5 Years Later, Jackson’s Absence Gains Him Acceptance

CLEVELAND - On one of the very worse, sickening, tear-soaked days of my life, the great Michael Jackson was taken from his children, myself and the world. He had spent the last 16 years of his life under heavy public criticism and hatred.

Then, he was gone.

Today is the 5^th anniversary of that heart wrenching day. June 25, 2009 is a day that will forever live in infamy for me as well as MJ’s global fanbase numbering into the tens of millions. At the time of his departure, public perception of the iconic entertainer was filled with sheer negativity. Mostly in the U.S., he was seen as a weird, child molesting monster obsessed with plastic surgery and wrought with a near-dormant career that had once flew high above the entire music industry and set new standards of excellence.

But as soon as he died, he became reborn in the minds of fans, music critics and the general public. Tons of tributes poured out dedicated to him and his greatest artistic achievements were put back into the spotlight. Sure, there were still salacious stories that surfaced, more sordid accusations of child molestations dating back more than 20 years, and of course, more jokes from comedians and television commentators everywhere.

In spite of all this, Michael Jackson’s absence has allowed his aura and his legend to thrive and breathe comfortably. The extremely successful MJ Cirque de Solei shows have re-imagined his great stage performances and historic albums and brought them to contemporary audiences. He has a “new” album out that has received praise from critics. Even Jeep has one of Jackson’s songs featured in a recent television commercial.

This has all become possible and “acceptable” because the man himself is no longer around. Because of MJ’s super controversial life and widespread belief that he molested young boys, he had become an outcast in his own country; a sharp contrast to his early 1980’s pinnacle when he had become something of a national obsession because of the staggering success and popularity of his Thriller album and groundbreaking short films that accompanied it. He was even called a “national treasure” at the 1984 American Music Awards.

On this awful anniversary, I am happy that a lot of love has returned for MJ. I am just furious that it took him to die for it to happen.

25 Years Later: Jordan's Re-Defining Moment

CLEVELAND - In 2009, Michael Jordan, at age 46 stood at a podium on a stage at his induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Speaking with a cocksure wit, he revealed the lifelong forces that drove him to become the greatest basketball player in history as well as a beloved cultural icon.

In 1999, a 36-year MJ sat at his 2nd retirement press conference and reflected on not only the championship winning shot that he hit just 7 months prior, but also his amazing 13-year NBA career that re-defined sports and the business of sports thanks to his pioneering presence.

But it was a full decade before that press conference that Jordan went from being known as a super high-flying scoring machine, to a game-changing champion-in-the-making.

The Shot.

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the moment that catapulted Jordan to a new level of greatness and re-defined his career. It also put him on an entirely new path, which would ultimately lead to a treasure trove of NBA championships and a lofty status as the gold standard of basketball excellence.

That famous shot took place in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round series between Jordan's Bulls and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The series was tied 2-2 heading into the fateful deciding game. MJ, at age 26 was in the midst of his 5th NBA season and had led the league in scoring for the 3rd consecutive campaign. Going into the series with the Cavs, the Bulls were heavy underdogs thanks in large part to an 0-6 record against their division rivals during the regular season. Jordan, however was undaunted and continually claimed that Chicago would win the series.

MJ's unpopular prediction seemed like a genius move when the Bulls found themselves up by 20 points in Game 1. Going into Game 4 in Chicago, the Bulls held a 2-1 series lead and the team got a gigantic performance from Michael, as he scored a sizzling 50 points. Ironically, this effort seemed to play right into Cleveland's hands and before they knew it, they had won the game in overtime heading back to their home-court to decide who would move on to Round 2.

Sunday, May 7, 1989 was the date. Richfield Coliseum was the location and Jordan was seething with fury after he missed a couple key free throws in the closing moments of the previous game. He could care less about his 50 points. He felt as though he let his team down.

He couldn't wait for the chance to be in that position again.

The game was as highly competitive as one would expect a deciding playoff game to be. The lead changed hands 9 times in the final three minutes and with every Cavs basket, Jordan answered. He beat Cavs guard Craig Ehlo off the dribble and drilled a 10-foot pull up jumper with 6 seconds left to give the Bulls a 99-98 lead. After a Cleveland timeout, Ehlo inbounded the ball, then took a return pass from forward Larry Nance and scored on a driving layup to the basket with 3 seconds left to put the Cavs up, 100-99. The arena went wild and started celebrating the apparent victory.

But MJ still had 3 seconds to work with.

Bulls forward Brad Sellers went to inbound to Jordan, who was heavily guarded by a Nance-Ehlo double-team. MJ broke free and cut to an open area to receive the pass, then went hard left with a couple dribbles and raised up for the shot inside the foul circle. He was met by Ehlo who got a hand up and would have blocked the shot if it were not for Jordan hanging a split second longer in the air to double clutch the ball before releasing it.

