***In light of Conrad Murray being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter yesterday, The Champ has decided to revamp and repost an entry he wrote a week after Michael Jackson’s death***
Admittedly, I wasn’t as affected by Michael Jackson’s sudden death as many others seemed to be. Despite this relative detachment, I was completely mesmerized and amazed by the consensus public reaction to that news, which, if I recall, was characterized by a public competition to be the best at accurately memorializing him while completely glossing over how f*cked up the last 25 years of his life were.
Mind you, i’m not attempting to throw more salt on Michael Jackson’s ridiculously star-crossed life. Still, when a person has been…
A)Â Largely defined by their abject weirdness for 90% of their adult life,
B)Â A lazy punchline for 50% of their adult life,
and
C) AÂ suspected pedophile
…I dont see how you can’t at least acknowledge this when putting their legacy in context.
MJ aside, his situation sheds a bit more light on the fact that while we don’t have definitive control over how we’ll be remembered, we can control what we remember about everyone else. You can even argue that making the conscious choice to only recognize the positive aspects of a person’s life is just a desperate hope that this same luxury is extended to us.
Thing is, whether you view this type of projection as practical or pathetic, you can’t argue the fact that there’s no bigger affront to what makes us fully human and no more disingenuous way to recall a person’s life, especially when you consider that our deeds usually come from the exact same place as our demons.
This is supremely true in regards to celebrities. The same visceral fervor that made Tupac iconic killed him before his 26th birthday, and the hyper creative eccentricity that made Mike moonwalk also contributed to his multiple self-mutilations, arrested development, and early death.
Omitting these facts downplay and dishonor their accomplishments. There’s no such thing as an adversity-less icon. How can you fully appreciate Malcolm X without being completely aware of Malcolm Little, street hustler and addict, and what future relevance would “Black or White” hold without knowing that the song’s architect was actively attempting to be both black and white?
I realize that this isn’t the most popular line of thinking, that some will see this as (at best) tactless and (at worst) malicious, and that its (extremely) presumptuous to tell someone how they should remember a person. Still, this isn’t about Michael Jackson as much as my fascination with our peculiar reliance on technicolor memories. I just happen to prefer HD.
The more I think about it, the more I’ve begun to realize that there’s probably a connection between my sports fandom and my infatuation with people being remembered the right way. Die-hard sports fans are obsessed with legacies — the feeling that what a particular athlete accomplishes doesn’t matter unless we know exactly what he had to deal with to get there. This is part of the reason why so many veteran players, fans, and sports scribes still harbor a distaste for Lebron James. They felt(feel) like he was cheating history, taking a competitive shortcut to ensure a legacy he didn’t particularly earn. Although I don’t share that sentiment, I understand the thought process behind it. Everything — the airballs you shot as a rookie, the fumble in Super Bowl 10 years ago, striking out each time up to bat in your first playoff game — matters, and your championship rings, retired jerseys, and Hall of Fame busts don’t mean shit without acknowledgement of your struggles and your attempts to overcome them.
You know, with all this being said, I still hope that the half-page obit in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette honoring my (eventual) passing chooses not to include a half paragraph burb on my (future) infidelities and (present) p*rn addiction. I guess i’m not so special after all.
On second thought, including that stuff might not be the worst thing in the world. At least it’d show I was human, and I think Mike would have wanted the same thing.
—The Champ
For a man who went out with much hoopla it seems that no one’s really talking about the conviction as much as I thought they would. Where’s the jubilation? Where’s the fanfare?
Seriously, Tes, I think they were just looking for a scape goat. However, it was irresponsible of Murray to provide MJ with such potent drugs and he had a responsibility as a physician to refuse to administer any drug to MJ that was potentially harmful. I’m sure he never planned for MJ to die, but he was the physician. It was his responsibility. You play with fire, you get burned.
If Murray refused to give MJ the drugs, Mike would’ve put on his sparkly glove, pimp slapped him and found him another doctor. Murray was wrong, but he was merely a messenger. Michael Jackson, the king of Pop was gone, someone was going to have to pay for it. Elvis’s doctor was lucky he wasnt around when Elvis passed or he would’ve caught hell too
@Tristian: While I agree with you as far a Mike just using Conrad (b/c the fact of the matter is that he WOULD have gotten the drugs from somewhere else) that doesn’t free Conrad of responsibility. He spent years in medical school and did rotations and training, he very well knew right from wrong. And while Mike would’ve gotten what he needed elsewhere that wasn’t Dr. Murray business or concern. He should have been thinking about himself, his name, and most of all his family! He has a daughter. So while he was a mere “messenger”, the term “don’t shoot the messenger” didn’t come about b/c messengers never got shot. Someone has to pay. *shrug*
I dont think he intended to KILL michael, enable him (thus getting more money) yes, but not kill. Not to say he isnt at fault here, but i felt like Michael was on an extremely slippery slope anyway.
