# Did Michael jackson really plan to take his freak face on an actual tour? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 27, 2009, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172 "2009-06-27T14:51:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fell\_through\_the\_Ice](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9adbd/32.png) [@Fell\_through\_the\_Ice](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fell_through_the_Ice)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/1 "2009-06-27T14:51:59Z")
His face had become a hideous freak-mask. Did he not realize how bizarre he looked? Seemed to me that he did, due to all the hiding behind masks and wigs and veils and all that. Was he **really** planning to go on a comeback tour and actually show his face on stage? This is s serious question, not a snark, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/2 "2009-06-27T14:59:25Z")
He showed his face on stage just a few weeks ago, in London. ---
**Author:** ![lavenderviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/cdc98d/32.png) [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/3 "2009-06-27T15:55:47Z")
While people may argue about if he was a pedophile or not, I don’t think anyone disputes that he was mentally ill and probably had some kind of body dysmorphic disorder. He probably was never satisfied with how he looked even if he didn’t realize all the plastic surgery was making things worse. Yet there were still so many people who wanted to see him and paid tons of money to do so, and he needed the money, so I guess he was going to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/4 "2009-06-27T16:20:32Z")
OP, you’re talking as if the whole world had decided to shun him somehow. Given the international outpourings and vigils, it seems that he still had more than enough fans willing to overlook his weirdnesses (and wherever he went, he always did, so why would he have the idea he should be ashamed?) to support a successful tour. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/5 "2009-06-27T17:49:43Z")
No, I think his freak face was in the shop. He was going to take his weird face instead. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/6 "2009-06-27T17:56:03Z")
He had a tour scheduled. He also had a history of not honoring his commitments. So it’s hard to say what really would have happened. I actually did think he would have a medical crisis (real or manufactured) shortly before the tour was supposed to start. Bear in mind that the last time he performed was about two years ago, at an awards show in Europe. He drifted out on stage, croaked out three lines of “We Are the World” and trailed off on the fourth. Made Vegas Elvis look competent. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/7 "2009-06-27T18:25:28Z")
The real money in music is touring. It always has been. If you read David Cassidy’s autobiography, he tells you he got his money by touring on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Touring is a great deal and with corporate sponsors the artists pays nothing. Jackson had a reputation for calling off shows. This means very high insurance premiums (for cancelled shows potential) and he also put on very expensive shows with lights and dancers etc. Jackson was one of the few people, at least internationally, that can command absoulte top dollar per ticket. Don’t forget Jackson was essentially homeless and with tours goes things like free stays in five diamond hotels and all the perks that go with that too. For example I saw an interveiw with Sheena Easton, who lives in Las Vegas. She was asked why she does this. Basically she said, she has three small kids (no husband currently) and she’s home for them when she needs to be, she leaves in the evening, does two shows (an extra on Sunday), and is home by 2am. She can wake up, see them off to school, and she has a nice home in the Las Vegas suburbs and transportation, ALL which is paid for by the hotel she sings at. So basically she gets all her expenses, her living costs, a nice salary, lots of free time to spend with her kids, plus her royalties from her songs. Obviously Sheena Easton is no Michael Jackson in terms of fame, but she does quite well. You can imagine what kind of deal someone with Michael Jackson’s fame could get. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/8 "2009-06-27T18:50:19Z")
When Elvis died he had concerts planned. Some people did not get refunds of the tickets, they kept them as souvenirs. I guess the same will happen with some of Jackson’s tickets. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/9 "2009-06-27T19:15:16Z")
When Brent Mydland (one of the Grateful Dead keyboardists) died, we had to send back any tickets that we to get our refunds. They sent us back the tickets stamped “VOID” along with our refund checks. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/10 "2009-06-27T19:49:07Z")
I thought his freak face was part of why people wanted to go the shows. Music + dance + freakshow = good entertainment value. ---
