50 Years Later, Kennedy Assassination Still Fascinates Me

I pride myself on my ability to look at the world differently than the average person. But when it comes to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, I’m just like everyone else in the United States: fascinated.

Well, almost like everyone else.

Since today marks the 50^th anniversary of this seminal moment, I have to insert my two cents, especially given how much I have read, discussed and thought about this historically famous event over many years.

Kennedy was murdered nearly two decades before my birth, but by the time I was in 5^th grade, I had become galvanized by the sensationalism of that crime. I never gave a rat’s ass about politics, but JFK represented so much more than that. From his legendary inaugural address in January 1961, to his then-hidden trysts with film star Marilyn Monroe, to the youthful attractiveness of his wife and children, the Kennedy White House was literally must-see TV.

Trust me, I am well aware of the larger significance of that horrific day in Dallas a half-century ago. Not only did it change an entire generation, but it affected everything in our country moving forward.

Some things have even gotten better.

One of the other, indirect elements of the Kennedy assassination that has always held my attention is the nearly 31 years that his wife Jackie lived after that day. She became a heavily photographed and followed celebrity in her post-JFK life. First, there was her move from the White House to a place in New York City with Caroline and John-John. Then, her controversial marriage to billionaire Aristotle Onassis. Hell, in 1975, nude photos of her appeared in the upstart porn magazine Hustler and became an instant best seller.

In 1983, a full 20 years after her husband’s murder, the former Mrs. Kennedy visited the great Michael Jackson on the set of his classic “Thriller” short film to discuss plans for an autobiography on the star who, at the time was at the apex of his career. By then, she had become famously known as Jackie O, a nod to her marriage to Onassis which had floundered in the 1970’s. She was a major figure at Doubleday books and, along with her adult children was always a fixture in the tabloids and news media.

And the Kennedy mystique, birthed during the “Camelot years” was always a part of popular culture. How could I not be captivated by the Kennedy assassination, when I strongly believe that its iconic details has fueled America’s obsession with the family ever since?

A seemingly unlimited amount of tragedies have befallen the Kennedy clan since those three murderous bullets hit the president in ’63. That is another factor in the fascination. EVERYTHING that happens to that family always seems to evoke memories and commentaries on the assassination.

On such a sad anniversary, I hope President Kennedy and his remaining family members have finally found peace.

Same goes for our country.

Eminem Battles Himself and His Demons on Masterful New LP

International fame and millions of dollars have done nothing to change the harsh reality of the once poverty stricken Marshall Mathers. He is 15 years deep into a critically acclaimed career and yet he is still just as emotionally fragile, self-loathing and insecure as he was when he was just an aspiring rapper living in a Detroit-area trailer park.

And he lets it all hang out on his new LP.

Mathers, the now 41-year old hip-hop artist popularly known as Eminem released his first album in three years yesterday; The Marshall Mathers LP 2 to an assortment of conflicting reviews. The album features several thematic elements derived from its classic predecessor, 2000's The Marshall Mathers LP but is quite a departure from his usual work. Even still, it’s easily his best record in 11 years, back when Em's career hit its pinnacle in the summer of 2002 with the release of The Eminem Show.

Eminem does what he has always done best on this LP; expose his inner demons with a shocking combination of hubris and self-deprecation. One minute he is extolling his own brilliance and historic legacy, the next minute he is hurling insults at himself while putting his shortcomings on full display. He even takes his phenomenal skills to another level as he (surprisingly) delivers numerous verses rapid fire with impossible rhyme patterns and pitch perfect dexterity. He is without a doubt a student of vocabulary and line structure as he so intricately explained in an interview on 60 minutes last year.

Jay Z has the more formidable catalog and consistency, Kendrick Lamar is the up-and-coming superstar of the moment. But Eminem is unequivocally the purest lyricist on the planet right now and one of the greatest in history. He is tactical and scientific with the way he constructs rhyme patterns, interlocking several similar words and abstract ideas into mind-bending lyrics. On MMLP2, he does this time and time again.

This album showcases the evolution of his mind as he ventures into new areas with a decidedly rock-styled production, none of his usual rap guest features and even an entire song dedicated to apologizing to his estranged mother. But the more things change, the more they stay the same; Eminem revisits tons of familiar territory on the album as he angrily hurls numerous vitriolic lines at homosexuals, women and celebrities. And oh yeah, he still hates his absentee father with a passion.

As a whole, The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is an excellent album and easily outpaces 2004’s Encore, 2009’s Relapse and 2010’s Recovery. It doesn’t eclipse the original, which would be a near impossibility. But it does remind the world of exactly why we fell in love with him in the first place. One of the wonderful things about MMLP2 is the fact that Eminem seems acutely aware that his own phenomenal track record is his only true competition, as he so eloquently states on a track entitled, “Evil Twin.”

Finally, even though the quality of his songs have been heavily criticized for the past decade, this new offering is a tremendous return-to-form for a masterful artist who, despite his insecurities, is still a legend in the game and still delivers the goods.