Cebu dancing inmates to perform 'Thriller' tribute for Jackson

MANILA, Philippines - On Saturday afternoon, more than 1,400 orange-clad Cebu inmates who gained worldwide attention for an impressive “Thriller" performance on YouTube will pay their last respects to the late King of Pop.

“Everyone’s sad," Byron Garcia, provincial security consultant of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC), told GMANews.TV in a phone interview.

“Malaki talaga si Michael Jackson sa programa namin. [Michael Jackson really played a big part in our program]," Garcia said.

Ever since the "dancing inmates" were reported by international news organizations, Garcia said inquisitive tourists have been drawn to the CPDRC. Visitors have even gained a more optimistic perspective of Philippine prisoners.he CPDRC inmates perform every last Saturday of the month to almost 600 visitors for free. On June 27, they will stage a repeat of the Thriller dance routine that made them famous as a tribute to Jackson, who died of a heart attack Thursday in Los Angeles.

The moonwalking pop star drove the growth of music videos, vaulting cable channel MTV into the mainstream after the network’s launch in 1981. His 1982 hit "Thriller" spawned a John Landis-directed music video that MTV played every hour.

Fast-forward 25 years later and Garcia, who noticed that the inmates were bored with the usual morning exercise, sought the help of choreographer Vince Rosales and adapted Jackson’s iconic moves into a four-minute routine.

GONE TOO SOON. Filipino inmate Dodong Niere (right) feels saddened by the news of Michael Jackson's death Friday (Manila time). Jackson was 50. with AP photo

Crisanto “Dodong" Niere, the Cebu inmate who impersonates Jackson in the routine, said he was saddened by his idol’s sudden death.

"He is sad his idol died," an official from the CPDRC who spoke with Dodong told GMANews.TV. [See: Cebu inmate impersonator sad over Jackson’s death]

The video has since generated more than 23 million views after it was posted in 2007 and has even been hailed by TIME Magazine as one of the best viral videos of that year.

Garcia said the inmates’ popularity might gain another momentum as shocked fans continue to look online for anything that would remind them of Jackson.
source

Michael Jackson was much more than the King of Pop

NEW YORK — When Michael Jackson anointed himself "King of Pop" over two decades ago, there was considerable rumbling about his hubris: Yes, he may have become a world sensation with record-setting sales of "Thriller," and yes, he may have had a string of No. 1 hits with smashes like "Billie Jean" and "Beat It," but the KING OF ALL POP MUSIC?

Surely, in a modern music history that has given us Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Stevie Wonder and so many musical greats, that title was a more than a bit inflated.

But in actuality, Jackson understated his significance.

While his elaborate, stop-on-a-dime dance moves and sensual soprano may have influenced generations of musicians, Michael Jackson stood for much more than pop greatness — or tabloid weirdness. One of entertainment's greatest icons, he was a ridiculously gifted, equally troubled genius who kept us captivated — at his most dazzling, and at his most appalling.

At the height of his fame, he was among the world's most beloved figures. Heads of state clamored to meet him, screen legends like Elizabeth Taylor were his close friends, and worldwide, simply the mention of his name could make people do the moonwalk, from Los Angeles to Laos (The New York Times once accurately described him as one of the six most famous people on the planet).

His whispery, high-pitched speaking voice was constantly imitated, his fedora hat on his lean frame instantly recognizable, his childlike image endearing.

He influenced artists ranging from Justin Timberlake to Madonna, from rock to pop to R&B to even rap, across genres and groups that no other artist was able to unite. He changed music videos with "Thriller" in 1983, still considered by most to be the greatest music video ever made. Stars like Beyonce still mimic his moves. His one glove, white socks and glittery jackets made him a fashion trendsetter, making androgyny seem sexy and even safe.

Almost everyone wanted that Michael Jackson connection (and those who didn't were afraid to say so out loud). His celebrity and adoration was staggering.

So when his image began to crumble, becoming twisted and disturbed, that aspect, too, was larger than life. His multiple plastic surgeries and his vitiligo illness, which saw him transform from a masculine looking black man to a wispy, pale-faced, almost noseless figure, was held up as the standard for bad plastic surgery, a freakish-looking character.

His eccentric behavior left people confused, and when allegations (and later criminal charges) that accused him of sexually molesting two separate boys surfaced on two separate occasions, people were repelled by his alleged behavior and the man that their former idol had become.

And yet, it was hard to look away.

In the early days, no one wanted to. Jackson came into our public consciousness as an impossibly cute preteen wonder in 1969, an unbelievably precocious singer of his family band, The Jackson 5. The soon-to-be Motown legend channeled songs like "I Want You Back," and "I'll Be There" with a passion and soulfulness that belied his young years. Even then, his dance moves, copped from the likes of James Brown and Jackie Wilson, were exquisite, and his onstage presence outshone seasoned veterans.

The spotlight began to dim when he entered his late teens, however, and while he still had R&B hits with the Jacksons, it seemed as if he would never recapture the pop success that he burst onto the scene with as a child.

