Michael: A Creative Genius And Peerless Visionary

CLEVELAND - Michael Jackson was such an incredibly creative being, that he changed the face of music videos and music, rewrote the rules and raised the bar. He was the prime reason that I became a student of creativity.

And he only worked with the best.

During filming of Michael's feature film debut The Wiz in 1978, the 19-year old star met super-music producer Quincy Jones. They forged what would become a stunningly successful partnership as Michael provided the killer vocals and Jones crafted the scintillating production on three brilliant albums; Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad. Teaming with Jones, who was among the best in his field began a decades-long alliance with superstars in all genres of entertainment for Michael.

He was the master at thinking outside the box. Jones was a jazz music producer, yet Michael brought him in to produce his pop/R&B music and it was obviously a rousing success. Michael also worked on The Wiz with such legends as comedian Richard Pryor, singer/actress Lena Horne and director Sidney Lumet. During production for the Thriller album in 1982, Michael recorded songs for acclaimed film director Steven Spielberg's E.T. Storybook. He also worked with Beatles' icon Paul McCartney on two songs and one music video.

Michael's approach to his music videos for Thriller was pure genius. He never called them videos; he called them "short films." Before Michael, music videos were basic and uninspiring. Michael included storyline, dialogue and special effects to his videos. For the "Beat It" video, he brought in real-life Los Angeles gang members to give the clip an air of authenticity. He'd already worked with superstar guitarist Eddie Van Halen on the song.

For the iconic "Thriller" video, he hired film director John Landis instead of a standard video director. He'd greatly enjoyed Landis' work in the 1981 flick An American Werewolf In London so he made the pivotal choice. He used make-up guru Rick Baker, a man who was accustomed to working on movies, to craft highly realistic make-up effects for the ambitious project.

In addition to his incredible decision making with the people he worked with, he also had unlikely friends and admirers. Former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy visited him on the set of "Thriller." Legendary movie actress Elizabeth Taylor was his close friend as was Liza Minelli and Jane Fonda. All older women, and presumably not interested in a young pop star like Michael, his relationships with them belied conventional wisdom as well as proved his universal appeal and amazing transcendence.

He treated his Pepsi commercials like they were music videos or even micro films. The two from 1984 were highly popular, but the ones from 1989 (a 4-part ad that placed Michael in an over-the-top storyline) were a major event. Think about that -- a commercial series that played like a mini-movie and garnered much attention.

He picked movie actress Anjelica Huston to co-star in his 17-minute film, Captain EO in 1986 and brought in Francis Ford Coopla, another iconic film director to helm what was essentially an extended, special-effects laden music video set in outer space. The king of outer space-type films was George Lucas, who brought us such classics as Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Michael enlisted Lucas to produce the 3-D short, which played exclusively at Disney theme parks for a dozen years.

For the Bad album, Michael worked with music icon Stevie Wonder and made another cutting edge short film to accompany the song. The clip was directed by another super movie director; Martin Scorsese and featured a then-unknown Wesley Snipes.

Michael also featured around two dozen Hollywood celebrities in his video for "Liberian Girl" and used a then-unknown Sheryl Crow in the video for "Dirty Diana." The 1991 release of the Dangerous album ended Michael's musical alliance with Quincy Jones, but the videos were more cutting edge than ever. He featured then-super popular child star Macauley Culkin in the clip for the song "Black or White" as well as actor George Wendt. He once again called on the services of film director John Landis to helm this project and he also utilized then-revolutionary "morphing" technology in the video.

For the video to "Jam," Michael brought in basketball giant Michael Jordan to co-star with him in the 1992 clip. During this time, Jordan's stature had grown tremendously due to his leading the Chicago Bulls to their 2nd straight NBA championship. The highly stylized short film for "Remember the Time" was set in ancient Egypt and filled with special effects. Michael brought in the then-recently retired Earvin "Magic" Johnson, another basketball deity to co-star along with legendary comedian/actor Eddie Murphy and supermodel Iman. Another acclaimed film director, John Singleton (who was in high demand as a result of his semial debut a year earlier with Boyz N Da Hood) helmed the nine-minute masterpiece.

For "In The Closet," Michael used another supermodel, this time Naomi Campbell, as the object of his affection. He was a man with limitless clout and endless influence which enabled him to bring in such A-list talent across the board.

Not to mention the fact that everyone seemed to be a huge fan of his.

Michael even did a largely forgettable video with Eddie Murphy for "Whatzupwitu" in 1993 for Murphy's Love's Alright album.

The rest of the 1990's were largely sparse for Michael in terms of creating music and videos. He did have a few other notable highlights during mid-decade; co-starring with sister Janet in the 1995 video for "Scream," working with R&B star R. Kelly, who wrote "You Are Not Alone," teaming up with rap legend The Notorious B.I.G. for a song in '95 during B.I.G.'s most popular year and bringing in acclaimed filmmaker Spike Lee to direct two clips for "They Don't Care About Us" in 1996.

Michael also worked with legendary horror author Stephen King for Michael's 38-minute film "Ghosts."

In 2001, Michael released Invincible which was generally panned. In any case, he teamed up with star producer Rodney Jerkins in an attempt to create a stunning and updated version of his past sound. In the short film for "You Rock My World," Michael starred alongside comedian and actor Chris Tucker as well as the legendary Marlon Brando. Succeed or fail, Michael always came from an innovative and unconventionally ambitious place in all of his endeavors.

He even did a remix for "You Rock My World" with rap legend and mogul Jay-Z.

He was invited to the White House by President Reagan in 1984 and was honored and hailed as a man who was a valuable citizen of the world. Reagan also said that Michael's success was "an American dream come true." Michael also met with both President Bushes and performed for President Clinton. He was close friends with Princess Diana and sang for Nelson Mandela.

With Michael's surreal brilliance and incredible spirit, it's no wonder so many esteemed superstars, luminaries and dignitaries were drawn to him.

He was one-of-a kind.