Skip to main content

Michael Jackson - Then and Now and What Could Have Been

No matter how you feel about Michael Jackson, there is no disputing the fact that he had a seriously messed up childhood which probably led to much of the weirdness in his later life. I challenge any of you to grow up in his environment and be normal and not end up on the floor in the corner in a fetal position singing Diana Ross songs. No doubt this is only the beginning with much more weirdness to come thanks to people's never ending thirst for celebrity dirt. Let the man moonwalk with Elvis in peace.


One of the things that Michael always denied was the amount of plastic surgery he had. He only ever admitted to doing his nose (shocker!) to correct a breathing problem and attributed his facial change simply to natural aging. Obviously there was nothing natural in the way he looked in his recent years. Back in 1985, Ebony magazine commissioned an artist to create his rendition of what some celebrities would look like by the year 2000 which is what you see in the middle picture above. Did he take a picture of Latoya and simply draw a mustache? Not even close. Still, makes you wonder what Michael would have indeed looked like if he just chilled a bit with the surgeries. Vanity Kills.

The magazine was also wrong about something else. They predicted that by the year 2000 Michael's fan base would grow by ten times. His popularity is way off the charts now. Say what you will about him but I doubt any artist alive or yet to come will ever top him in terms of impact on our culture and post death adulation.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Evolution of the Coke Bottle

There is no logo in the world that is more recognizable than the Coca Cola company's flagship product. Coke and its classic bottle design are a symbol known all over the world. It's gotten to the point you don't even need to have the word Coke in an advertisement as long as the distinctive bottle shape is there somewhere in the image. The classic shape has evolved over the last hundred years and has gone from a rather boring square shaped bottle to the curvy silhouette it now maintains. Below is a timeline picture showing the changes over the years . The shape is also responsible for designers of other products to be inspired by the sexy elements of the bottle, most notably  car designers. there are many examples but one of the best is the 1968 Corvette. The evolution of the bottle continues with many commemorative issues produced for various promotions but one of the latest trends was the availability of metal bottles as well.  There is no doubt the bottle will...

Saturday Morning Kids Programs We Actually Watched

When you try to tell your kids that back in the old days certain things were better you can usually make a decent argument. For example, you could play outside without fear of smog, nobody you knew was alergic to peanuts and you could walk out of a store with a handful of gum and candy that would last you the whole week for a quarter. Some things aren't as easy to defend such as Saturday morning kids shows. Sure we had classics like Looney Tunes (before they got all censored and polically correct), the Flintstones and Scooby (before Scrappy) and of course Josie and Pussy Cats but let's look at some live action shows that you likely watched as a kid in the 70s either because nothing else was on or you actually liked it though secretly you wished the Jetsons were on again. Ark II Nobody really remembers this until you show them the picture of the jacked up RV and they suddenly vaguely recall seeing it. The other reason they likely don't remember is the fact it only aired one...

When Retro and Politics Collide

Arguably one of the most influential Hip-Hop artists to inspire the newer generation of rappers are Run D.M.C. They were credited with bringing rap to the mainstream with their collaboration with Aerosmith and have been honored with numerous accolades including showing up 48th on Rolling Stone's list of the greatest musical artists of all time back in 2004. It seems their influence is still felt to this very day not only in music but politics as well. I seem to recall Obama using the term "It's tricky" a few times in his address yesterday on Healthcare reform. Coincidence !?!? I think not.

Retro Video of the Day - Pump Up the Volume

In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo landings, I thought the video should reflect the space theme and frankly Pete Schilling's Major Tom thing is way too obvious so I decided on one of my personal favorites from 1987 - "Pump Up The Volume" by M/A/R/R/S. The video featured some vintage footage from the early U.S. and Russian space program. The footage confirms these astronauts had balls of steel or were heavily sedated and brainwashed to volunteer for this gig. How do you convince a guy to sit on top of a long gas tank and let them light the fuse. Now it seems fairly routine but back then I'm sure there was a lot of finger crossing and rabbit feet rubbing going on in the control rooms. This song was a collaborative effort and became a one hit wonder since the people involved couldn't play nice together. Literally. Even though they were nominated for a Grammy in 1989, they never released anything after that. I never get tired of this one. Turn the volume w...

R.I.P Randy "Macho Man" Savage (1952 -2011)

Sad news today from the world of professional "real" wrestling. Randy "Macho Man" Savage died tragically after suffering a heart attack while driving his SUV in Tampa, Florida. His wife, who was in the car with him, only suffered minor injuries. Randall Mario Poffo held twenty championship titles during his professional career and along with Hulk Hogan was one of the primary drivers behind the success of the WWF and bringing professional wrestling to the mainstream. He brought a unique style to the ring along with his raspy voice and trademark "Ohhhh yeaaah" and took full advantage of the marketing machine that was the WWF (now the WWE) and became one of their biggest stars. In typical wrestling form, he shifted side many times during his career going from bad guy to good guy making and breaking various alliances along the way and was "managed" for most of his career by his wife Elizabeth Ann "Miss Elizabeth" Hulette who died of a...