But then he met Quincy Jones, and the musical landscape changed. With the legendary producer, Jackson crafted what for most artists would be a career-defining album, from the string-enhanced disco classic "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough," a party staple which he wrote, to the bitter ballad "She's Out of My Life." The best-selling CD showed the world a grown-up Michael Jackson with grown-up artistry, showcasing his breathy alto-soprano voice and providing a springboard to his early videos, which gave a glimpse of the dance wizardry to come.

At the time, it was Jackson's music that was front and center. A 21-year-old who spoke in a breathy, high voice, still lived at home, had his first, barely noticeable nose job and was a self-claimed virgin in an industry known for its hedonism, he was certainly an odd figure, but his personal life had yet to become intertwined with his public image.

That began to change during "Thriller" — the album that would become his greatest success and his career-defining achievement. Also produced by Quincy Jones, it featured even more of Jackson's songwriting talents; Selling more than 50 million albums worldwide to become the globe's best-selling disc, it spawned seven Billboard top 10 hits, including two No. 1s with "Billie Jean" and "Beat It," won an then-unprecedented eight Grammy awards, and numerous other awards.

It was an impact measured much more than in stats.

He broke MTV's color barrier, becoming the first black artist played on the young, rock-oriented channel when the success of "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" became so overwhelming it could not be ignored. He also established the benchmark for the way videos would be made, with stunning cinematography, precision choreography that recalled great movie musicals. Jackson's amazing talents as a dancer were also displayed to the world during his Emmy-nominated performance for Motown's 25th anniversary. It is still considered one of TV's most thrilling moments, from his moonwalk strut to his pulsating pelvic movements.

But as Jackson's fame grew, his eccentricities, from his strange affinity for children and all things childlike, to his at times asexual image to his fascination with plastic surgery, began to dull the shine off of his sparkling image. As the years went by, those "eccentricities" would become more bizarre, and completely tarnish it.

His skin, once a dark brown, became the color of paste, a transition he blamed on the skin disease vitiligo, though some believed he simply bleached his skin in order to appear more Caucasian. That belief was rooted in his frequent plastic surgeries, which whittled his nose from a broad frame to an almost impossibly narrowed bridge. His image was a tough one to look at, much less embrace.

If his plastic surgery made him disturbingly unwatchable, soon, allegations of child abuse would make him reviled among many. He was first accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy in 1993; no charges were ever filed, a civil lawsuit was settled out of court and he always maintained his innocence. Although he had a chart-topping album with "HIStory" in 1995 and was still a superstar, he was a damaged one — and would never fully recover from the allegation.

A criminal charge of molestation of another young boy in 2004, which resulted in his acquittal in 2005, further stripped his marketability and his legacy; after the trial ended, he went into seclusion, and while top hitmakers from Ne-Yo to Akon courted him to make new music, no new CD was ever released. He was overwhelmed with legal and financial troubles, with what seemed like weekly lawsuits against him seeking money owed.

A comeback seemed to be most unlikely. His reputation was considered irreparably damaged, his image mocked and his name an automatic punchline. But when he announced he'd be doing a series of comeback concerts at London's famed O2 Arena in London, not only did the initial dates sell out immediately, the demand was so insatiable he was signed on for an unprecedented 50 shows, and was expected to embark on a worldwide tour sometime after the concert series was complete in March.

Of course, there will be no comeback now, no Jackson 5 reunion, no new music to share with millions of fans. But the legacy he leaves behind is so rich, so deep, that no scandal can torpedo it. The "Thriller" may be gone, but the thrill will always remain. - AP

see more http://breaktime-news.blogspot.com/

Michael Jackson's death stuns fans across nation

LOS ANGELES – Across the country, people reacted in stunned disbelief Thursday as word spread that Michael Jackson had collapsed and died. Within minutes of Jackson's arrival by ambulance at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center people began arriving by the hundreds, the crowd quickly filling a grassy entrance outside the hospital. Overhead, news helicopters whirred noisily and TV trucks clogged streets.

As word spread a few minutes later that Jackson had died, several people burst into tears. Others stood silently, looking pensive, as they waited for official word from the hospital. Still others whipped out cell phones and began calling or texting friends to pump them for information.

A similar scene played out just a couple miles away, in front of Jackson's tony Holmby Hills home, where a Fire Department ambulance had arrived to take him to the hospital.

"I'm in shock," said Becky Williams, a 26-year-old Jackson fan from Salt Lake City who happened to be visiting her sister just down the street.

"He's gone. The legend of music," Williams said in disbelief as she stood outside Jackson's home.

In Holmby Hills, cars — many of them with stereo systems blaring songs from Jackson's classic "Thriller" album — began go clog the streets.

As people began to leave their cars to snap pictures, a police officer warned them their cars would be towed if they didn't move.

Among those who drove to the neighborhood was Sue Mossell, who was visiting from Georgia with her two sons, 7-year-old Ryan and 12-year-old Jimmy.

Ryan placed a pink flower in front of Jackson's gate.

"He wanted to put a flower down for him," said Mossell, 46, who said she grew up listening to Jackson's music.

___

Associated Press writers Derrik J. Lang, Anthony McCartney and Solvej Schou contributed to this story.

source said