I’ve been thinking about legacies, about how hard it is to control what people think of us when we’re alive, and how, once we’re dead, our legacies begin (often wild) lives of their own. I remember when Nixon died. I was surprised by the lionizing, and then confused because I thought maybe that’s what we’re supposed to do – remember the good, forgive the bad. I definitely would like everyone to do that with me.
I’m feeling that way now about Michael Jackson. To me, there is no denying the talent. The man was amazing – genius is not too strong a term. All over Facebook and Twitter, in the hours following his death, there were messages of sadness. People quoting Michael, virtually crying, posting his pictures, grieving. MSNBC was all Michael all the time for hours. One tweet said it was “all about the music, people” and, to be honest, I felt heartened. I wanted that to be the case. I wanted to come in here and talk about the hours I spent trying to figure out the moon walk, never really getting it (though I was pretty good at the crotch grabbing thing). I wanted to confess that I coveted the red Thriller jacket, and how I played the CD all the time until the player in my car died with Thriller inside it.
But I’m not sure it really should be “all about the music.” Whether or not there was any molestation (Michael was acquitted and always proclaimed his innocence), is it okay for a 40-something man to fill his bed with young boys? To me, there’s at least a creepy factor here. And even the weirdness with his nose is troubling. It made me sad. Seemed like self-mutilation on a grand scale to me. He had a wonderful nose before he decided to “fix it.”
I don’t really know the answer to the question I’m posing. How do you think Michael Jackson should be remembered?
I’m sad about MJ’s death. My feelings about him aren’t orderly or easily classified, which, I suppose is reflective of the man himself. What I am not is unaffected. In the words of Nekesa Mumbi Moody, an AP reporter, “The ‘Thriller’ may be gone, but the thrill will always remain.”
For better and worse.
9 responses so far ↓
karen from mentor // June 27, 2009 at 11:45 am |
Judy,
I was sad that Farrah didn’t get a whole day to herself. She was a strong woman and deserved to be mourned properly… mj dying was surreal for me. I grew up with him. Danced to thriller at a college night club the night it opened… I haven’t watched ONE BIT of the news coverage. That’s how I’m honoring the little child that was so broken inside of him. I hope that now that he is gone, his body is handled respectfully, and his children are spared any further gruesome media raking over of his oddness. That, of course won’t happen, but people can choose not to watch it.
He was a broken, weird child/man, but he still made some awesome music.
and no, a grown man should not fill his bed with children…no matter if he feels like a child himself…physically he wasn’t….he should have had boundaries…but once he was that rich and that isolated and that broken…who told him no?
really, no one.
It was sad. His life, his death. Just sad.
Geez..now I need to go look at puppies and kittens for a while ….
Carey Jones // June 27, 2009 at 10:43 pm |
I’m hopeful that maybe there will be something remembered other than the music because I believe that people should be aware that fame and fortune can really hurt people (whether it be a child who is forced to be like an adult by starting a career too young (which I’d imagine could be balanced somehow) or an adult male who has desires that really should be addressed (even if it is just wanting to pretend to be a child by having a ’sleep over’ and that’s it). I’m hoping that now maybe people will see that he really was a broken soul in a lot of pain (that of course does not excuse any crime, if it was in fact committed). I hope that it will dawn on people that the things he was doing (trying to drastically transform his appearance, wearing masks in public, etc.) weren’t the actions of a mentally and emotionally healthy person. I hope the jokes will end because his life was tragic and so is mental illness. He has children of his own that are still living and I do hope for them that the music and art will rise above the other issues; however, I still have the wish that somehow a lesson will be learned about childhood abuse and its repercussions. I believe it is highly unlikely that he was Not abused as a child (whether it be physical or emotional) and I think his vulnerable spirit made the abuse affect him in an even more devastating way. I feel a bit guilty because the music he made as a child created such happy memories for me and yet, he should have been just living the simple life of a kid. I am thankful for his art and hope that will be a feeling his family gets from the public. If you can believe it, I was literally listening to a re-mix of “I want you Back” (Motown Remixed — Z-trip remix, check it out!) on my i-pod the morning of his passing and a few days before that, my Mother kept asking me to let her listen to it over and over. Seriously.
judy // June 28, 2009 at 8:29 am |
Karen, Sorry. It made me sad, too. Also, something about his death on the eve of a comeback tour that had sold out in 50 venues. That’s kind of amazing.
