# Michael Jackson Memorial Service **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 7, 2009, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220 "2009-07-07T17:35:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/61 "2009-07-08T00:06:46Z")
It was a huge death this year. A rare 50 pointer. ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/62 "2009-07-08T00:11:14Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > It was a huge death this year. A rare 50 pointer. I liked Michael Jackson and I’m not a rabid fan, but aren’t there enough Michael Jackson threads around here where you can post stuff like that rather than shitting in this thread with it? ---
**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:** [July 8, 2009, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/63 "2009-07-08T00:23:09Z")
I saw the clip of Paris speaking. Poor child. He was the only parent they knew and to lose a parent that young…they must all be devastated. Really hope things are going to turn out okay for them. I liked that the other family members were hugging/supporting her while she was speaking. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/64 "2009-07-08T00:25:18Z")
Who was the woman standing behind Paris as she spoke, in the HUGE hat that covered her face? Was that LaToya? ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/65 "2009-07-08T00:50:12Z")
> [@BiblioCat](#): > > Who was the woman standing behind Paris as she spoke, in the HUGE hat that covered her face? Was that LaToya? Yep. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/66 "2009-07-08T00:52:42Z")
Thanks, **xanthous**. ---
**Author:** ![Brandus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@Brandus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brandus)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/67 "2009-07-08T00:58:36Z")
Did anyone else think it was borderline tacky? I was hearing a few “Whoo’s!” and “yeah’s!” during Jonh Mayer and the other performances. All while a dead body was just feet away form him. I thought it was all very strange. I haven’t been to many funerals though. ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/68 "2009-07-08T00:59:06Z")
> [@xanthous](#): > > I thought one of the best lines was when Rev. Sharpton said, “…and I want his 3 children to know: Wasn’t nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your daddy had to deal with. But he dealt with it anyway. He dealt with it for us.” It was a nice line to say to his children at his memorial service but patently untrue. Michael Jackson was one strange dude. Talented performer, loving father and recently deceased, but stranger than shit. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/69 "2009-07-08T01:06:05Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > It was a nice line to say to his children at his memorial service but patently untrue. Michael Jackson was one strange dude. Talented performer, loving father and recently deceased, but stranger than shit. Seen from my perspective and through the glasses of the way I grew up, yes, he was stranger than shit. But I can’t imagine what that life would have done to me had I lived it, so I totally get what Sharpton was saying. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/70 "2009-07-08T01:07:05Z")
> [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](#): > > I liked Michael Jackson and I’m not a rabid fan, but aren’t there enough Michael Jackson threads around here where you can post stuff like that rather than shitting in this thread with it? Nope, this is the right place. ---
**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:** [July 8, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/71 "2009-07-08T01:07:18Z")
They are his kids, though. You want to say something tasteful so that they’ll think of him in a positive light. ---
**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:** [July 8, 2009, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/72 "2009-07-08T01:10:08Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Nope, this is the right place. Yeah, it really, really isn’t. The guy had a lot of flaws, admittedly, but why crap all over him here? ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/73 "2009-07-08T01:15:58Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Nope, this is the right place. If you need attention this badly, start a thread in MPSIMS and we’ll all come pay attention to you. Or, if you have PayPal, I’ll kick in for a “girlfriend experience” with an escort in your area. Thanks for playing. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/74 "2009-07-08T01:29:29Z")
So does someone want to tell me who massacred ‘We Are the World’ or should I look it up? ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/75 "2009-07-08T01:43:51Z")
> [@Cat\_Fight](#): > > So does someone want to tell me who massacred ‘We Are the World’ or should I look it up? Not sure what you mean? The people that performed it today were part of the company of the _This Is It_ tour (per CNN). It wasn’t a grammy-winning performance, to be sure, but my guess is that not only did they never dream they’d have to perform it for the tour’s star’s memorial service (_there’s_ some pressure!), they probably also weren’t the ones meant to sing all the main verses during the tour. They seemed like backup singer-types that graciously took on the job of performing it at this service. (my WAG) ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/76 "2009-07-08T02:00:49Z")
It was a really wonderfully done service. I don’t know how you stage a farewell to the world’s greatest entertainer, but this was pretty close. **Brandus** , I think this was a homecoming in the tradition of the Black church. You’d hear whoops and hollering at a service like that. I didn’t notice any egregious fanboy/girl type yelling. There’s a little too much handwringing about the coverage of MJ’s death. I don’t think it’s at all hyperbolic to reiterate Berry Gordy’s statement that he was the greatest entertainer to have ever lived. His longevity, his mastery of multiple media, his undeniable talent, and let’s face it, a life of controversy and media speculation. A lot of folks can’t separate their dislike or indifference from that fact. I’m an unabashed MJ fan, and I’m Thriller-ed out. (Thanks, MTV.) But name one person who simply had the world’s undivided attention for as long as he did - and for mostly good reasons (so let’s leave Hitler and Stalin out of the equation). You’ve got The Beatles and Elvis. Princess Diana had that kind of appeal but very briefly. I also liked that many of the speakers discussed his philanthropy. He never made a huge deal of those things, but I learned a lot about what MJ had done for others today. Plenty of people will have fun at MJ’s expense, and dare I say some of this he brought on. But the world saw today that he was a brother, a son, and most poignantly, a father. He was a target of derision and ridicule but I always say the way your homecoming goes says so much about how you lived your life. Seeing his family there, obviously shaken and grieving, tells me that through all of the distraction, that this was a good person who was put to rest. ---
**Author:** ![Nutty\_Bunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d07c76/32.png) [@Nutty\_Bunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nutty_Bunny)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/77 "2009-07-08T02:07:27Z")
I thought it was a very respectful service and I was surprised by the restraint that the crowd showed. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/78 "2009-07-08T03:24:18Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Nope, this is the right place. No, it is not. This thread is about the service. Critical comments are allowed in threads like these, but if you want to talk about his death pool value, go to the death pool thread in the game room. A general reminder here: do not insult other posters in this forum. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/79 "2009-07-08T03:33:32Z")
Watching the memorial – especially Brooke Shields talking about a guy who liked to laugh and have fun and then Paris talking about her daddy – made me wish we’d seen more of that side of him when he was alive. Seems like all we saw was the pop star – concerts, videos, and various appearances – and then tabloid stuff and the trial shenanigans. I assume it was his choice (or maybe his handlers’ choices) but we never saw the everyday Michael, a Michael who wasn’t “on” or hiding. ---
**Author:** ![Kayeby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de0a6/32.png) [@Kayeby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kayeby)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220/80 "2009-07-08T05:17:35Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Watching the memorial – especially Brooke Shields talking about a guy who liked to laugh and have fun and then Paris talking about her daddy – made me wish we’d seen more of that side of him when he was alive … we never saw the everyday Michael, a Michael who wasn’t “on” or hiding. You might be interested in [these](http://www.facebook.com/photo_search.php?oid=98326918727&view=all) Facebook pictures that I found linked to on another site. A whole bunch of candids with Michael Jackson, his kids, and some family friends. I initially wasn’t sure whether to link them, but the group founder wants to show people that Michael Jackson was a real person and not just a freak or a pop star. A whole bunch of the photos are from where they got a supermarket to open privately for an hour because he said he’d love to know what it would be like to grocery shop and “push around one of those little cart thingies”. I don’t really have many thoughts about Michael Jackson either way, but I found those pictures oddly poignant. His life must have been so, so weird that he found joy in such normalcy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jackson-memorial-service/502220.md?page=5)