I kept saying it over and over last night. I can’t believe Michael Jackson is dead. I have not slept since the news came, so I’m sort of interested in seeing what my dreams will be like tonight this morning. Michael had such a major cultural impact in the 1980s. It’s difficult to explain it to someone who did not witness it. Britney Spears is about the closest that I can compare, but she’s nowhere near Michael’s impact. But if you want to start to understand it, you can begin there I guess.
Michael was one of those entertainers who really defied genre distinctions. Eddie Van Halen played the guitar solo on “Beat It.” Slash played on “Black or White.” Vincent Price, the horror movie icon, did the rap for “Thriller.” Weird Al Yankovic parodied not one, but two of his songs. Scores of young people, regardless of race, emulated Michael’s moonwalk, dressed in a red jacket with one sparkly glove.
There will never be another entertainer like Michael Jackson.
The blogosphere is, of course, filled with remembrances of the King of Pop. Bring Back Glam, Cardboard Junkie, White Sox Cards, A Cardboard Problem, bdj610’s, Night Owl Cards, Wax Heav-en, and Cardboard Icons. I’m sure more posts will surface as the day progresses, as others collect their thoughts.
No Comments Yet
No comments yet.
Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI
Leave a comment