The ball dropped through the hoop just as the horn sounded giving the Bulls a stunning 101-100 victory. Jordan jumped high into the air and fist pumped several times before being mobbed by teammates and coach Doug Collins in an absolutely shell shocked arena. His final tally: 44 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists.

The legacy of Jordan's classic moment is two-fold. It sent both franchises in opposite directions. The Cavs had been contenders for the NBA crown that season and had an outstanding core of young star players in Mark Price, Brad Daugherty, Nance and Ron Harper. They also had key players beyond the stars such as John "Hot Rod" Williams and Ehlo. But after just a few games at the start of the '89-'90 season, they surprisingly traded star Harper to the L.A. Clippers for the rights to college star Danny Ferry.

Also, during the next four seasons, the team was hit hard with major injuries, especially to Price. Along with Harper's exit, Daugherty missed half of the '89-'90 season and Price missed 66 games in '90-'91. They were back on a roll for the '91-'92 season, but lost in the Eastern Conference Finals. In '92-'93, they lost in the semifinals. Both times, the Bulls knocked them out while en route to their second and third NBA championships.

MJ's historic shot infused the Bulls with tons of confidence and momentum and they enjoyed a much longer than expected playoff ride in '89. They got past the New York Knicks in Round 2, then took the eventual defending champion Detroit Pistons to 6 games before losing in the East finals.

With new coach Phil Jackson's guidance for the '89-'90 season, the Bulls gained a new dedication to defense and Jordan grew leaps and bounds as a leader. They took defending champion Detroit to Game 7 in the East finals before losing. They bounced back in a huge way in 1991 as Jordan led them to their first ever NBA championship in a 4-1 series victory over Magic Johnson's L.A. Lakers.

Fast forward back to Jordan's 1999 retirement press conference. By then, he had been long revered as the greatest ever and had amassed an unbelievable 10 NBA scoring titles, 6 NBA titles, 6 NBA finals MVPs, 5 NBA MVPs and innumerable heroic moments in several championship series. He capped his Bulls career in 1998 with a dramatic title clinching shot with 5.2 seconds left.

The decade between Jordan's shot over Ehlo and his retirement just after the '98-'99 lockout was a period filled with great success for him and the Bulls, but the Cavs became a perennial laughing stock. After Jordan eliminated them AGAIN with a buzzer jumper in the 1993 semifinals, coach Lenny Wilkens left the organization and nothing was ever the same. Daugherty was forced into an early retirement after a horrible back injury shelved him in 1994. Price was sent away to Orlando in 1995 and Danny Ferry remained a constant and untradeable disappointment with a huge contract year after year.

It wasn't until 2003 that the Cavs finally gained some real hope of turning their long path of bad luck and non-contending teams around. That was when their miserable, 17-65 record earned them the number 1 pick in the draft, which they used to draft LeBron James, who held enormous potential to become one of the all-time great NBA players. Ironically, '03 was also the year that Jordan left the NBA as a player for good. He had returned for the '01-'02 season to play at a very advanced age for Washington, then retired for the 3rd time about a month and a half before James was drafted.

What a coincidence!

In my final estimation, I look back on Michael Jordan's legendary shot, 25 years later with continued awe and humility. For a man as driven and competitive as him, that moment now seems like it was destined to take place. But greatness has a lot of points of despair which is usually needed to propel us beyond what we were originally capable of doing.

That is a big part of Jordan's iconography.

30 Years Later: Revisiting Michael Jackson's Grammy Magic

CLEVELAND - It had only been 32 days since his horrible accident, but Michael Jackson looked like ten million bucks on this special night. Once again accompanied by Brooke Shields and TV's Emmanuel Lewis, the 25-year old musical genius won a record 8 trophies at the 26th annual Grammy Awards.

And he deserved them all.

Today marks the 30th anniversary of that legendary evening, which was a far cry from the scene in the same building just one month before. On January 27, MJ suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns to his scalp while filming a Pepsi ad, which created a frenzied panic from his millions of fans. Now, just four weeks later, he was once again in his element. Jackson's ubiquitous and record setting album Thriller had spent the previous 15 months garnering every type of praise known to mankind. Already the #1 seller in history, the LP's popularity was heavily boosted by his iconic performance on Motown's 25th anniversary show in May 1983 as well as three groundbreaking short films which received heavy airplay on television for months.

Wearing a blue, marching band style jacket with sequins, gold epaulets and sash, along with his trademark single sparkly glove and dark Aviator shades, MJ looked like royalty. He made numerous trips to the podium, accepting award after award the same way he had done just six weeks prior on the American Music Awards.