Brittani I disagree,
I really think MJ was looking for an honest friend. He didn’t strike me as a stubborn arrogant person who would have refused the advice of someone who cared. (Then again I am impartial to MJ). If he had a person who would have advised him otherwise he wouldn’t have had to be drugged to live. I not only blame his doctor, but the pharma industry. What happened to this time of just dealing with things as long as you had a strong core – still happens in some part of the world. Look at Guiness book of world records for the happiest people in the world : -) They are not the richest.
This may just be me, but I think many people figured MJ was going to go out in a weird way anyway. I think many of us are just as apt to believe that he did it to himself. Dude was obviously on something. I’d guess many of us just haven’t been surprised by any of this and that’s why there’s a lack of hoopla.
Was it any surprise that Dr. Murray was going to be found guilty? Not to me. You are guilty until proven innocent and for any one to believe otherwise is just naive.
As for Micheal’s legacy… it’s all about the music, what he did with music videos, and gave to many charities hundreds of thousands of dollars to help children. I question the charges surrounding the children, but I further question the parents of those children.
How will I be remembered upon death? Don’t know. I kind of think my friends and family would remember an unusual type of personality. Someone who enjoyed as much of a messed up life and world as she possibly could, always finding humor in the idiocy of others— and that’s a LOT of humor!
Finally, RIP Joe Frazier. He was one of the greats!
Twitter is proving that not having memories of the dead doesn’t stop people from memorializing them. FYI: boxer Joe Frazier died. Basketball player Clyde Frazier is alive; as is Kelsey “Frasier” Grammer; and, last I checked, rapper Frayser Boy. *weeps for the children*
“The world lost a great ball player. RIP Frazier.” – actual tweet
-___- <- actual reaction.
When people whitewash people’s legacy, it makes for a dull story. Remembering someone as truthfully as possible is not about bashing their memory but presenting their lives as accurately as possible so that it could help someone else facing similar demons.
When someone loves you, purely loves you, they tell the truth about you when you are alive and tell the truth about you when you are gone. You can decipher who truly loved Michael based on this.
Having said this, there are creatively eccentric people who did not get pimped out by their father and had the chance to go to school daily and consistently and
practice writing their ABCs. They got to specialize with children their age in school and feel safe in their homes. I question whether the Jackson 5 had to exist for Michael to become the entertainer he became in adulthood. I think it is naive to forget that ain’t shit was normal about Michael’s early years and to forget that the biggest celebrity addicts still had the best medical care from their personal physican. I question Dr. Conrad Murray’s lack of a crash cart with an adrenaline shot on the premises. I question the lack of “scared shytlessness” of a doctor treating Michael without one. I question his making sure the children witnessed him take his last breath and the wait to call an ambulance after he stopped breathing. I question the applying CPR on a bed! Basic first aid training says do this on the floor.
I question whether he even intended for Michael to live.
“All I want to say is that they really don’t care about us!”
specialize should be socialize — blasted autocorrect got smart with me
I question the same things you question.
As a medical professional, I can’t give Dr Murray any sort of a pass.
Administering drugs is one of the basics that you’re taught in nursing school, and the responsibilities that go along with it. Judgment comes into play: I will not administer narcotics to someone whose respiratory or heart rate are decreasing. It doesn’t matter if they’re asking for it. Judgment says giving them more might rid them of pain/help them to sleep, but it might also cause respiratory arrest. Or cardiac arrest. Or a litany of other issues that can arise.
Yeah, he might have been fired and another Dr hired to administer those drugs. In so doing, however, he would’ve kept his medical license, MJ would’ve lived one more night, Murray wouldn’t be heading to jail, and his daughter would have her father around while she grows up.
Many of those mourning his death and making a media spectacle of his life are doing the same with the circumstances of his death. They’ve just redirected the circus energy toward Dr. Murray. It’ll be another 5 years before Michael Jackson can truly rest in peace. And that’s only if the world’s obsession with him isn’t transferred to his children and their lives.
