King of Pop

I really can't say that I've been a fan of Michael Jackson's antics later in life, but I have always loved his music. I still do. His music was always great, no matter how many plastic surgeries he had or didn't have or whatever other kinds of legal drama was going on. It was always just good music.





I remember as a kid, the first RECORD (yes, an actual record) that I ever bought with my own money was Michael Jackson's Thriller. It came out in 1983, which would have made me 7 years old. In those days I was probably getting like $1 a week allowance, so it probably took a long time to save up the cash to buy the darn thing. I remember loving the album. I believe it still holds the record for the best selling album of all time.

I also remember going to my grandparent's house to watch MTV because we didn't get that channel on our cable. I remember seeing the Thriller video for the first time. It was epic. I remember thinking it was really LONG (which it was, of course). I loved Vincent Price's narration... what a spooky voice! I remember I didn't like seeing the zombies (never liked horror movies and still don't) that much, but was impressed by the way they danced all in unison! I remember for YEARS to come (and maybe even still now if/when MTV actually plays videos...) Thriller always being the #1 video when MTV would do a countdown show of the best videos of all time.

I used to love puzzles and get them often for my birthday or Christmas. One year, probably the same year or close to the year Thriller came out, I got a puzzle with a picture of Michael and his chimp, Bubbles. I remember thinking, "how cool is that, to be able to have a chimp as a pet?!"





I'm pretty sure I had a poster at one point that hung on my bedroom closet door of probably the Thriller cover or something... I know for sure I had one of those cheesy small vinyl purses with basically a string strap that had a screen print of MJ on the side. I think mine was blue.

I remember when things started happening that were a little weird... him grabbing his crotch at the end of a video, marrying Lisa Marie Presley, kissing her awkwardly at the MTV Video Music Awards... maybe it is MJ, the first celebrity that I really knew who he was, that got me into the whole celebrity gossip following. It seemed that there was a different story on him all the time to follow.

Anyway, despite his faults and eccentricities, I wish him a peaceful rest.