.
MJ’s Gary to Motown to Neverland to Dubai journey and lonely death on the cusp of a comeback tour is one of those Only in America stories that mixes up joy, revolution and waste — all with the bitter aftertaste of Charles Foster Kane flavored irony.
He’ll be one of the examples I use to teach my (3yrold) daughter about the struggles and ecstasies of the twentieth century. I’ll click on Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough and she’ll soar long past that long slow fade.
Russ Rogers
June 26, 2009 - 12:57 pm
@Rick Oliver Yes, you are VERY wrong. Michael Jackson wrote a lot of the music. He was an AMAZING musician, even if he was not known for being an instrumentalist. Most of his biggest hits were written or cowritten by him. From “Off the Wall” on, Michael took direct control of his career (out of the hands of a pathologically domineering father). That took vision and balls. He set his sights on crafting the biggest selling album of all time, and in my opinion he did it! I don’t count the Eagles Greatest Hits (which has sold more copies) as an album; that’s a compilation, not a single artistic vision. But maybe I’m picking at nits.
If Michael Jackson’s accomplishments started and ended with Thriller, his status as a music legend would be solid for several centuries. It was not just commercially popular. It was culturally significant. And it has objective artistic merit! It’s a freaking great album! And there are volumes more to Jackson’s career.
You dismiss “singing and dancing” (and Britney Spears) as if they require NO talent what so ever. Like they are eating, breathing or sleeping, skill sets that we all possess and not worthy of recognition 100 years from now. Again, you are dead wrong.
Michael could do more with his voice at age 10 than most soul singers can master in a lifetime. He was a prodigy. A tiny Soul Mozart. Seriously, that great. When was the last time you heard, “I Want You Back”? It’s a ridiculously good song. In my opinion one of the ten best pop songs of all time.
Fame is not a zero sum game. Admitting Michael Jackson has talent and might be remembered 100 years from now doesn’t make Prince’s chances of being recognized as a genius too any slimmer.
I don’t believe Michael Jackson was a child molester. I do think that he was incredibly naive and repressed. I don’t think he had any common sense when it came to relationships and sex. I don’t think he was the Captain Hook of Neverland, I think he was a very, very lost boy. It troubles me that Michael Jackson never admitted that what he was doing was dangerous, that many REAL, sick, molesters might take their cue from Jacko and say, “If Michael Jackson can have sleepover dates with boys, we should be able to too, Little Johnnie!”
@Mike Gold, the government (rightly) spent a lot of money trying Michael Jackson on charges of child molestation. But … he was not found guilty. I don’t think Jackson’s confused and misguided statements about his sleepovers with “friends” qualifies as an admission to being a Sexual Sociopath. Jackson felt like his childhood had been stolen from him. This was sadly too true. It had been. It crippled him socially to the point where he felt more comfortable with children than adults. He tried to relive his childhood in his adulthood, including things he never got to have as a kid, like playtime and sleepovers with his peers (children).
I’m not saying that Michael wasn’t warped or that many of his attitudes weren’t dangerous. I’m just not ready to brand him with with a scarlet “S” for Sexual Sociopath, when he was tired and found not guilty by his peers (adults that is).
Depak Chopra wrote a piece for the Huffington Post about Michael. It quotes Michael Jackson as having told Depak’s son, Gotham, “I don’t want to go out like Marlon Brando. I want to go out like Elvis.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deepak-chopra/a-tribute-to-my-friend-mi_b_221268.html
Brando was 80 when he died. Elvis was 42. Jackson was only 50. Maybe Jackson got his wish.
Here’s a song I wrote about 15 years ago. It seems appropriate today.
Just Like Elvis” by Russ Rogers
I wanna be just like Elvis
I wanna be loved by Millions
I wanna be just like Elvis
I wanna be loved by Millions
Just like Elvis…
Nobody knows why Elvis took all those drugs
Maybe the love of millions just wasn’t enough
I don’t blame Priscilla,
And nobody could blame little Lisa Marie
Maybe the love of millions can’t make you happy
Nobody knows why Elvis got so fat
Ten thousand fried banna sandwiches, you’ll get like that
He was a blackbelt in Karate,
How could he let himself get so out of shape
Maybe the love of millions can’t control your weight
But I want to be just like Elvis
I want to be loved by millions
Just like Elvis…
Nobody knows why Elvis died on the John
Some folks blame his doctors, some folks blame Colonel Tom
Me I just blame Elvis,
I can’t see how you could blame anybody else
Maybe the love of millions can’t save you from yourself
But I wanna be just like Elvis
I wanna be loved by millions
I wanna be loved…
Good-bye, Michael Jackson. RIP. “I want you back.”
Mike Gold
June 26, 2009 - 1:12 pm
@Russ: Sorry to shit on your hero. If it makes you feel any better, I dislike Gandhi for EXACTLY the same reason. Well, Mahatma didn’t offer Jesus Juice.
You said “The government (rightly) spent a lot of money trying Michael Jackson on charges of child molestation. But … he was not found guilty.” Yep. It’s amazing how quiet a witness can be when you give his parents millions and millions of dollars. Lots of people beat the rap. Ever see Guys and Dolls?