With Mike his demons don’t need to be brought up all the time. We all know. His final shows where in London not the USA, his public esteem was that low.
Upon his death the mood has been ‘but you know what? He’s a modern icon and will be remembered as one of the greatest entertainers of ll time.’
Even after his Prime he was still a phenom. Bad, Dangerous are strong albums
RIP Smokin’ Joe. Any young person who has done their history on boxing will have gotten to know Smokin’ Joe very well. I’m 21 and I’ve seen his biggest fights through the internet and sveral (emotional) documentaries. For anyone who hasn’t seen it, the British Channel 4 did a doc on his life, Ali’s behaviour towards him was disgraceful and its something I hold against him. But yeah in this tech. Age you get to really appreciate those that came before you.
If i die today remember me like John Lennon
even though i’ll never do anything John did*rick ross grunt*We always like to whitewash legacies the same way we describe ourselves online today, we emphasize the good, keep the bad under wraps for as long as possible and try to put our best foot forward. We know MJ was an odd man, but we blame the fame. We have a mulatto President yet we front like Michael’s kids don’t look more like Iglesias’ than Jacksons. We ignore the irony of him receiving a Presidential medal for contributing to his anti drug campaign, yet drug addiction ultimately killed him. I guess part of it is that we ourselves want to be remembered in that same light.
Shamone.
^^ *dead*
This may make me a jerk but I’d still like to know where the kids came from. So we just gonna act like those kids look like him? They don’t have not naan tap of melanin.
I think, ultimately, we like people who have problems. Michael Jackson had problems for days. Combine that with real talent and you have an icon.
Its called adoption and/or surrogacy. He used an egg donor and rumors were that he used a sperm donor from a friend.
I posed the question because I recall Michael Jackson saying he was the biological father of the children. Perhaps I just heard it wrong, but I don’t see any Jackson features up in there. Nobody really ever brings it up now probably because the kids obviously loved him.
And then the woman they said was the mother…o_0…the whole parenting scenario is a mystery to me.
Its called adoption.
Its called adoption.
I posed the same question to my friends the other day and if it’s “called” adoption then people need to stop saying they look like him.
I posed the same question to my friends the other day and if it’s “called” adoption then people need to stop saying they look like him.
I posed the same question to my friends the other day and if it’s “called” adoption then people need to stop saying they look like him.
You’d be amazedthe numberof known adoptive
parentswho get told their adoptive children looks like them, especially when they don’t. It’s a weird psychological thing for people to be compelled to say that.
I can’t stand horror movies. I don’t watch cop shows or any show centered on death or depravity. I actively avoid fear of misfortune. Focusing on the negative things in life and in people stresses my mind and weighs down my spirit.
There is enough negative in life to balance out any sunny outlook. When I have the choice, and it won’t adversely affect me, I try to choose positive. Focusing on the negative about dead people has no value to me. Is it projection? Absolutely not. I don’t give a rats patooty about my legacy. After I die, I don’t think ill care what people think. I don’t care today.
Whoo!
He made Thriller
Very well-written post. Thanks for sharing.
Horrible post. It really irks me when people defame public figures based on speculation. Michael was the King of Entertainment. Point blank period. Where’s Panama when you need him?
I think memorials are more for the families and fans than investigative journalists and clinical historians. I don’t think it’s white washing at all to present the most endearing qualities of the memorliazed at a memorial, the intent wasn’t to provide a critical documentary of someone’s life, it’s about helping those who were connected to the recently deceased with the grieving process. To celebrate what we loved/admired/cherished about that person as a final tribute. I don’t see where an expose would be necessary or appropriate in this process.
Regarding that LeBron portion of the post, the veteran players, fans, and sports scribes who have a problem with LeBron, should have only had a problem with HOW he did what he did, not the fact that he did it. The average NBA career is ~ 5 years. He spent 6 in Cleveland without ever seriously threatening to win a title (including when they made the finals). Was he supposed to Sidney Moncrief his way through the NBA (yeah I used Sidney Moncrief as a verb)? Just stay in one spot forever and never contend for a title so as not to upset the basketball purists? Where those purists mad at Carmello and Amare because they dared to team up?
RIP Heavy D. Now he’s with Trouble T-Roy
THANK YOU. SOMEBODY finally had the guts (or lower-down organs than guts) to say this!
