This morning, an icon of my childhood lost her battle with cancer and died. Farrah, dear lady, you shall be fondly remembered. Not to be outdone, Michael Jackson, the self proclaimed King of Pop died later this afternoon. I was fascinated by the press releases. Here we had two stars, dying well before their time. Farrah, who struggled bravely against a disease that was slowly consuming her, had, in her own way, given courage to many who face the same fate with her undying determination and ever present optimism. Jackson, by contrast, had become infamous, and the butt of more than a few jokes. So, when I read a lot of blogs comparing the defunct Clown Prince Of Pop to the late Elvis Presley, I had only one thing to say...... GIMME A FREAKING BREAK ALREADY!!!!!!
Are you NUTS? Jackson compared to Elvis? The ONLY thing they had in common was Lisa Marie. Yes, Michael Jackson was a great showman. His albums were pure platinum...his concerts, the stuff of legends. But then there was the off stage Michael. You know the one I'm talking about... The guy who hung out with a chimp.... The guy who bought the Elephant Man.... The guy who swung babies from balconies.... Mr. Germaphobe, hiding behind his mask.... The guy Pepsi set on fire.... Yeah, THAT guy.
Ask yourself this, those of you old enough to remember: Where were you when you heard Elvis died? Do you remember the confusion, the chaos....the women totally freaking out to the point of nervous breakdown? It was like Hell on Earth that day. I was swinging on the swing set in our back yard, it was sunny and breezy, birds were singing...off in the distance a dog was yapping non-stop..... Then the announcement came over the radio. Elvis had died. A moment later, it was as if Armageddon had come. Screams of purest grief came from just about every house in my neighborhood. It gave me chills. Women came pouring out into the backyards, converging on my house. They were still screaming their heads off as if their insides were on fire. Other women, who had obviously missed the announcement came running, too. As soon as someone calmed down enough to tell them the news, they screamed, too.
Of course, all the hysteria wasn't lost on the children. We were all caught up in the moment, watching our mothers cry, scream, tear handfuls of hair from their own heads, and some, going so far as to claw their faces to the point they were bleeding. They were having one giant, communal nervous breakdown and so were we. Later, when the dads got home and calmed our moms down with whatever passed for tranquilizers.....Valium, I think, with a Gin chaser....they gathered, as men do, in the timed honored tradition of manly men everywhere, around the biggest barbeque grill in the neighborhood and drank beer while discussing the situation in hushed and reverent tones. Many a kid got his first taste of beer that day and, I tell you, we needed it. The King was dead.
Flash forward to today. Where are the crazed women screaming and going totally bananas? Do you hear any little kids crying? Has a hush fallen over the world? No? Tell me, what HAVE you heard? Have you heard a lot of Michael Jackson jokes? I have. Why? Michael Jackson's been dead for years, to most of the planet...excluding maybe a few Middle-Eastern nations. His antics have been an ongoing embarrassment to America. No matter whether he was guilty, or not, of any wrong doing where children were concerned, the damage had been done. Michael Jackson had become infamous, just like O.J., Errol Flynn, Hitler, and George W. Bush.
There doesn't seem to be room for debate. had Michael Jackson died shortly after the release of Thriller, he would most certainly have gained godhood. People would have spoken of him in awe and not a soul would have endured the things others are saying about him this day. But he didn't die then; He died today and, now, he will mainly be remembered as the butt of a billion child molestation jokes. Department stores beware.....
