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From the category archives:
MJ Icon & Legend
Dancer and singer Jeffrey Daniel was a member of the R&B group Shalamar and pioneered the dance move the backslide — which, after he taught it to Michael Jackson, became known as the moonwalk.
His memory of Michael…
He would religiously work on dances every Sunday. And it was over a period of, I don’t know, a few weeks because you’re doing it just once a week for a couple of hours or so. It wasn’t so regimented, like, O.K., here’s this step and this step. It was like some of it was having fun, some of it was acting goofy, moving around like Charlie Chaplin and poking faces at each other. Some of it was, we were just gelling, you know, with the dances. And some of it was concentrating on a particular move, but a lot of it was two guys just having fun and showing dances. And then watching Fred Astaire films, watching Gene Kelly, watching the Nicholas Brothers, watching Sammy Davis Jr., getting inspiration.
He could eat popcorn like nobody I knew, ’cause I could eat some popcorn. And we’re sitting watching movies together and you can hear him scraping the bottom, and I’m just cracking up laughing. And he breaks out singing along with the movie. I was like, My God, he’s just like anybody else you know.
We first worked with him in 1980, but he did not do the moonwalk publicly until 1983 [on Motown's 25th-anniversary TV special].
And after he did it, he asked, “How was it?” And I said, “Why did you wait so long?” He said, “Well, it still didn’t come out right.” I’m like, Huh? This is the performance that totally blew everyone away — and he said something didn’t come out right. Whatever was going on in his mind, we would never know it. We all know that it was a mind-blowing performance, and it just took him to another level.
Source: www.time.com
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The singer made a rare public appearance at Ed Hardy owner Christian Audigier’s 50th birthday party, which was also attended by Britney Spears, Stacy ‘Fergie’ Ferguson, Pamela Anderson and Snoop Dogg. The 49-year-old singer joined birthday boy Christian on stage at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Hollywood to say a few words about the designer.
The celebrities and fellow guests whooped with joy when they heard Michael was appearing on stage. However, their excitement was short-lived when Michael simply said “Hello… Christian is the king of fashion”, before retreating off the stage.
One reveller told The Mirror: “Everyone went mad when he grabbed the microphone. The mood was electric. ”But sadly there was no impromptu gig. It was a shame because he looked in pretty good shape. He was obviously just putting in an appearance for his old pal Christian.”
Jackson made the whistle-stop visit to Los Angeles from his base in Las Vegas. The Thriller singer has been residing in Nevada’s Sin City since last year with his three children Prince Michael, 11; Paris Michael, 10; and Blanket, six.
Meanwhile, a chic-looking Britney was escorted by her father Jamie Spears and agent Jason Trawick. The singer appears to have turned over a new leaf following her recent fashion mishaps and cut a sleek figure in a black bandeau dress and Christian Louboutin high heels.
While Michael failed to sing, former The Black Eyed Peas singer Stacy ‘Fergie’ Ferguson happily performed to the celebrity crowd. Newly-single Pamela Anderson was also in attendance in a miniscule grey lurex dress, but unwittingly flashed her knickers at some of the crowd when she stuck her arm in the air on stage with Christian.
Article Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Please Note: The original report is rather rude in parts! So I edited the sarcastic reporting tone!
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Beat It Single Cover
Click for Bigger Image
Estimate: $2,000 – $4,000
Sold For: $60,000.00
MICHAEL JACKSON HAND WRITTEN “BEAT IT” LYRICS
Original signed hand written lyrics to “Beat It” by Michael Jackson covering two pages and signed on the top right corner of the first page.
Michael Jackson wrote “Beat It” at the urging of his co-producer Quincy Jones. Jackson said of the song, “I wanted to write a song, the type of song that I would buy if I were to buy a rock song… That is how I approached it and I wanted the kids to really enjoy it—the school kids as well as the college kids.”
11 by 8 1/2 inches
PROVENANCE Lot 93, “Rock & Roll & Film Memorabilia,” Sotheby’s, London, Olympia, sale number WO3842, September 3, 2003.