I think about this issue every time a young gang-banger is killed in my neighborhood, and the newspaper article tells us all about how they were a straight-A student, captain of the football team, headed to college, etc. etc. I have no idea whether or not they were any of those things ( I suspect some were, some weren’t) but nobody starts out with “X was a troubled young man who struggled with some serious demons and finally lost,” which I think is more respectful to their legacy than this bling-colored glasses crap.
This Post Is Sad.
I love this site, but I hate this post.
It is malicious and tactless just as you stated, but more than that it is inconsiderate and one sided.
So in light of a possible lack of information, I thought I would share some facts that remind thinking people why Michael Jackson was a great human being beyond his music.
1. Michael donated more than 500 million dollars to various foundations, and is noted as the entertainer who supports the most charity organisations by Guinness World Records.
2. He also founded the Heal the World Foundation, which has done more to feed and medically care for children, particularly in Africa than any other celebrity and possibly any other American.
3. He refused to perform in certain countries with children dying from easily treated medical conditions until proper treatment was made available.
4. Michael Jackson saved thousands of people’s lives.
Now was he weird? He was the biggest star on the planet with a crazy, abusive and public childhood. So he certainly wasn’t normal.
But normal…. doesn’t create thriller and do all the other amazing things that he did.
He is dead and it is tasteless to lower his impact to base criticisms, unproven and or false accusations.
You don’t have to like him or like his music. You don’t even have to care about his death but facts are facts.
But in the end I agree with you
……. this isn’t the most popular line of thinking, and some will see this as (at best) tactless and (at worst) malicious, and that its (extremely) presumptuous to tell someone how they should remember a person.
It still upsets me that people give R. Kelly a pass, you know, the guy who’s actually a pedophile. Even though Micheals accusor committed suicide sortly after his death, it’s still not enough for some people.
Whoa, Another Lurker… Let me clear that up with accurate information.
Michael Jackson’s accuser admitted that his father told him to accuse Michael for money. He stated Michael did not molest him.
The accuser’s *father* committed suicide.
It still upsets me that people give R. Kelly a pass, you know, the guy who’s actually a pedophile. Even though Micheals accusor committed suicide sortly after his death, it’s still not enough for some people.
It still upsets me that people give R. Kelly a pass, you know, the guy who’s actually a pedophile. Even though Micheals accusor committed suicide sortly after his death, it’s still not enough for some people.
Thank you for this.
We keep losing the greats. RIP Heavy D
Heavy D died?
well GD
Heavy D is the person rapping on Michael Jackson’s “Jam”.
Jam Jam
Here comes the man, hot damn
The big boy stands, moving up a hand
Making funky tracks with my man Michael Jackson
Smooth criminal, that’s the man
When I die mama don’t you cry, just remember me ballin, ballin!!
I dont get this
Like I think I understand what you’re saying but..i..just..dont…i think..
Like if people wanted to be remembered by all the dumb shit that they’ve done in their life then why the desire to strive to live great lives? If when I died I wanted people to focus on on all my insecurities and all my flaws I wouldn’t even bother to try live a life beyond those things. I certainly don’t see how Michael would have respected that more than focusing on all the good he’s done being that one of the reasons why he was so unhappy was BECAUSE people were more focused on all his flaws than all the good he has done and all the joy that he’s brought to many people’s lives…just saying though
eh….can’t say I agree with this post
Why would anybody want to be remembered for all the negative things they’ve done?
What purpose really does that serve? Like why would anybody Drake want anybody to “miss him when he’s gone” if he could be plain on old Aubrey Graham in Toronto workin at the local Piggly Wiggly or the Canadian equivalent of? Why do most of us strive for such high levels of great if we wanted people to focus on how much we really aint shit? I don’t see how Mike would’ve wanted to be remembered by his flaws when one the reasons why he was so troubled was BECAUSE people were so focused on his flaws rather than all of his great contributions. I’m not saying that he did all this just so people would remember him, but i’m sure he would appreciate it if we all appreciated that more than being considered with whether his kids, or his nose, or his skin, was his or not. I’m sorry but usually when I mourn the dead I don’t like to focus on negative memories. It does me no good at all. I ain’t bout to be at nobodies funeral deliverin no damn eulogy going thorough all their damn fuck ups and the time they used to suck dick to support their crack habit and shit. Aint nobody tryna hear that shit when they mourn somebody. I understand where your coming from in a sense but I personally just don’t see the point in focusing on all that. We already know he wasn’t perfect. Nobody is. Leave it at that and move it right along.