Farrah Fawcett was a little before my time, though as a wee lad I was certainly aware of her presence and how giddy she made the older boys. I still get sad that I can't turn on the TV and watch Johnny Carson, with Ed McMahon rumbling in the background. And now Michael.
The summer of 1983 friend Brian Williams and I would stay up late, really late, at my house on 107 Joy Avenue in Webster Groves, Missouri. We'd sit on the sunporch off my room, open each of the nine windows, light cigars in our best David Letterman imitation, turn on a tape cassette recorder on "Record," play music from a boom box. The song was "Beat It," and thus began Brian and my recording of our radio show on Beat It 109FM. I loved Michael Jackson, Brian didn't, but somehow I convinced him to let us use "Beat It" as our theme song. Yes, I still have a cassette tape or two of our recordings, which primarily consist of talking, laughing, and a lot of Van Halen.
I never really got the Elvis thing, and I fear those under 30 years old just don't get the whole Michael Jackson thing. Dude was mesmerizing, so freakin' talented, such an entertainer. He was a star, far beyond the media- and corporate-made show biz wizzes you see today. No one had to TELL you how talented he was, his moves and his voice presented all the evidence you needed. His Thriller album sold 28 million copies in the United States alone, one out of every ten people bought that album and who knows how many others had a copy recorded from those purchased albums. He sold 750 million albums in his career.
Michael made even white people want to dance.
He reminds me of the summer of 1983, the real MTV, Kerry Overall, blaring "The Way You Make Me Feel" in Oliver Hall at the University of Kansas my freshman year (to the chagrin of most of my floor mates), Eddie Murphy doing a brief impersonation in Raw: "I'll moonwalk all over your ass," the adoring Beatles-esque crowds that swarmed him, Bubbles the Chimp, me dancing like mad to the song Bad at a barn party at KU freshman year downright plastered, and one of the nicest things a friend has ever done for me. When I was in college, Michael embarked on his Bad tour, and he was slated for a show in St. Louis. My friend Jim Stephens, unbeknownst to me waited in a massive line to grab two tickets to the show, fifth row no less, so he and I could go. Jim didn't care about seeing Michael Jackson, but he did care about me getting to see him. Alas, the show was cancelled due to illness. It's still one of the nicest things a friend has ever done for me. I almost got to watch and listen to Michael Jackson from the fifth row!
As it is now, what a show Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon can do tonight, themselves with Farrah and Michael as guests. If she's not already booked for another show on the late-night circuit, perhaps Bernie can make a precious appearance! For though it may seem, the curtain never fully closes.
Goodnight to all, and never stop singing, smiling, dancing, and laughing nor panting.
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