Quincy Jones, the highly successful composer (who also produced Off the Wall and Thriller) shared the podium with MJ a few times himself. Both men grinned with pride and appreciation for what they had both accomplished. As a special treat, the infamous Pepsi ad that nearly killed Michael made its heavily anticipated debut during the telecast.

MJ's historic night remains one of the truly magical moments in all of entertainment, past or present. There was no wonder that Thriller won Album of the Year that night and the great Michael Jackson was fawned over relentlessly by not only fans and media, but even his own peers in the music industry.

Nobody did it better.

30 Years Ago Today: The Fire That Ignited Michael Jackson's Downfall

CLEVELAND - Michael Jackson, dressed in a sparkling blue and gold military-style jacket, white collared shirt and black cropped pants was all smiles at the end of one incredible night in February 1984.

The 25-year old supernova had just spent the past few hours strolling up to the podium to accept, what turned out to be a record number of Grammy awards for his 14-month old album, Thriller.

It was a truly amazing moment.

In contrast to this historic night by Jackson, the horrific event that took place in this exact building just one month earlier sent shock waves around the world and nearly killed the most popular, acclaimed and iconic entertainer on the planet at the peak of his powers.

That infamous fire.

Indeed, it was 30 years ago today that Jackson suffered second and third degree burns while filming a television ad for Pepsi with his brothers. MJ had already completed filming a different ad a few days prior for the company set on a city street and co-starring Alfonso Ribeiro (who later starred on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air"). This commercial was called, "Concert" and was directed by Bob Giraldi, who also shot Jackson's legendary "Beat It" short film in early 1983.

During the shooting, Michael was supposed to descend a flight of steps down to a stage where his brothers were performing in front of 5,000 screaming fans in a simulated concert setting. A calculated special effect was planned to illuminate the area just behind Jackson to give off an electrifying appearance as he ran down the steps to the thumping bassline of a modified version of his hit single "Billie Jean."

On the sixth take, MJ ran down the steps and the pyrotechnic effect malfunctioned and shot a fire spark into his hair just as he ran down the steps. Unbeknownst to the megastar, the back of his head became engulfed in flames, which miraculously went away as he reached the stage and performed one of his trademark quicksilver spin moves. Within seconds, his brothers and stage hands ran to his aide and smothered his scalp, which was now emanating smoke fumes from the flames.

As it turned out, Michael was transported to Cedars-Sinai Hospital, then moved to Brotman Medical Center to treat his serious burns. As the entertainment world held its collective breath, sales of Jackson's Thriller album soared again, a remarkable feat given its already iconic standing as the best selling album in history.

Director Giraldi was later criticized for his decision to instruct Jackson to stay at the top of the staircase a little longer so he would "look majestic" as he came down the stairs against the backdrop of the special effects.

More than anything, that seminal moment in Michael Jackson's life started a downward spiral that last a quarter century and ended in his shocking death in 2009. By then, MJ's public reputation was light years removed from that early '84 era when, in the eyes of the American people, he simply could do no wrong.

As a result of the Pepsi fire, Michael was treated with a series of intense painkillers for his severe injuries to his scalp. People close to the situation have stated numerous times that he suffered major pain from that incident for the rest of his life. That led to a painkiller dependency a decade after the fire which, combined with the colossal level of stress he experienced for the 25 years after the accident, led him to Propofol, the prescription drug that ultimately took him away from us.

I will always remember that famous commercial with great sadness. Jackson continues to be the gold standard in excellence as an entertainer and innovator. It really sucks that his life took such a turn for the worst.

Damn you, Pepsi!

30 Years Ago Tonight: Michael Jackson's Record Setting Year Pays Off

CLEVELAND - For all of the amazing moments that Michael Jackson experienced during the Thriller era, none was greater than the night when the entire music industry bowed to his knee and saluted him for three hours like a royal king entering a room.

And he was only 25 years old.

That legendary evening took place 30 years ago tonight when MJ, coming off one of the most fairy-tale years in entertainment history, set a record by winning 8 trophies at the 11th annual American Music Awards for his steamrolling album Thriller.

The awards ceremony, broadcast live on ABC played out like one long tribute to Jackson and ended up serving as the very pinnacle of his popularity and success. From the opening minutes, it was clear who the evening belonged to as fans screamed and shouted at the mere sight of Michael as he stepped into the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA.

Jackson certainly knew how to set indelible trends with his style and fashion, something that started to become a major element of his visual presentation just the year before. On this night, he showed up dressed in a red drum major-style jacket adorned in sequins, a gold sash and epaulets with black pants cropped at the ankles. He also sported his trademark single glove, but instead of the usual white with rhinestones, it was black with rhinestones. White socks, black loafers and dark Aviator shades completed his unique look. Of course, his much copied Jheri-curled hair was sleek as ever, with "baby hair" and curls hanging down over his forehead.

