I'm doing something I don't normally do when I post something...just free write. As a rule, I start with an idea of how I want it to sound, where I want it to go then I write it, check it, edit it, etc. I'm not doing that tonight because I just wanted to put it out there. No, I am not emotional distraught over the deaths of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Michael Jackson. Upset yes, Distraught, no. These wre people I grew up watching that in some shape or fashion had an impact on my life. One thing I hate when a celebrity dies is that by the time the funeral comes around, they're nearly ready to be nominated for sainthood. I so hate that. they were imperfect, flawed and human.This is gonna be one of those days, especially for folks of my generation, as a “do you remember” day. Not on the scale of 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina or something, but a day that will stick with us. There are a very few celebrities that I can remember where I was when I found out they died. Bette Davis, Rita Hayworth, River Phoenix, Brandon Lee, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Michael Landon are the ones that come to mind. I remember the day Elvis died as if it were yesterday. I was 4 but it is so clear in my mind I runs like a movie. Aside from Elvis, the day Katherine Hepburn died sticks with me. I grew up wanting to be just like her; confident, strong minded, opinionated.
Like everyone else, I’m still trying to absorb the events of the day. After a lousy night’s sleep, I started the day at about half power and as I walked out the front door heading to work, my sunglasses fogged up and I tripped and fell into the front of my car and I thought, can this day get any worse? Well, it did. By the end of the day and within a few hours two icons –Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson – were gone just days after Ed McMahon. I grew up watching the Tonight Show and stealing Johnny’s jokes and even Ed’s comebacks because as everyone knows, no funnyman is funny without a great straight man and Ed McMahon was the best. All I can think now is that Johnny’s pretty happy to have his old friend on his right side and that Fred De Cordova is producing a new episode of “The Tonight Show” with a couple of special guests.
I can't say I was surprised when Ed died. The last few times I’d seen him, he looked pretty rough, he was up there in age so it was, in a way, expected. The Labor Day Telethon on't be the same this year without him. I didn’t expect Farrah to die. Ok, let me rephrase that. I didn’t want her to die. Even though they’re scarce, I’d really hoped and prayed for a miracle for her. She was the “It” girl of the 70’s and everyone in the world has seen “the poster”. Her hair was more famous that Jennifer Aniston’s hair. If you think about it, Farrah’s hair was more famous than Jennifer! When she married Lee Majors in, 73 or 74, they were the super couple, and in the “I Am Woman” vibe of the decade, I don't think the feminists were happy when she changed her name to Farrah Fawcett-Majors. Unfortunately, she became known more for her hair and her looks instead of for something that people who considered themselves fans knew about—her talent. Don’t believe me? Watch The Burning Bed, Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story, or Margaret Bourke-White. The woman had chops and I watch her every chance I get. When Michael Landon announced that he had cancer my uncle said “Oh he’ll be fine, he’s got plenty of money.”Cancer is something that no one is safe from, no one is immune and anyone can succumb to it, and now Farrah Fawcett is another name added to that list.
The one that no one saw coming, that has shocked everyone was the death of Michael Jackson. I can remember staying up to watch the premier of the video for Thriller, not on MTV, but on – you might wanna sit down for this– Friday Night Videos! Yes, kiddies, back in the day there were other video outlets besides MTV. Friday Night Videos, Night Tracks, I think there was another one too. (Those were the days when videos were actually about the song or the group/singer and not a challenge to see how many half-nekkid bodies they could get in a single shot, but I digress).When they released “The Making Of Thriller” it was a party at our house. I'm pretty sure it was Spring Break weekend and Aunt Katie rented it and we piled up in the living room (because granny was just as big of a Michael Jackson fan as we were), ordered pizza and watched it all weekend. We rented it several times and in spite of the fact it was one of the most popular video rentals, Manuel always seemed to have a copy when we wanted it. I’ve always suspected he kept a secret copy behind the counter for us, but I can’t be sure. I can’t believe I’m about to use these words, but in the early days of music videos there were 2 powerhouse acts you knew without a doubt would deliver the best video possible and Michael Jackson was one of them (Duran Duran being the other). He was one of the organizers and writers of We Are the World he was involved in Live Aid. Michael Jackson was at the center of music and pop culture in the 80’s. Period, end of sentence. I don’t know a girl who wasn’t crazy about him, a boy who didn’t wanna dance like him (we all saw those boys trying desperately to moonwalk down the halls in school).That having been said, I haven’t been a fan of his newer music in a very long time. I think the last thing he did that I enjoyed was Bad. I don’t know what happened to him. I don’t think anyone does, and I hated it. His influence is undeniable and it will forever be felt.
Once the radical plastic surgeries began, it seemed like not only could we not recognize Michael, he couldn’t recognize himself. Sometimes I thought that maybe that was the plan…he didn’t want to see himself. To call to mind the title of one of his songs, maybe he was trying to hide from the man in the mirror. I felt sorry for Michael Jackson. Here he was; one of the richest men in the world, He had fame, he had fortune and he could buy anything in the world he wanted and I felt sorry for him. Because the one thing he couldn’t buy, even with all of the money he had, was the ability for his life to be his own. From the time he was a child, he was famous. I can’t imagine living like that, and he knew nothing else.
The comparisons are being made to Elvis and on one hand it drives me crazy because there never has been, never will be another Elvis. But when I look at it objectively, I can understand. They both changed music in their own way. They had someone managing their careers (for the most part) who didn’t just manage it, they controlled it and by extension, controlled Elvis and Michael respectively. They reached and sustained a level of fame and adoration that few, if any, do. They both got caught up in their fame and had no way out. They were prisoners of that fame and adoration. Kenny Chesney said in an interview once that if his life became like Elvis’ he’d just get on his boat and float away, “…That's all Elvis needed -- a boat." Maybe instead of buying Neverland Michael Jackson should have just bought a boat.
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