Michael Jackson
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By John Stokes |
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Andy Warhol PicturesThe pictures of Andy Warhol have revolutionized the art world. Whether you love him or hate him (and most people tend to drift ..... It is not possible for humans to go (or grow) backwards. We cannot undo what we have done, cannot unsay what we have said. We are existential, physical, and metaphysical victims of entropy, and cannot re-live (as far as we know) phases, re-enact behaviors, or re-think value judgments and statements. A matched burned is spent; an egg broken is cracked. So where does Michael Jackson go from here'
Just as do many child stars, Michael Jackson made audiences coo and giggle at how adorable he was and impressed them with his talents, which at first were token up-stagings to his brothers also on stage as the Jackson Five. Sure, he had a dynamic little dance and song that was very good, but what about hunky Jermaine, whose voice was smooth as caramel and who was—in this writer’s teen year opinions—the most gorgeous of the group' Somehow, just as Donny did and then Marie did, taking exile and autonomy from The Osmonds, Michael Jackson went solo and made his group old news in a matter of Pop Chart weeks (actually years, but…).
Okay, so Michael Jackson’s a star in his own right. The Jackson Four, after Jermaine and Jackie each tried the solo route to little acclaim, become ordinary Joes (no pun intended): now Marlon’s a real estate broker, Tito’s turning his own kids out into a fairly good boy band (and doing some blues singing on his own), and Randy is running the official Michael Jackson website.
J C PenneysRemember way back when you were a kid, and your mom would always want to ..... Michael is the superstar. He sells out his first albums, Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad. He starts an innovative choreography craze that includes original moves and vocals imitated the world over. He starts (or stands alone in) fashion trends—one glove, black and white and white. He starts cosmetic alterations. And he starts commenting on his own greatnesses. First he is king of pop, then he is a picked-on victim (hence his responsive “Bad” single), then he is Jesus Christ.
In one magazine the photos show Michael Jackson onstage, hands outstretched in mock crucifixion, and reveal his comments as more than implying he is the second-coming. Other opportunities to speak have Michael Jackson leaning a bit high up on the grandeur scale:
“I love E. T. 'cos it reminds me of me. Someone from another world coming down and you becoming friends with them and this person is, like, 800 years old and he's filling you with all kinds of wisdom and he can teach you to fly.”
“…But still I must achieve. I must seek truth in all things. I must endure for the power I was sent forth, for the world, for the children. But have mercy for I've been bleeding a long time now.”
Benny HillBenny Hill was a famous British comedian that had people laughing in over 140 countries around the world. Best ..... On one web page, titled “Michael: Who is Like the Lord,” there are two pictures, two buttons for voting whether you believe in him—yes or no—and one quote, from Proverbs 3:6: “In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path.”
The climb up has been controversial, dangerous, and telling. But now that Michael has lived the public life, the vilified life, the circus freak life, and the persecuted life, how does he (from, evidently, Bahrain, now) get any higher' How does he, conversely, get to a place where he is not the Michael Jackson of Michael Jackson fame'
Some of us make efforts to return to simpler ways and times. Rather than making recycling our reason for being, we consume less and thereby use less plastic, paper, wood, metal, aluminum, etc.. Rather than get all tendentious about saving the whales and the rainforests and the beasts of human consumption, we avoid man-made items, become vegetarian, and grow our own foodstuffs. And instead of fighting this or that pollution, we limit our mileage or ride bikes, we turn down the noise, and we take in less consumer-targeted TV. But we know we cannot move backwards, as a collective; we know we cannot devolve.
Blockbuster MovieWhen was the last time you saw a good movie' Now, I'm not talking about some cheesy ..... So how will Michael Jackson start again, re-inventing himself, masking the masks with more masks, coming down off the cross of that which he himself has said he is on' How do you go from billionaire martyr to hermit in a nice, simple hut' Inculcated as a sheik' Disguised as an Arab woman behind his favorite black chador'
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