You also said “I don’t think Jackson’s confused and misguided statements about his sleepovers with “friends” qualifies as an admission to being a Sexual Sociopath.” Sure it does. Absolutely. He acknowledged enough to qualify for the position. If he was confused, it certainly wasn’t because a confession was beaten out of him. He said it, and I believe him. Particularly after he put his money where his mouth was. So to speak.
MOTU
June 26, 2009 - 2:02 pm
Mr. Gold,
I’ve been around enough people of wealth and power who think that somehow what they think and what they believe is what reality is. I have NO doubt that MJ lived in his own little world.
No doubt.
My step father was once the light of my life. I lived for the day when he would pick me up and I would get to spend the weekend with him. One day I realized that this was the same man who picked up a Tonka (when they were made of metal not plastic) truck and smashed it against my mother’s head. That was the day when I simply stopped dealing with him.
Years later he called from his death bed and asked for me to come see him-I did not go. When he died I skipped his funeral.
If I thought MJ was a child molester I would damn him to Hell just as quick. I didn’t think so.
I don’t think so because I’ve met him, I’ve worked with him and as a CEO of a Motown division I know shit that YOU Mr. Gold do not. Just as I’m sure you know things about Chicago politics as an insider that the general public does not . Michael Jackson was a lot of things but a child molester I’m sure he was not.
Frankly unless tapes show up (there are ALWAYS tapes from pedophiles) all we have is rumors and a court decision that completely vindicated him.
Mike I have nothing but love and admiration for you. I cherish you as one of my best friends and i respect your position but this is one time you are wrong because you just don’t know.
Martha Thomases
June 26, 2009 - 2:27 pm
@ Mike Gold. Tom Peyer yesterday, on his Twitter feed, pointed out that Michael Jackson is a better father than Eric Clapton.
Reg
June 26, 2009 - 2:38 pm
@Mike…
To be honest…I indeed experienced a fair amount of internal wrestling when I first heard the news and in the decision to post my earlier response. There is NO acceptable excuse for being the instrument of hell when it comes to child predation…..and whereas money often does indeed buy ‘justice’ (see the plethora of examples)….he wasn’t convicted…nor was evidence seen (as far as I’m aware) unlike the vile R. Kelly…so I was left with the evidence of very creepy and odd behaviour, but no actual proof of predation.
And then I thought about the warping and robbing of his childhood by an abusive father and exposure to stuff that few adults, let alone a child should experience. Which could have had the effect of locking a part of his psyche in wanting (and needing) to be a child.
So yeah.. I don’t know… but what I do know is that if he did commit the worst of evil, he has by now faced the Judge and His Judgment…and paid the price….eternally. My personal hope is that he didn’t do the things he’s been accused of, but walked in a very warped sense of wanting to recapture the fun and innocence that is, or should be, childhood… and that at last he’s found a measure of peace that he never had on this side. But that too is in the Hands of the ultimate Judge.
p.s. As far as R. Kelly is concerned…yeah…his ticket to Sheol is stamped. May his balls roast.
Rick Oliver
June 26, 2009 - 2:49 pm
re: “If Michael Jackson’s accomplishments started and ended with Thriller, his status as a music legend would be solid for several centuries.”
Interesting choice, since that’s definitely one he didn’t write. But you’re correct that he did write some of his material. (Hey, I admitted that I didn’t really follow his career.)
And I don’t mean to diminish his talents, but I think most musicians will agree that singing and dancing is generally much easier than playing pretty much any musical instrument.
Some people clearly see Michael Jackson as a major talent. I clearly do not share that point of view, and I think he is more likely to be remembered for his oddities than his musical abilities, if he is remembered at all. Like Elvis (whom you also seem to admire), I think Jackson was a product of his times, and I don’t think his music will stand the test of time. And I think that’s true for most popular artists. I doubt that many people will be listening to the Beatles in a hundred years.
Mike Gold
June 26, 2009 - 3:31 pm
Michael, I will always respect you as my friend and as a person truly worthy of being anybody’s friend. And perhaps you are responding to my column for this coming Monday, which I sent to you and to Tatiana earlier today. Respectfully agreeing to disagree is fine by me.
My statements regarding Michael Jackson’s role as a sexual predator is based upon the words that came out of his own mouth. Why he’d say such things if they weren’t true is confusing. Were it to have come out of a “confession” to the LAPD, that would be another matter.
Most sexual predators do not wear that on their sleeve. The only element common to many of them is that they come from similarly abusive families. Most seem normal in every other way. Look at the people who’ve been busted for kiddie porn — they look and act a lot more like Ozzie Nelson than Aqualung.
I am not saying Michael Jackson raped any kid. All I said, and I’ve said this repeatedly, is that he got kids liquored up, got naked, and took them to his bed. Do you dispute that? Is my language — referring to him as a pederast or sexual predator — that you take issue with? The actions I state are profoundly dangerous and exploitative and should not be minimized. Kids who are exploited grow up to exploit kids.
