Deification Of A Star
This is just an observation. The other day we learned of the death of Farah Fawcett. It received a notices in the news and some biographical blurbs. It was all pretty much in good taste. She had hit the bigtime as a sexy starlet, but developed herself into an accomplished actress. I admired her performances in several made-for-TV movies, particularly “The Burning Bed”. I consider her death premature and a loss to the entertainment world.
Then yesterday we were hammered with news about the death of Michael Jackson. Through the early eighties he was a helluva entertainer. Even this old man enjoyed “Thriller”. But since that time, he has been famous for his bazaar behavior and hideous plastic surgery procedures many would consider self-mutilation. He transformed himself from a fine looking young man to a sideshow freak. His escapades with children, if not abuse, were certainly abnormal. I find it hard to dismiss the charges of abuse as a jury did. But what do I know? For a grown man to encourage sleepovers with small children is bazaar and unhealthy.
So for this individual who had a phenomenal career for fifteen years, then never produced meaningful work for the next twenty-something years, the media created a bazaar circus of coverage as strange as the man’s last two decades. Networks replaced regular programming with hours of retrospective looks at the life and times of Mr. Jackson. He was hailed as one of the greats of the entertainment world. We are bombarded with the tragedy of this moment in history. The public obviously buys this tripe as exemplified by the crownd in front of the Apollo Theater in New York where Jackson gave his first performance.
The tragedy in my view is not in the death of this man, but in the last twenty years of his life–a life of strange behavior and questionable moral conduct with children. Must we deify such a life? We should take proper note of his death, engage in a quick retrospect of his life and talent, then move on shaking our heads over the waste of a human being of huge talent falling to such depths. But to put him above an alter of greatness, enticing a public that craves the bazaar to bow down before his memory and pay homage is as insane as he appeared to be.
Grow up folks! There are real heroes out there deserving of our attention and accolades.
ACS
