As I blogged about previously, one of my assignments at the Oakland Press was handling part of the coverage for Michael Jackson's "Thriller" tour in the 1980s.
It would be hard to overestimate the cultural phenomenon that the concert was at the time.
I remember going to the Silverdome almost every day for several days as they assembled this behemoth of a set on the floor of the stadium.
My second wife, a Pontiac police officer, had her picture taken with Michael along with a number of police officers during a shoot of a clip of Michael and the officers for an MTV video. I don't remember what song it was for, but it was a famous clip of Michael being escorted by dozens of police officers with sunglasses down a flight of stairs.
After the tour left town there was the bizarre news conference in Michael's Troy (I think it was Troy) hotel room and the manager pointing out a glob of hair gel on the wall, supposedly belonging to the pop star.
I remember watching Michael as a little kid with the Jackson Five and then, like the rest of us, watched as his life turned into a train wreck. Hard to say I'm stunned by the news, but terribly sad nonetheless.
Doesn't help that it happened so close to the death of Farrah Fawcett and Ed McMahon, two other favorites from the past.
We always used to say in the newsroom that celebrity deaths came in threes, but this sure is an example of that old saw.
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6 comments:
I know exactly which photo you are talking about, Jim. My son was a big fan of Michael's and he had the action figure etc. I made one of his old vinyl discs (those ones with photos on them)into a wall clock years ago. I am looking for the photo now, so will let you know when or if I come across it. It's an iconic image to me. My son went on to be a cop in Oakland County. Now he lives on a farm in Iowa.
Susie was in the front row just two or three cops from Michael. It was a really cool photo, which each of the officers received a copy of. It was also in either Time or Life magazine as well.
It was the "Bad" vidio. I remember very well. I think he got a bad rap because he hung around young boys. I think he missed a normal childhood so he lived it out threw young friends. Thats all.
I was wrong. He was not in the "Bad" video. Aptos is along way from Pontiac.
Here is the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkNHsOZNVtA
look at the 6:34 mark.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'll put it up this morning.
In the video Susie was on Jackson's immediate right as they came down the stairs.
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