MJ's companions that night were almost as unusual as the stratospheric success he had been enjoying for past year; Emmanuel Lewis, the diminutive 12-year old star of TV's Webster, and 19-year old Brooke Shields. Even to this day, three decades later, this aspect of that night remains a curious topic of pop culture conversation.

The true specialness of January 16, 1984 was the insane love that Jackson received. Thanks to his larger-than-life 1983, there was heavy anticipation for what type of night he could be in store for. As it turns out, Thriller dominated, and each time MJ was announced the winner in a particular category, his subsequent stroll up to the stage to accept awards were greeted by great applause and chants for the shy megastar.

The Thriller album had been released in November 1982, and after a slow start did not seem likely to eclipse the great success of Michael's 1979 smash hit LP Off The Wall. But once "Billie Jean" was released as the album's second single in February '83, interest in the album began to pick up steam. When the stylistic music video debuted that same month, public fascination flew to another level. Jackson's soaring popularity kept elevating with one brilliant moment after another. The "Beat It" short film premiered in April '83, followed by his iconic solo performance (and unveiling of the moonwalk dance step) on Motown 25 in May.

The summer of '83 was dominated by children and adults all over the world emulating Michael and his signature costumes, dance moves and singing his songs. He kept a low profile as sales of Thriller skyrocketed beyond standard figures. By the final quarter of 1983, the album had become the best-selling in history which shocked many and catapulted him into the realm of the true legends of music history.

When the epic masterpiece short film, "Michael Jackson's Thriller" was released in December '83, all hell broke loose. The album, already on the shelves for more than a year began selling a million copies per week as a result of the groundbreaking nature of the film. Once the year finally ended, Michael Jackson had become, as Liza Minelli stated in a taped statement on the AMAs, "a national treasure."

His historic, record setting 1983 was handsomely rewarded with every platitude imaginable in 1984. He even received the Award of Merit.

I will never forget that awesome night for MJ, who proved as always to be the greatest entertainer in history.

God bless his Highness!

15 Years Later: Remembering Jordan's Final Flight Out of Chicago

CLEVELAND - With a face filled with tears, I watched on television as the greatest basketball player in history walked away from the game that made him an international icon. This same exact event had also taken place nearly five and a half years before (he returned to pro hoops 17 months later) and both times, it was simply too much to bear.

Michael Jordan was retiring.

Today marks the 15th anniversary of Jordan's historic press conference which announced this horrible decision. At the time, the NBA had just resolved a contentious lockout which wiped out the first two months of the 1998-99 season. What resulted was a truncated, laughable 50-game schedule that featured a heavily dismantled Chicago Bulls team, who were the three-time defending champions for the second time in the decade, with MJ leading the way every time.

The lockout was finally lifted on Jan. 7, and tons of rumors had been swirling about the fate of Jordan as a player, since he had repeatedly mentioned the season before that he was strongly considering retirement. Then, on January 13, 1999, MJ showed up in a black suit with his wife to the United Center in Chicago to declare that, just one month from his 36th birthday, he was done with NBA hoops as its pre-eminent star.

This shook me to my core, and it sent the league into a tailspin of unparalleled parity. Almost immediately, the Bulls' two other star players, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman were gone too. This left the team with Toni Kukoc as its best player and they stumbled to a putrid 13-37 record.

Yuck.

After having witnessed Jordan, just 7 months prior dominate the final minute of the 1998 NBA Finals, hit the championship winning jumper with 5.2 seconds left and walk off with his 6th NBA title and 6th NBA Finals MVP award, it was especially difficult seeing him leave all of that greatness on the floor once again -- the same way that he had done in the autumn of 1993, just three and a half months after Chicago's first 3-peat.

Jordan stayed retired for a little over two and a half years, then decided to come out of retirement just 5 months before his 39th birthday to play with the horrible Washington Wizards. He had become VP of basketball operations in January 2000, but by October 2001, he was back on the court as a much older version of himself.

But to many people, Jordan's two-year Wizards "experiment" was a mere footnote to a dazzling career that re-defined sports and marketing and made Michael Jordan a filthy rich cultural icon.

I will never forget that sad day in early 1999. Jordan's words felt even colder than they did in his '93 farewell speech, yet somehow...even though I had long known it was a strong possibility he would leave again, I was still shattered by the reality of it.

Looking back with the huge perspective of 15 years, I can appreciate Michael even more than I did then...and that is saying a whole lot because my appreciation for him was always enormous.

I am just happy that I got to witness the great Michael Jordan during his legendary career!