June 26, 2009

Michael Jackson, Our very Own Charles Foster Kane?

"No Trespassing"


Has there ever been a cultural icon as enigmatic as Michael Jackson? His life was largely shaped by the media and public, yet no one really knew anything about him. For a person known around the world as the "King of Pop", he was a mystery, and his death only adds to that lore . . . I overheard someone describing his death, and they mentioned that he died alone. How can a person with so much fortune and fame die alone?

Importantly, despite his iconic status, he became entangled with scandals, and lost much of the mystique that surrounded him for decades. His followers abandoned him, and he was left in an expensive oddly named mansion, collecting things until his untimely death. Sounds familiar right? Michael Jackson's life and tragic death are eerily familiar to Charles Foster Kane's. They both dominated a particular avenue of culture (music/media). They were both larger than life figures, who at the height of their celebrity, fell to scandals. Moreover, they both tried to seclude themselves into fantasy mansions. They collected a ton of items around the world, and eventually died alone.

All of the fame and the fortune did nothing to keep their demons away. For two guys who had it all, it seemed like they had nothing. Both realized that their childhood memories provided the most comfort (Michael before he was a celebrity at 10 ). Just like Rosebud is the greatest mystery in cinema history, Michael Jackson will forever be remembered for his music, but a mystery to most of us.

17 comments:

  1. was Charles Foster Cane a child molester?

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  2. Michael Jackson wasn't a journalist, nor was Kane a pop superstar, but that's beside the point. They are not exactly the same, the point is that they were both enigmatic and larger than life characters, who fell tragically because of their own doubts and public scandals. I'm guessing that you don't comprehend basic analogies, but that's neither here nor there.

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  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  4. I hate to sound like a whiny little movie nerd, but its Kane with a K, not a C.
    And the comparison is more apt than first instinct leads you to believe.
    Both Jackson and Kane remain fascinating characters, whether real or imagined.

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  5. Trust me moviedude, we are all whiny movie nerds. I'm operating on 2 hours of sleep, but thanks for pointing that out.

    I think I initially had "K", and changed it to a "C" for some odd reason. Weird. Thanks for reading.

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  6. oh, i understand the comparison, just asking you a question, and wondering why you were honoring someone who's evil...

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  7. ok, no need to go down that direction...everyone knows about that, the guy is dead, let it be (and this is from someone with a very low opinion of the man)

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  8. I'm not sure if that's directed at me Joey . . .

    To answer Anon 2:43 - Despite Michael Jackson's controversies, that does not negate the claim that he was enigmatic. I don't care much for his personal issues. I'll always respect Michael Jackson's contribution to music. Whether he's evil or not is irrelevant and debatable.

    Honestly, I found the parallels striking. I spoke about this with my brother months ago, and we thought it odd that he died in a similar fashion to Kane. Their lives were stangely too similar.

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  9. i was responding to the kid toucher posts...trying to keep it PG-13 round here

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  10. Luckily, most of our readers aren't as intellectually unsophisticated. Besides, Michael Jackson was never proven guilty. For all we know, all of those claims were frivolous. But, again, what we thought about him as a person is kind of unrelated to my post.

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  11. I just took issue with the bluntness of it, I'm someone who isn't a fan of the man, and honestly look at him more as a potential felon, but still, you don't need to just blurt out stuff like that, especially on an intelligent post like this....save the dirt for TMZ....sorry, it just got me mad for some reason

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  12. I know what you mean. I think it ultimately supports my claim that Kane and Jackson were alike. No one had the same opinion about the two dudes. They were both brilliant at what they did, but people had different views about them.

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  13. why does everyone insist on ignoring anything he did bad during his life? he did have a HUGE impact on music and a fantastic career to be remembered, but that doesnt mean that you forget all of the bad things that made him up. when OJ simpson dies, are we going to remember him only for his football career and his "retirement" will be ignored? his eccentricity is part of who he was...that must be remembered too. why is that forgotten now that he died? if we want to truly remember him we have to remember his whole life, not just the good parts.

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  14. i def agree with the last post. However, I feel that some people are outright disrespectful in the manner they bring up all tge bad things the man MIGHT have done in his life!!

    --jess

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  15. What's the point in remember the alleged bad things that he did? It's counterproductive. We don't have to give the man a holiday and pray in his name, but we have to respect his contribution to music and culture. No person is flawless. Elvis did tons of drugs and cheated on his wife. JFK cheated on his wife. MLK jr. allegedly had an affair. The list goes on. Point is, people do some crazy stuff, but im not in the business of focusing on negative stuff.

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  16. Agreed Keith!!

    --Jess

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