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Relationships in the news: Michael Jackson dies at age 50.
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Photo AP.
When I was in college my friend Donna's house was down the street, up the hill ,and around the corner, from Michael Jackson's childhood home in Southern California. The first time I went to her house her directions were to turn right at the Gelson's market and then follow the cars to Michael's house and then turn right again. Street signs did not stay around for long in that neighborhood.
I never saw Michael, on the many trips I made to her house, but of course I always slowed down to look out for him; just in case. Michael was my contemporary. I watched the Jackson Five as a kid on all the nighttime variety shows and appreciated his talent. Later after going solo, the "King of Pop" continued to bridge the ethnic and cultural barriers that he and his brothers had started.
It was cool for kids of all ethnicities to like him and for many years he really represented a more innocent time when innocence was definitely not the teen culture. He was fun and it didn't matter if you listened to him and were also into heavy metal, or punk, or Bowie, or whomever.
Not unlike some teen idols today, he had his tragic fall from the spotlight. There have been questions about his sexual identity, the possibility that he had body dysmorphic disorder, the alleged molestation case (of which he was acquitted) and the mystery surrounding his Neverland ranch home. There was also the widely seen video of him dangling his child over a balcony railing that called into question his ability to be a safe parent.
Time will tell how and it what way he will be remembered. It is hard for child stars to make that transition into adult stardom and although he did that successfully and became a much admired pop icon, it may have come at too high a price.
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