On the occasion of an artist's death, it's normal and even good to focus initially on the great things he accomplished. We've all been doing that ("we" = pop culture) in the days since Michael Jackson died. I was not a particular fan of his music, but the man's talent and importance to popular music was undeniable, and I think you'd have to be pretty hard-hearted not to feel sorry for the way his fame ruined his life.
Fine.
But as usual, The Onion speaks the plain truth; headline: "King of Pop Dead at 12." Jackson was a ghoulish figure who, if he did not sexually molest children, at least had an extremely unsavory attitude towards them; who certainly molested and mutilated his face out of self-loathing; who fathered children apparently for the sake of collecting playmates; who was a spendthrift loon; and who, if ABC News' reporting is correct, was blotto on heavy doses of painkillers most of the time for many years. Remember when he dangled his baby over the balcony in Germany? Imagine that he was out of his mind on Oxycontin when he did that.
Artistically, there wasn't much left to Michael Jackson after 1987's "Bad," which, compared to its predecessors "Thriller" and "Off the Wall," was fairly mediocre. But if you've made "Thriller," you've made your mark, and nobody can take that away from you. Though Jackson's failure to do anything artistically significant in over 20 years inevitably meant that his extreme creepiness dominated the public's image of him. It has been good this week to remember why people fell in love with Michael Jackson in the first place. In the Washington Post, Liz Kelly reminds us why in judging a creative legacy, it is important to separate the art from the artist. Excerpt:
And by admitting that we appreciate the art of someone we find morally objectionable, are we selling out our own ethics?Michael Jackson isn't the first person to inspire these questions. Commenting about classical musicians who were openly anti-Semitic or aligned themselves with Germany's Nazi regime, retired music critic Dimitri Drobatschewsky wrote:
"Unfortunately, there are so many 'unsavory characters' in the world of art, science, literature and general culture that if you boycotted their given genius, there would be precious little art left to enjoy."
And therein lies the rub. If one looks closely enough, uncomfortable realities can be found for many of pop culture's venerated artists, big and small: Mel Gibson, who is slowly working his way back into Hollywood's mainstream despite his 2006 anti-Semitic, sexist rant. Woody Allen, who continues to attract A-list talent, critical praise and audiences for his films despite being roundly criticized for romancing and marrying his stepdaughter. Amy Winehouse, who despite an inability to pull herself from the clutches of addiction, still has an undeniably beautiful and original voice.
Does an appreciation of "Billie Jean" or "Rock With You" mean we're giving Jackson a pass for what -- if nothing else -- were inappropriate relationships with minors? No. And here's why:
For many artists -- van Gogh, Kafka, Marilyn Manson -- art is an expression of one's demons. For Michael Jackson, art represented liberation from those demons.
ABC played a quote from a Jackson interview later in his life, in which he said that the only place he felt comfortable was onstage. Wearing the mask. At what point do you suppose Michael Jackson, the real person, died, and "Michael Jackson" came to inhabit his body? I'm serious.
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Maybe I am naive but I happen to believe that Michael Jackson was innocent of child molestation. I think he felt he could recapture his childhood, what little there was of it by being with children.
I think the real Michael Jackson was already waning but the trial completely killed him.
Logo MJ!!
I used to get my info from mainstream media and believed all these things that you wrote about Michael Jackson. Recently, I have been researching more about the man behind the mask. Why were his humanitarian contributions so easily overlooked? Why were his brilliant lectures not given any exposure? Why were his protests about the music/entertainment industry moguls easily overlooked? Michael is so much more than what the media portrays him. Recently, private videos have shown him as a loving parent, an incredible humanitarian, a genius, a compassionate human being, a fun-loving and playful man.
Mainstream media is so focused on demonizing this man, sensationalism sells. Looking closely, I was so shocked to learn about the magnanimous generosity and love that this man possessed and shared with the world, that was vastly ignored in favor of the BS that's been readily served to the public. It took some digging to find out this information, but isn't that the media's job?
Michael did many things that were not normal, but normal never created anything great. But he was not the distorted, crazed person you make him out to be. It was these cruel accusations that made him retreat behind the mask. I'm glad he did. That way, he probably created the barrier that would have destroyed the vast goodness and love in him.
wow
They started to crucify him after Thriller because he was getting way too big. A skinny little black boy from the middle of no where was bigger than Elvis could ever hope to be and was rubbing elbows with movie stars, living legends, living icons, presidents, kings, queens, and princesses. He was international and his star had shot beyond the stratosphere. He had women (and men) of every race and creed passing out at his concerts. He had to set up tents to handle all the faints in the crowds. Inert bodies had to be carried hand over hand. He was breaking records that will probably never be broken. And this was *after* Thriller. Look at his Bad and History tours. Someone forgot to tell his fans he was washed up.
Alert the media.
His TII tour sold out so fast, they had to add 40 more concerts. And it was going to be the greatest show on earth. Oh and he broke another record with the ticket sales of that movie. No matter what any one else did, Michael had to overcome racism to get where he got and he did it on sheer talent and will (and some damn hard work) while the media chopped at his heels the entire time until they hounded him to his grave. Used medication??? This entire country is on medication. The sheer strength of will it must have taken to have last this long.
Any money he spent was his and his alone to spend as he wanted. He gave to charities, he always donated proceeds of his concerts, he visited sick children all over the world, he had children come to his home to enjoy themselves. He worked damned hard to make the money he made and he could spend it or burn it as he saw fit. Instead of humping groupies after concerts, he was at Toys R Us buying toys and sitting up all night putting batteries in them to give them away the next day. The media didn't report on that.
There's a picture right now on the internet of Tom Cruise dangling his daughter by her little spaghetti arms over a bridge over some rushing water somewhere, while his idiot of a wife just stands there. Didn't hear that reported in the media.
He was investigated by the FBI for 10 years, his houses were raided, they ran DNA and fingerprint tests, and they threw everything and the kitchen sink in that farce of a trial and the only thing they found out was Mike likes himself some heterosexual porn (well good for him; he was real-blooded after all). The way the media would have you believe it, it he was a eunuch.
He was talented, genius, hardworking, humble, religious, God-fearing, gracious, polite, generous, shrewed, smart, a perfectionist and he loved his mother. The only thing he wanted to do was entertain and give the best performance he could for his fans. He loved his fans and was always kind and generous toward them more than any other star.
MJJJamal, I wouldn't believe the media if it reported the earth was round and revolved around the sun.
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