Stan Geiger

Jacko

I recall reading a story after the death of Elvis. An entertainment big shot was reportedly at a Hollywood party when he heard of the passing. He sarcastically responded, "Good career move."

Indeed. Elvis' career was struggling in his last years. RCA couldn't get him into the studio. Music was recorded in studio and remote trucks were sent to Graceland so Elvis could do voice-overs. Then he died. And dead Elvis has made a lot more money than live Elvis ever made.

Ditto for Michael Jackson. His music is at the top of the charts for the first time in years; news of his death devours TV news time. And that appears to be a good thing for his estate. CBS reported, yesterday, that Jackson was $500 million in debt.

Is the death of Jackson worthy of all the hype? I'd say no. The guy croaked himself with drugs, and he had no redeeming value for at least the last 20 years of his life.

His passing is one of those mile markers in my life, I suppose. I worked in a night club through the last half of the '80s. He---and his sister---were fixtures in that environment. I always thought his sister was the better of the two.

Plus, Michael and I happened to share the same birth year. Anytime someone of your age dies, it's a bit of a nose-grabber.

But still, as I noted before, the man had no redeeming value.

Let's run the list.

From reports that have already come out, it can be ascertained that Jackson was a drug addict on a major scale. That should really come as a surprise to no one.

I remember seeing Jackson deny that he was a plastic surgery addict on national TV. Anyone that could look at pictures knew that was a lie.

Pedophilia. Was he a child-molester or not? He denied it. He reportedly bought his way out of one allegation with $22 million, and he was acquitted in a criminal trial. But he admitted to sharing his bed with young boys. And he adamantly declared there was nothing wrong with that.

There seems to be an awful lot of smoke coming from that campfire.

He seems to have been developmentally arrested. Psychiatrists say he was mentally still a young boy. He never grew up.

There is a lot of talk about what happens to the kids in the wake of daddy's death. I don't believe those kids are his. He claimed they came from his sperm, but they don't look like they've got a drop of black blood in them to me. I'd have to see a DNA test to believe otherwise.

Jackson himself might have done everything he could have done to look white, but he still had black genes. If those kids came from him, they should look like it.

I understand the media wants to attract viewers/listeners/readers. But over-touting a guy's death and referring to his off-the-rails life as one that included "eccentricities" is a bit silly.

Jackson wasn't "eccentric." He was just plain nuts.

Sometimes it's best to say adios and good riddance---and leave it at that.

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