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!