Carey, I will check it out. Thanks for the tip. I think you’re right, of course, MJ was damaged by a life too big, too young.
Darren King // June 28, 2009 at 12:34 pm |
You raise a good question Judy. This icon that was so much a part of my youth. And then watching him age and the path he took with his career, his life. The fact that we ask ourselves these questions, speak to the impact he had.
My sense of it Judy is that along with genius there comes eccentricity. When genuis tries to ‘fit in’ with ‘everyday’ society, or tries to feel accepted by it, we are witness to the struggle of the genuis’ trying to relate, trying to fit in, trying to be accepted. No doubt, he opened himself as a target. Perhaps, too trusting, too naive. We are a culture that likes things and people to be in a way we can easily understand.
The path to fame is different for each person. From Mozart to Michael, fame never provides a roadmap to safe-guard those on that path. Michael Jackson was musically our cultural equivalent to Mozart. Gifted, a musical genius as a boy performer, singer, composer. He changed the way people write and perform music. And for the audience, how we ‘watched’ the music (movie-style videos).
I will remember Michael Jackson for his muscial legacy, his contributions to the arts and humanity (there wouldn’ have been a ‘Live Aid’ without him), the barriers he and the Jacksons broke through in the early 70’s following the assassination of MLK Jr.
And any peace denied here, any feelings of being unaccepted, those are gone now.
Lake // June 28, 2009 at 1:53 pm |
MJ’s story is the kind of tragedy that makes great fiction; a performer who captured the world’s attention with an ethereal dance, yet fell prey to his own demons. Whether the allegations were just that or actual crimes, we’ll never know. We do know that his actions were inappropriate and, well, weird. The lesson – or theme, I guess – is that the same bright light that elevates us can be our demise.
Carey Jones // June 28, 2009 at 5:54 pm |
That is so true — what Lake just wrote, about the “Light” that elevates us can also be our demise — although I guess I look at it as the shadows created by our Light or even the ‘dark side of the Moon’ if you want to get all Pink Floyd-ish ;-) It’s such a profound thought though — and to realize how important Balance is and learning not only to use our Gifts but to recognize that even Gifts can turn into a Curse! I really like that lesson — Lake’s Lesson :-)
judy // June 28, 2009 at 7:43 pm |
“And any peace denied here, any feelings of being unaccepted, those are gone now.” That’s beautiful, Darren.
Lake, Couldn’t agree with Carey more. It will forever more be referred to on ZS as Lake’s Lesson. (Oh, and I WILL refer to it. I will.)
Carey, I like the shadows created by our light, and it is ALWAYS a good idea to get Pink Floyd-ish!
karen from mentor // June 29, 2009 at 6:09 am |
Judy,
No sorry needed, as I told you off blog, the post was beautiful and hit just the right tone…I was just sad about how much he had suffered…and those immediately around him will continue to suffer now that he’s gone until the media feeding frenzy is over….
hopefully he’s gone to someplace peaceful where he can finally accept himself…I like the idea of him basking in a different kind of “bright light” that allows his spirit to slough off all of the consequences and burdens of desperate parents ok with robbing their children of childhood and of too massive quantities of fame and adoration here on Earth….
(hey where are all of those violins coming from?)
janebretl // June 29, 2009 at 5:50 pm |
I think I was the only person on the planet that did not know of his death until days later (life off the grid). I have missed the media frenzy but found a wonderful recap here. Thanks for your eloquent words,
Jane