Looking over eveyone’s nominations, I’d have to agree. Michael Jackson is the motherlode. This combination of (relative) youth, legions of devoted fans worldwide, a huge talent, and a freak-show life doesn’t come along very often.
Can’t agree with this. Di was infinitely more popular and well known than QE2 worldwide - combination of beauty, glamour, and tabloid fodder. In America, Boomers will remember and have fond memories of her, but nobody under the age of 35 will give it more than a moment’s notice. Hell, I grew up in the UK, and I sometimes forget she’s still around.
The main thing about Princess Di’s death was the total unexpectedness of it. But at QE II’s, age, she’s already living on borrowed time.
If Michael Jackson were to pop up in his funeral casket and start singing “…and this is Thrillaaaah…Thiller night!”, and then commence to doing the 1984 Thiller dance, pelvic thrustin and all…*
…that is probably the only thing that could garner the same amount of worldwide attention that his death did.
The entire English Royal family plus Keith Richards could die tomorrow and 2/3rds of the planet would not give a damn, assuming they even knew who those people are. MJ was not a crossover artist, he was a transcendental one. There really is no comparison. The closest I think is Obama.
*Am I the only one who would think this scenario would be like the most fantastically awesome comeback imaginable? It would be so awesome that no one would care about being tricked like that. Not even his mama.
Tiger Woods has that plus very good fitness. That would make his death more improbable.
I would think you need the combination of fame, plus as much scandal as possible. MJ was famous and a child molester and died (possibly) of drug overdose.
That’s why the OJ trial was huge - a relatively B-list celebrity, but he offed his ex-wife and a waiter.
If, say, Jimmy Carter or Dr. Phil went nutzoid and killed his gay lover and then committed suicide, that would outdo the death of Queen Elizabeth or the current Pope.
The ultimate would be Michelle Obama killing Barack after an incident where Barack revealed during a cocaine binge that he had been molesting his daughters for years.
Or Oprah losing weight again.
Regards,
Shodan
It’s not QE2’s death that will be the media storm. It’s the question of who succeeds her.
Even if it’s true what I’ve been hearing, that Charles has already stated he doesn’t want to be King, and he and William have hashed the whole thing out, it still won’t be that simple. It’ll have to go through the proper channels, and that will probably take some time. And if what I’ve been hearing is inaccurate, or, Og forbid, it was accurate but Charles has a change of heart after his mother is pronounced, it could drag on for months.
And however it resolves, I’m eager to see the coronation. When QE2 was crowned, TV was in its infancy, but people still thought it was superawesomeamazing. Imagine watching this one on plasma and digital!
Does Tiger Woods have a messed up life? I don’t pay any attention, but I thought he just kept to himself.
On further deep relection, what about Mariah Carey? I read some statistic about Jackson having the most #1 singles (or something) behind Elvis, the Beatles, and Mariah Carey. Which caused my brain to short circuit, but that’s another story.
She’s definitely enough of a mess to keep Nancy Grace busy (plus, even better, she’s a woman), and she’s still fairly young, and if she’s not as jaw-droppingly beautiful as she one was, she’s still really good looking. I don’t think she could eclipse Jackson, but she’d get a lot of attention.
I think it would definitely make sense for it to be a performing artist. All the clips of someone performing–it just feels more memorable than someone who’s “just” a public figure. Plus you can play all their performances/videos ad nauseum.
There needs to be some big memorial service for Jackson. All the most major celebrities from the last 20 years need to take one plane there. And that plane needs to crash
into an orphanage.
Elizabeth II and Charles will be/would be huge news. Gorbachev will get major press. Ditto Mandela.
Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods would be huge news (BTW, anyone who argues that basketball and golf aren’t worldwide sports are kidding themselves, not to mention the pop culture aspects of both figures). Which is also why Muhammad Ali will generate huge press as well-- he’s an international star.
One name I haven’t seen brought up here: Arnold Schwarzenegger. International movie star, major American politician, known by everyone in the world.
O.J. will get press.
They ever kill/capture/prove Bin Laden is dead, that’ll be HUGE news (and I guess sad news for a lot of bad people).
That all said, I can’t imagine anyone necessarily crying over any of these people. Jackson was different in that way. McCartney will be sad but expected, Madonna will get press but I doubt anyone will get emotional.
It’s all just very weird. Loved the guy’s early work, but man, what a bizarre freakjob.
No. That is another reason why he would be so shocking. He has a fancy wife , a huge home and 2 kids. he has a great following and his future looks great. All would add to the shock.
But many non-golfers think “Tiger Woods” and then go “Yawn,” if not “Who?” (I mean saying “Who”? around the world, that is. Not in the US, or even in Thailand, since he’s half-Thai.) I can’t see the Michael Jackson-level outpouring of grief. Same with just about everyone else listed in this thread.
After Rudolph Valentino, the world had to wait 83 years for another such death. Who knows how long we’ll have to wait again?
I’ll put $10 on Bruce Springsteen or Clint Eastwood, provided we can reach any form of consensus about quantification.
You grotesquely over-estimate the significance of an American golfer in the ‘There Be Dragons’ mists that is the rest of the world beyond the USA.
Not outside the USA it would not.
You are about as wrong as you could get. The tabloids might want it but Charles, if he is alive still, will be King.
Whose death could eclipse Michael Jackson’s? Well, obviously not Karl Malden’s.