**Author:** ![InterestedObserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@InterestedObserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InterestedObserver)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/11 "2009-06-27T20:11:58Z")
Real funny thread title. :rolleyes: I’m just not down with the whole bashing Michael Jackson thing, ya know? Yes, he had a “freak face”. Yes, he had serious personal issues, including, apparently, a severe drug problem. He may even have had a sexual attraction to young boys (hardly surprising considering HE never HAD a childhood and probably identified emotionally AS a young boy himself) But by all accounts of those who knew him well, he was also a loving, generous, gentle soul. And there is no dispute that he was extraordinarily gifted as an artist (even if he wasn’t your cup of tea, the talent cannot be denied) There’s no doubt in my mind that he was seriously screwed up as a result of his childhood, parenting, and life-long fame. That his father was abusive is pretty much a given; Michael himself related that they were “practiced” by their father with a belt in his hand, and if they fucked up, they caught it. It is also probably true that while on tour as a child, he was sexually assualted and otherwise exposed to things no child should have been. It has always seemed obvious to me that he sought to alter his appearance from that of a Black man (like his father) to that of a white woman (which could be seen as the opposite). He loathed himself, imo, at least his physical self. He was a victim, imo. Regardless, the man is dead. Leave him alone. May he finally find some peace. ---
**Author:** ![InterestedObserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@InterestedObserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InterestedObserver)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/12 "2009-06-27T20:17:51Z")
And yes, I’m sure he DID plan to go on tour. He needed the money. ---
**Author:** ![St.Urho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8e7dd6/32.png) [@St.Urho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/St.Urho)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/13 "2009-06-27T21:48:34Z")
Like **Rilchiam** said- the tour was scheduled and tickets were sold. It sure looks like he was serious. [From the Denver Post:](http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_12701234) > [@](#): > > The 50-concert Michael Jackson gig that was to reinvigorate the pop singer’s career could end up costing Denver billionaire Phil Anschutz a pretty penny now that the singer is dead, though how large a penny is speculative. > > Much of the loss — estimates of the amount vary as widely as the theories to support them — would be determined by the degree of insurance carried by Anschutz’s company, AEG Live, which was promoting and backing the London-based engagements that were to start July 13. > > With more than 750,000 tickets sold worldwide at more than $90 million — face values ran from $83 to $124 but fees, online auctions and secondary-market sales reached into the thousands of dollars — the size and complexity of any insurance are staggering. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2009, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/14 "2009-06-28T16:09:15Z")
> [@InterestedObserver](#): > > Real funny thread title. :rolleyes: > > I’m just not down with the whole bashing Michael Jackson thing, ya know? Yes, he had a “freak face”. Yes, he had serious personal issues, including, apparently, a severe drug problem. He may even have had a sexual attraction to young boys (hardly surprising considering HE never HAD a childhood and probably identified emotionally AS a young boy himself) Oh, well that makes it all right then. I hate this attitude of, “Yeah, he might have been a pedophile, but you don’t understand! He had a sad life! He was screwed up!” You know who else had sad, screwed up lives? Pretty much every pedo in the country. Michael doesn’t get a free pass because his sad life was public knowledge. The little boys he (alledgedly) molested weren’t any less violated because Michael could moonwalk and sing “Ben.” > [@](#): > > It has always seemed obvious to me that he sought to alter his appearance from that of a Black man (like his father) to that of a white woman (which could be seen as the opposite). He loathed himself, imo, at least his physical self. I always thought that he was trying to turn himself into an anime. Long hair, pale skin, pointy nose, big eyes… > [@](#): > > He was a victim, imo. Yes. And he left a few in his wake. > [@](#): > > Regardless, the man is dead. Leave him alone. May he finally find some peace. His life was a circus. It’s only fitting that his death be the same. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2009, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/15 "2009-06-28T16:13:39Z")
> [@Small\_Hen](#): > > Oh, well that makes it all right then. > > I hate this attitude of, “Yeah, he might have been a pedophile, but you don’t understand! He had a sad life! He was screwed up!” You know who else had sad, screwed up lives? Pretty much every pedo in the country. Michael doesn’t get a free pass because his sad life was public knowledge. The little boys he (alledgedly) molested weren’t any less violated because Michael could moonwalk and sing “Ben.” That kind of reminds me of Kyle’s speech at the end of the “Mr. Jefferson” South Park episode. Except his argument is more like, “That’s all well and good till you have kids.” ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2009, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/16 "2009-06-29T06:55:52Z")
