Thriller.


I remember growing up that MJ's Thriller was always number 1 whenever MTV had their Top 100 Greatest Videos of all time.

A short while after the Neverland incident they had another broadcast of the Top 100, but - I am assuming because of the controversy- Thriller was no longer number 1.

I always felt like this was a political move on MTV's part and for me, another mistep in their move away from music television pioneers to pop-culture-overlords. Regardless of the spectacle of his life and how bizarre he got towards the end - I will always remember Michael Jackson for the musical phenomenon that he was.

No one can watch those early videos and doubt his talent. He was a musical prodigy and truly was and is the King of Pop. Whether or not the later craziness shaded your perception of him, his influence is indelible on 1980s pop and American culture.

And if he does come back as a Zombie - I for one will lay aside my rifle and give him a pass. =)

Potential Update on the A-Team Movie

Daytime just sent me over this info on the ever-in-discussion A-Team movie:

The "A-Team" is certainly gearing up for what one would call an A-list cast (though I'm quite fond of George Peppard, Dirk Benedict and Mr. T). According to Variety, it was confirmed that "Hangover" star Bradley Cooper is in negotiation to play Lt. Templeton "Faceman" Peck. And now, Variety is stating that none other than Liam Neeson (who just starred in the ridiculously entertaining "Taken") is in negotiations to play John "Hannibal" Smith. Joe Carnahan is set to direct, with Ridley Scott producing. OK, great. But where's Mr. T in all of this?

The source is here.

I would have never thought of Liam Neeson as a good Hannibal (of course Faceman would need to be played by a pretty boy, so no surprises there), but after seeing him in Taken, I would certainly like to see his interpretation of the role.

Now of course the big question for me (aside from the concern of Hollywood destroying all of my childhood icons in the name of making a buck, i.e. Transformers, GI Joe, etc.) - is where in time will they set the story?

The A-Team is fundamentally a 1980's post-Vietnam story, but I am not relying on Hollywood to keep the story in context.

I am sure that the A-Team will have been accused of a "crime they did not commit" - some kind of robbery of a big bank in Iraq or Afghanistan. But to make the story politically correct for modern times (and Hollywood), it'll turn out that the bank is being run by an evil military contractor - who was really defrauding the government for its own nefarious purposes.

I wonder if they will push the envelope and make the team mercenaries during the conflict - certainly believable in our contractor-based neo-warfare model - or if they will be a real US Army A-Team (Special Forces) that is assigned the infamous task? If they are US troops, then of course Mr. Neeson would have to do something about that accent . . .

Or . . . they could go all UN-style like Streetfighter.

Just kidding . . . seriously. Don't do it, Hollywood!

Ok - so the Transformers movie wasn't that bad . . .