As for our pedigrees, let me whip mine out. I co-founded The National Runaway Switchboard. I spent years as Director of Education and Communication for the Alternatives, Inc. drug abuse prevention program. More recently (1998 – 2002) I did political, communications and education work for Connecticut’s Childcare Learning Centers — a.k.a. Head Start, school readiness — where I worked closely with Senator Chris Dodd and Congressman Chris Shays (yep, a Republican) and others to help save Head Start. So I take my youth social service work seriously and I regard it as a major part of my on-going political work.
I maintain: Michael Jackson was a child predator. My source: Michael Jackson. Sadly, he is no longer with us so he can’t recant — and explain why he made those statements in the first place.
MOTU
June 26, 2009 - 7:15 pm
Mike,
I’ve done a fair amount of mentoring in my own right and have quite the resume regarding my work with kids.
That said-I stand by what I believe.
Like it or not, like him or not, believe him or not- the WORLD stopped talking about Iran, the financial crisis. Korea, the new asshole GOP ass hole Sanders and that stupid bitch Palin because of Michael Jackson.
I’m good with that.
MOTU
June 26, 2009 - 7:27 pm
Rick,
Michael Jackson wrote or co-wrote 95% of Thriller. The biggest breakout hit on the album was Billie Jean and that was ALL Michael Jackson.
Thriller was a huge hit but Billie Jean was a MONSTER.
You also say “singing and dancing is generally much easier than playing pretty much any musical instrument.”
That’s subjective to say the least. How can you compare Fred Astair or Gene Kelly with Sting or Paul McCarthy? Singing and dancing are two different disciplines both of which Michael Jackson was one of the best at.
Marc Fishman
June 26, 2009 - 8:39 pm
I tried posting earlier, and feel like anything I could “add” to this discussion would be trite at best, but I’ll say my peace, for whatever it’s worth.
Professionally speaking, Michael Jackson was a force of nature. To say that his work in composition and craft of pop music in the 70s, 80s, and early 90’s is legendary… is in itself an understatement to me. So much of the pop world has riffed from Michael Jackson’s creativity. I don’t own much of his work, but I have a deep respect for the material he professionally shared with the world.
I don’t profess to know who he was as a person. I can only take from all the media that surrounded him his entire adult life that Michael’s fame and fortune allowed him to escape far from normalcy. If this in fact lead to his admission as Mike points out, to giving minors alcohol, and then having some sleepovers, etc… it’s a shame because at best, I would hope Michael simply didn’t have the wherewithal to know how wrong that in fact is. He himself called his home “Neverland”… and the connotations of that do paint a picture of someone whose handlers and horrible upbringing in a home not of love… led to a man with serious problems in his personal life.
I take Michael’s songs, his albums, and his videos for what they are… amazing pop music, and culture. I hope in the years to come, Michael will be known for his professional contributions more than his personal life proclivities…. but as they say… only time will tell.
I respect both you Mike Gold, and you MOTU, and you both have very strong convictions here. Agree to disagree on his personal life, but I hope in the end there is mutual agreement that his professional career, philanthropic gifts, and his desire to entertain a world’s worth of fans as something truly special.
Jeremiah Avery
June 26, 2009 - 9:03 pm
This reminds me of a conversation I had with a few people. It eventually led to how a lot of celebrities whore their children out in front of the cameras and then get all mad when someone takes their picture elsewhere. The girlfriend of a friend of mine brought up a point about Michael Jackson, how he was smart with his children. Having them wear masks in front of cameras kept them safe since they would be prime targets for every whack job out there. With those masks, they could go over friends’ houses, remove the masks and have some semblance of a life since no onlookers would know who they were or who their father was.
While some of his words and actions put him in a negative light, I think the parents of the kids who went to his house are far worse. I don’t condone his actions but since I wasn’t there and there is no hard evidence, I can’t label him as a monster. He was way out there, sure, but I can still listen to the Thriller album and enjoy it.
Though it is something how some pundits who are showering Michael Jackson with praise are the same sorts who wouldn’t go near him the past few years.
M.O.T.U
July 1, 2009 - 2:36 pm
Almost a week later and the world is still talking about Michael Jackson.
Mark Sanford is the luckiest MOFO in the world.
Reg
July 1, 2009 - 5:58 pm
mOTu said…Mark Sanford is the luckiest…..
But he’s also the stupidest….The idiot won’t stop talking! He’s back in the news saying that although he’s sure that la caliente senorita is his soul mate, but he’s going to try to fall back in love with his wife. This wonderful, thoughtful gubner actually said this in an interview!
Wonder how his wife, who’s been totally humiliated….(in front of the world) feels after her ‘not so loving hubby’s’ latest salvo? Yeaaah, I’m gonna give up the love of my life.. but hey honey! Let’s give it the ol’ college try!
Alan Coil
July 1, 2009 - 6:24 pm
Goober Sanford is also refusing to release his financial records as he said he would. Would it be legal for his wife to reveal them? Also, I betcha he has accounts she doesn’t even know about.