> [@Small\_Hen](#): > > Oh, well that makes it all right then. > > I hate this attitude of, “Yeah, he might have been a pedophile, but you don’t understand! He had a sad life! He was screwed up!” You know who else had sad, screwed up lives? Pretty much every pedo in the country. Michael doesn’t get a free pass because his sad life was public knowledge. The little boys he (alledgedly) molested weren’t any less violated because Michael could moonwalk and sing “Ben.” > I always thought that he was trying to turn himself into an anime. Long hair, pale skin, pointy nose, big eyes… > Yes. And he left a few in his wake. > His life was a circus. It’s only fitting that his death be the same. First Off: Innocent until proven guilty. Don’t like that? Campaign for a more compitent DA. Otherwise give it a rest. But forget all that. Let’s just say hypothetically he _was_ a child molester. The guy is f’n dead. Unless he comes back as one of those dancing zombies from his thriller video; he wont be hurting anymore children. So tell me OP, what is so horrible about remembering the good contributions MJ made on society? Have we become so cynical as a human race that we have to obsess with the negative parts of humanity? I think the classy thing to do here is remember him as someone who gave us a lot of good damn music. There’s lot’s of other contributions he’s made to this world as well, but I wont go into all that as I assume you probably don’t care. I infer that you’d rather just throw the baby out with the bath water. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2009, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/17 "2009-06-29T15:19:01Z")
> [@SHAKES](#): > > First Off: Innocent until proven guilty. Don’t like that? Campaign for a more compitent DA. Otherwise give it a rest. > > But forget all that. Let’s just say hypothetically he _was_ a child molester. > > The guy is f’n dead. Unless he comes back as one of those dancing zombies from his thriller video; he wont be hurting anymore children. > > So tell me OP, what is so horrible about remembering the good contributions MJ made on society? > > Have we become so cynical as a human race that we have to obsess with the negative parts of humanity? > > I think the classy thing to do here is remember him as someone who gave us a lot of good damn music. > > There’s lot’s of other contributions he’s made to this world as well, but I wont go into all that as I assume you probably don’t care. > > I infer that you’d rather just throw the baby out with the bath water. Read more carefully. I was specifically responding to Observer’s assertion that, “He may even have had a sexual attraction to young boys (hardly surprising considering HE never HAD a childhood and probably identified emotionally AS a young boy himself).” I didn’t say that Jackson was definitly guilty (though I personally believe that he was). I objected to the idea that because he “identified emotionally as a young boy” it made the idea that he might have molested a kid or two okay. _If_ he molested those kids, it doesn’t matter that he was a “loving, generous, gentle soul,” or that he, “gave us a lot of good damn music,” or even that he’s dead. He’s still a monster. No we don’t know that he touched those boys. But he took them into his bed. He had shrines to young boys. He walked like a duck and quacked like a duck. That’s all I’m saying. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2009, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/18 "2009-06-29T15:40:55Z")
Both my wife and I agree (Wow! Can you believe that?) that the proposed shows in London and any tour would never have happened and thier announcement was a way to generate a little short-term capital to see this freak thru the immediate future. If you ask me, (and you did, by posting in this forum) he is lucky to have died before being further humiliated and degraded with cancelled shows, financial ruin and further weirdness. As it is, I’m sure some sordid shit will surface in the next few weeks anyway. I just want him and Anna Nicole Smith to _go the F_ AWAY!\* ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2009, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/19 "2009-06-29T19:24:48Z")
According to the LA Times, he was in full rehearsal for his concert tour the night before he died. [MJ’s Last Rehearsal](http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-jackson-rehearsal27-2009jun27,0,4699249.story?track=rss) ---
**Author:** ![MrFloppy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@MrFloppy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrFloppy)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172/20 "2009-06-30T00:16:11Z")
According to an article in the Daily Mail, MJ had no voice and no hair. > **['I'm better off dead. I'm done': Michael Jackson's fateful prediction just a...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1196009/Im-better-dead-Im-How-Michael-Jackson-predicted-death-months-ago.html)** > > A writer with exclusive access to Jackson's entourage reveals the singer's despair in the days before his death. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-michael-jackson-really-plan-to-take-his-freak-face-on-an-actual-tour/501172.md?page=2)