Michael Jackson... Dead at 50

[reynmagsmom]

Michael Jackson has died in LA today after a reported heart attack....
Despite his past troubles I was a big fan in the 80's. This has been a sad week for us... first Ed then Farrah last night and now Michael.
May they all rest in peace!!

 

[Sherry E]

I was very sad about Ed McMahon. I knew Farrah was in her final hours, but I was terribly sad about her passing this morning. But I am 100% mind-blown about Michael Jackson. I think he was a tortured soul because of his childhood, and I think he lived with a lot of internal demons that made him the way he was, and that all probably contributed to his health. He was obviously very troubled and not well. But he was mega-superstar and icon and I honestly cannot believe he just dropped dead out of the blue! I remember watching Thriller in the '80s when it debuted on MTV. I am totally shocked, to say the least.

 

[reynmagsmom]

Shocked was my reaction also Sherry..... my daughter told me they were reporting he was close to death so I put it on CNN and it changed to Dead @ 50 I couldn't believe it!!! He was a strange bird but he was also very talented and still holds the record for biggest seller with his "Thriller" album... He was the "King of Pop"!
My prayers are with his children and family!!

 

[Grim_Grinning_Girl]

Yeah it's sad and hasn't really sunken in yet. I admit he turned into an odd person - well an even odder person, but as a talent and performer he's untouchable and amazing. His Thriller album is a masterpiece, and I don't think any performer will ever come close to his level of fame. He's one of the few if not almost one of the only musicians known worldwide, possibly more well known than Elvis, Madonna, or The Beatles. I just downloaded the Captain E.O. audio soundtrack yesterday, haven't listened to it yet but now it's going to be sad to sit through.

 

[Disneylvrforever]

I can't believe I found out about his passing through Facebook statuses. Grrr...FB ruins everything! He was such a great performer & I'm so sad that he's gone. He is truely a Pop Culture icon. Oh Captain EO!!!

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

Oh yeah Captain EO...

Sherry, ITA agree about the internal demons and troubled soul. So so sad.

 

[jlmarr]

Here's a clip of a younger MJ from the Disneyland 25th Anniversary special: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OToKcrwqufY. He was a DL fan, to be sure.

 

[pixiewings71]

I'm very sad to see him go. Our whole office was in an uproar for about an hour after Ken told me about this. Since we are in the music industry we were gearing up to help MJ on his UK tour.....we were all very shocked and surprised. And sad.

 

[wazowskiLOVER:)]

I've been watching Larry King for the past half hour and its so completely mind blowing what has happened today. For a person like Farrah to be fighting so hard for her life, to have it end is so heart wrenching. Especially for people like me who have lost family to health battles, it is devastating to see.

For Michael, it really is a loss even with the troubles and issues of his self-esteem, supposed drug dependency, and molestation. How sad that a person could be so tortured in life and have it end so abruptly. Its completely shocking and devastating what has happened this week. My heart goes out to the family of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson, and not to mention Ed McMahon.

 

[DizNee Luver]

The entertainment world lost 3 wonderfully talented souls this week. My mom always told me it comes in waves of 3.....and it usually does.

Ed McMahon will always be the funny sidekick to Johnny Carson...no one else would have done it as well!!

Farrah Fawcett is finally free of pain..... there are many men with broken hearts today........you know the ones.......they had the famous poster on their walls. So sad.....

Michael Jackson is a huge loss to the music world......a GENIUS!! Between his lack of childhood & being eccentric (which tends to run with geniuses), he was definately misunderstood & strange at times. I truly feel he just wanted to relive his childhood, since he spent all of it in the limelight. No one can ever take away the talent he was & the contributions he made not only as a musician but as a humanitarian. This is a great loss that weighs heavy in my heart. People that I grew up with should not be dying.......sad & scary.

Rest in Peace!!

 

[Sherry E]

I was a teenager when MTV first debuted and all they played were videos 24 hours a day (NOT at all like MTV is now). It was a novelty when one of our friends in our group got this mysterious thing called 'cable TV' where we could watch MTV, and we would all pile over there on a Friday or Saturday night and watch videos into the wee hours of the morning, literally. We couldn't turn away or go to sleep because we might miss a good video! When the "Thriller" video debuted, Michael was already hugely popular from "Billie Jean" and "Beat It," so the "Thriller" video premiere was a big event. It was like a mini-movie. And once again, we all packed into my friend's small room and crowded around the TV to watch it. And I used to watch Captain EO back when it was in DL.

I think Michael had some really good songs here and there (though, personally, I am a bigger fan of the Jackson Five songs as a whole than Michael's solo stuff), and he was definitely a musical trendsetter and huge talent - an icon - a superstar - but as I said before, I think he had a lot of inner turmoil and demons to wrestle with, and those could include a number of things. I don't think he was ever going to be the same after the trial in 2005, but he was a very damaged person even before that trial - plus, he was showing up to the courthouse in pajamas! He didn't see the weirdness in most of what he did. I think he had lost touch with reality for a while - and whether that was due to chemical influence, no one knows. I think there were times when his PR machine got to him and tried to make him seem 'normal' or 'adult' (such as when he and Lisa Marie got married), but he wanted to stay a child. He was a tragic soul.

I was just listening to an interview with Sheryl Crow on CNN - who used to sing back-up for Michael on tour before she ever became famous herself - and she spoke of the time she was with him at Disneyland, and they were riding something (not sure what), and when the ride stopped, Michael insisted that it just keep going. He refused to let the ride stop. He LOVED Disneyland. Sheryl, of course, was very ill at that point! She spoke of another time when he invited her to his hotel room and they spent the whole night watching Amos and Andy. He really was very childlike.

 

[disneynerd420]

RIP Captain EO!

 

[DisneyMartian]

Even though I was never a huge fan (though I did love his voice and dancing), it's still very sad that he passed away. He left behind a great musical legacy that will never be forgotten. My prayers go out to his family, friends, and all of his fans.

RIP Captain Eo