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As another racially ambiguous musical entertainer once said, “You ain’t seen nuthin’ yet!”

If you thought the life of deceased pop singer Michael Jackson was a circus when he was alive, stick around.  It will now be an endless loop of hangers-on, former employees, both gruntled and disgruntled, bodyguards, nannies and wannabe authors aided and abetted by the Dr Phils and Oprah Winfreys of the world.  The world’s number one shakedown artist, Je$$e Jackson was the first on scene.  In fact, I read somewhere that as he pulled into the driveway at the Jackson’s Encino compound he was rear-ended by the ambulance responding to the 911 call.  He’s that good.  What’s the betting he and Al Sharpton draw lots to see who gets to counsel the bereaved families in a situation like this?  I bet ole Je$$e’s working on the deep pocket money angle even as we speak.  Someone must be to blame.  As usual, with his mind as sharp as a marble, he has been posing the tough questions, from CNN,

“How long had he stopped breathing? How long had he been unconscious?”

I believe the correct answer would be…forever?  He is dead, after all.  Now we have the nanny saying she used to pump MJ’s stomach all the time.  The nanny.  The nanny who got let go just last December. 

Rwaramba said she once became so concerned she reached out to Jackson’s mother and sister to attempt an “intervention,” only to have the pop star accuse her of betraying him.  “He didn’t want to listen,” Rwaramba, who worked for Jackson for more than a decade before leaving last December, told the paper.

Look for a book deal to follow shortly.  Let’s be clear here.  When I first moved to New York from England in early 1983 MTV was on the rise and Michael Jackson was at his peak with the album “Thriller.”  I was not a fan, I would never pay to see him in concert for example, but his influence and his presence as part of the soundtrack to my new life cannot be denied.  Sadly, it was a pinnacle of success that he was unable to attain again.  In death, however, like Elvis before him, he may find success beyond his wildest dreams.  Such is the nature of our culture that many who would not have considered buying one of his albums while he was alive are now doing so in such numbers that they are predicting he will be number one on the Billboard charts next week.

Last night VH1 had a three hour round up of MJ’s videos.  I watched the first 30 minutes or so, it was on at 2:00 AM, which necessarily focused on his later stuff, presumably in order to build up to a climactic ending with “Thriller” or “Billie Jean.”  What struck me about the later stuff was how dull it was.  Hugely expensive videos with blockbuster movie- type effects with huge casts backing formulaic and boring songs.  Wishy washy peace and love the children nonsense that no one in the real world cares about.  Much has been made of his dance abilities and he was a pioneer in that domain, but how difficult can it really be if every backup dancer, and in some cases 4 year old kids, can duplicate the moves?  Another one featured a half-naked then wife Lisa Marie Presley and MJ cavorting around in a spectacularly unconvincing display of heterosexual love.  I could not name any of these songs.  The problem for Mr Jackson was that he peaked so spectacularly in 1983 that his  success was impossible to duplicate, or even come close to, with future projects.  The other problem was that the high cost of his life-style was also unsustainable.  Very few successful performers could have underwritten the way in which he chose to live.  It is said the the always pompous Sting has 7 homes dotted around the world.  Well good for him.  In order to maintain them he has worked continuously since his initial fame with The Police and was able to continue his career as a solo artist up to the current day.  So he lives well and lives well within his means.  Jackson on the other hand, lived well beyond his means and was probably bankrolling most of his family to some degree.  Also, his hobby required him to sometimes make multi-million dollar settlements with pre-teens who either had a legitimate claim of abuse, or were cynically placed in his path as a substitute for a well-stocked ATM machine.

Also crawling out of the woodwork this weekend is Deepak Chopra who is claiming, according to The Guardian,

“Michael called me a while ago and said he wanted to do something for the environment,” Chopra said. “It is in fact the last music he made. We were going to write the words for it.

Sure.  Typical.  If you want to do something for the environment what could be more cleansing than to write a song about it?  Don’t get rid of your limos, or private jet or fleet of Escalades, pen a ditty.  Problem sorted.  Someone else with a book to shill, Ian Halperin, had this to say, at TheMailOnline,

Whatever  the final autopsy results reveal, it was greed that killed Michael Jackson. Had he not been driven – by a cabal of bankers, agents, doctors and advisers – to commit to the gruelling 50 concerts in London’s O2 Arena, I believe he would still be alive today.

I know people like Jackson are always surrounded by minders and handlers but whatever happened to personal responsibility?  He was a fifty year old man, for heaven’s sake.  Ex-wife Lisa Marie recalled that he always thought he would come to a sorry end in the same way as her father, 

 He stared at me very intensely and he stated with an almost calm certainty, ‘I am afraid that I am going to end up like (Elvis), the way he did,’”

At least he got that part right.  Interestingly, their marriage was widely regarded as a sham that was designed to deflect interest in his first child molestation case.  Although they denied it, here is what she had to say, emphasis mine, courtesy of The Daily News

It was an unusual relationship yes, where two unusual people who did not live or know a “Normal life” found a connection, perhaps with some suspect timing on his part,”

In the end, we have a man who was truly an icon.  A man who literally had the world at his feet, whose talent was overshadowed by a bizarre personal life that was his ultimate undoing.  I believe he was a child molester, so I shed no tears on his passing.  However, for all his monumental talent, the adoration he enjoyed from legions of fans across the world, he died a lonely drug addict.  That is sad.

Update:  According to The Sun the autopsy has revealed that MJ weighed a mere 112lbs.  So, despite Je$$e Jackson’s protestations that he was in fine health, clearly he was in no condition to undertake a 50 night tour.  No food in his stomach whatsoever.

Michelle Malkin has more.  Patriarch Joe Jackson gains an award over at Big Hollywood, not the good kind.

June 28, 2009  Tags: Michael Jackson  Posted in: Hollywood

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