PLEASE NOTE: This item will not be available for delivery until after March 31, 2010. The lyrics will be exhibited as part of the AEG Michael Jackson Exhibition touring London, Tokyo and New York City
SOURCE:
www.juliensauctions.com
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Original name Anna-Lou Leibovitz.
Photographer. Born Anna-Lou Leibovitz, on October 2, 1949, in Westbury, Connecticut. She was one of the six children born to Sam, an Air Force lieutenant, and Marilyn Leibovitz, a modern dance instructor. In 1967, Leibovitz enrolled at the San Francisco Art Institute, where (although initially studying painting) she developed a love for photography.
After living briefly on an Israeli kibbutz, Leibovitz returned to the U.S., in 1970, and applied for a job with the start-up rock music magazine Rolling Stone. Impressed with Leibovitz’s portfolio, editor Jann Wenner offered her a job as a staff photographer. Within two years, the 23-year-old Leibovitz was promoted to chief photographer—a title she would hold for the next 10 years. Her position with the magazine afforded her the opportunity to accompany the Rolling Stones band on their 1975 international tour. Article Source alafoto.com
Click Here to Read More on Anna-Lou “Annie” Leibovitz
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A video tribute to pop icon Michael Jackson plays across the canopy of the Fremont Street Experience
The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a pedestrian mall and attraction in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. The FSE occupies the westernmost 5 blocks of Fremont Street, including the area known for years as “Glitter Gulch,” and portions of some other adjacent streets. See below: How it looks normally.
Photo Source: vegasdeluxe.com
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Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee at The Memorial
Sponsor:
Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee
Cosponsors:
Eni Faleomavaega
Corrine Brown
Yvette Clarke
John Conyers
Elijah Cummings
Danny Davis
Keith Ellison
Dennis Kucinich
John Lewis
Jared Polis
José Serrano
Diane Watson
………………………………………………………………………………………..
HRES 600 IH
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 600
A tribute to an American legend and musical icon.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 26, 2009
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas (for herself and Ms. WATSON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
Whereas Michael Jackson began his stellar recording career as the featured member of ‘The Jackson 5’, which was the first act in recorded history to have their first four major label singles ‘I Want You Back’,‘ABC’,‘The Love You Save’, and ‘I’ll Be There’, reached the top of the American charts;
RESOLUTION
A tribute to an American legend and musical icon.
Whereas Michael Jackson was not only an accomplished recording and performing artist, he was a noted humanitarian;
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Here are the words spoken by Rev. Al Sharpton at the Michael Jackson Memorial Service.
“All over the world today people are gathered in love vigils to celebrate the life of a man that taught the world how to love. People may be wondering why there is such an emotional outburst, but you would have to understand the journey of Michael to understand what he meant to all of us.
For these that sit here as the Jackson family, a mother and father with nine children that rose from a working class family in Gary, Indiana, they had nothing but a dream. No one believed in those days that these kind of dreams could come true. But they kept on believing, and Michael never let the world turn him around from his dreams.”
Click to Read More of THE SPEECH
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BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK AT LEGENDARY KING OF POP TAKES $101 MILLION IN FIVE DAYS, BREAKING ALL TIME RECORD FOR THE GENRE
LONDON, November 2, 2009 – Sony Pictures Releasing UK is delighted to announce that since its release on Wednesday, October 28, Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT has stormed straight to the top of the UK box office taking an incredible £4.9 million.
With the UK figure contributing to a worldwide total of $101 million and counting, it makes motion picture history as the highest-grossing concert film of all time. Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT is directed by Kenny Ortega.
In response to the tremendous interest and desire to see the film around the world, the studio has also announced that it is extending its limited engagement. In the UK, the film will be extended through November and in the United States, the film will play through Thanksgiving weekend.
Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT is the 5th biggest international opening of 2009. In addition to the UK, top grossing territories include: Japan $10.4 m (3rd biggest opening of the year in Japan), Germany $6.3 m, France $5.8 m, Australia $3.6 m, China $3.2 m, Italy $2.9 m, and Spain $2.6 m, among others.
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