My two cents.
Well, it seems like this week has been "The Week Older Celebrities Die." I mean, let's face it, Ed McMahon was not a surprise; he had been battling cancer, as well as foreclosure, for quite some time and he was 82, so, while everybody was saddened by the news, I don't think everybody was shocked. In the same fashion, Farrah Fawcett's story was heartbreaking, but not at all shocking. Everyone heard that she married her long-time companion a couple of days ago, in what seemed to be the ending of a love story that came too soon. Her struggle with cancer will not be soon forgotten, the last real natural pinup beauty, she will live on as the wholesome image of America in the 1970's, with her feathered hair, and her beautiful, easygoing smile. Rest in peace Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett, two American icons that will live in history.
And then there's Michael Jackson. Oddly enough, out of the three of the them, Michael's death seemed to be the most shocking and unexpected. Also, and this is a personal observation, when he pronounced dead I actually felt like I wanted to cry, at least a little. This didn't happen with Farrah or Ed McMahon, but it happened with the King of Pop.
Growing up in Mexico in the late 1980's and 1990's, I knew of Farrah Fawcett (from Charlie's Angels) but didn't really knew anything else about her. Michael Jackson was a different story, I knew his songs (as did everyone else), I remember renting his film Moonwalker and watching it on my BETA machine :)...he was just cool, he was a star. Nobody else could touch Michael Jackson when he was at the height of his career, yet everybody wanted to be like him.
Then came the allegations of sexual abuse (or molestation), whatever you might want to call it. Do I believe MJ actually did something inappropriate? Well, I think that a grown man sharing his bed with other children that aren't his is pretty inappropriate. I also wonder where the parents of those children were when this was going on, they were conveniently missing and suddenly there when the out of court settlement came along.
I don't think Michael Jackson was a child molester. I'm sorry, I don't. I know what the allegations are, I also know he was never found guilty (may I remind you that his second trial actually exposed further how conniving the parents of the children actually were?). So, my sadness isn't affected my the allegations against his humanity, I feel sad because of his troubled life and feel bad for his children.
This is a huge loss for American culture, whether we realize it or not. We just lost big, let's not stain it with petty comments. Let's hope that at least half of us can be as inspiring and contribute half as much to our culture as these people did. Rest in peace, Michael Jackson.
By the way, this is my first post since I had to put my dog down last March. I think it's time to break the silence.
And then there's Michael Jackson. Oddly enough, out of the three of the them, Michael's death seemed to be the most shocking and unexpected. Also, and this is a personal observation, when he pronounced dead I actually felt like I wanted to cry, at least a little. This didn't happen with Farrah or Ed McMahon, but it happened with the King of Pop.
Growing up in Mexico in the late 1980's and 1990's, I knew of Farrah Fawcett (from Charlie's Angels) but didn't really knew anything else about her. Michael Jackson was a different story, I knew his songs (as did everyone else), I remember renting his film Moonwalker and watching it on my BETA machine :)...he was just cool, he was a star. Nobody else could touch Michael Jackson when he was at the height of his career, yet everybody wanted to be like him.
Then came the allegations of sexual abuse (or molestation), whatever you might want to call it. Do I believe MJ actually did something inappropriate? Well, I think that a grown man sharing his bed with other children that aren't his is pretty inappropriate. I also wonder where the parents of those children were when this was going on, they were conveniently missing and suddenly there when the out of court settlement came along.
I don't think Michael Jackson was a child molester. I'm sorry, I don't. I know what the allegations are, I also know he was never found guilty (may I remind you that his second trial actually exposed further how conniving the parents of the children actually were?). So, my sadness isn't affected my the allegations against his humanity, I feel sad because of his troubled life and feel bad for his children.
This is a huge loss for American culture, whether we realize it or not. We just lost big, let's not stain it with petty comments. Let's hope that at least half of us can be as inspiring and contribute half as much to our culture as these people did. Rest in peace, Michael Jackson.
By the way, this is my first post since I had to put my dog down last March. I think it's time to break the silence.