Content deleted Content added
UberCryxic (talk | contribs) |
Stardust6000 (talk | contribs) |
||
Line 66:
In December 1982, Jackson released his second Epic album, "Thriller". It became the best-selling album in music history with album sales exceeding 104 million. The album also became the first in history to spawn seven top-ten Billboard Hot 100 hit singles, including "[[Billie Jean]]" (which was the first [[music video]] by a [[African American|black]] artist to receive regular airplay on [[MTV]]), "[[Beat It]]" and the album's [[Thriller (song)|title track]] which was accompanied by a revolutionary music video. The thirteen-minute ''[[Thriller (music video)|Thriller]]'' was critically acclaimed, and massive airplay lead to it being packaged with the [[featurette]] ''Making Michael Jackson's Thriller'' on [[VHS]], where it became the best-selling music [[home video]] ever.<ref name="mj80">{{cite web |url=http://michaeljackson.com/lofi/history-main-1980s.html |title=History: 1980s |accessdate=2006-11-11 |format= |work=Michael Jackson's official website }}</ref> ''Thriller'' spent 37 weeks at number-one and remained on the [[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] [[album]] chart for 122 weeks. It was eventually certified 27x Platinum in the [[United States]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mjinf.co.uk/Thriller/Thriller.htm |title=Thriller |accessdate=2006-11-20 |work=The Ultimate Michael Jackson Stats Site }}</ref>
[[Image:Billie Jean Video Clip.jpg|200px|left|thumb|Jackson in a scene from the incredibly popular "[[Billie Jean]]" music video. The song hit number-one on the Hot 100 and stayed their 7 weeks in early 1983. It is widely regared as one of the greatest songs Jackson ever wrote.]]
In 1983, whilst performing "Billie Jean" at the [[Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever]] concert Jackson debuted what can be regarded as his signature move: the [[moonwalk (dance)|moonwalk]].<ref name="mj80" /> The performance sparked a new wave of interest in ''Thriller'', which continued to sell well throughout the year. In 1983, he started a sponsorship deal with [[Pepsi|Pepsi-Cola]], and, as part of the deal, he agreed to star in a commercial. While filming the commercial in front of 3,000 fans the following year, a fireworks display behind him malfunctioned, shooting a shower of sparks down upon the singer’s head and setting fire to his hair. Jackson was apparently unfazed by his blazing locks, calmly covering his head with his jacket while his brothers rushed to help. He suffered second-degree burns and later wore a hairpiece when collecting Grammys later that year.<ref>{{cite news | first= David | last= Peisner | title=
Rock Stars Who've Caught Fire Onstage! | date= February 2007 | publisher= Blender Magazine Online | url= http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=2530&src=blender_ed | accessdate= 2007-02-27 | language= English }}</ref>
In February 1984, Jackson was nominated for twelve [[Grammy Awards of 1984|Grammy awards]] - of which he won eight<ref name="mj80" /> - breaking the record for the most [[Grammy Award]]s won in a single year.<ref>{{cite book |last=[[Guinness World Records]] |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Guinness World Records 2007 |year=2006 |publisher=Guinness |___location= |id=ISBN 1-904994-12-1 }}</ref> Seven were for the critically acclaimed ''[[Thriller (album)|Thriller]]'' and the other for the ''E.T.: The Extra-terrestrial'' storybook. In 1984, he also won eight American Music Awards and the "Special Award of Merit" and three MTV Video Music Awards.
[[Image:Beat It Video Clip.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Jackson in the video for "[[Beat It]]."
[[Image:Michael Jackson Ronald and Nancy Reagan.png|thumb|left|250px|Jackson with the Reagans in 1984.]]▼
''Thriller'' was a gigantic hit that made Michael Jackson the seminal icon of American culture at the time. [[Time (magazine)|Time magazine]] explained that "the fallout from Thriller has given the [music] business its best years since the heady days of 1978, when it had an estimated total domestic revenue of $4.1 billion."<ref name=TIME>{{cite news | first= Jay | last= Cocks | title= Why He's a Thriller | date= March 2007 | publisher= Time Magazine | url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,950053-1,00.html | accessdate= 2007-03-17 | language= English }}</ref> ''Thriller'' helped to bring music from African-American artists back into mainstream radio for the first time since the mid-1970s.<ref name=TIME/> The album also dominated much of the world's conscience in its heyday; as one [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] high school senior put it, "His [Michael Jackson's] music is electrifying. His beat is the music of today."<ref name=TIME/> In May 1984, stores across the country started selling dolls of the superstar, who also became something of a sexual symbol, as he was described by Time magazine: "Undeniably sexy. Absolutely safe. Eroticism at arm's length."<ref name=TIME/> Additionally, Michael Jackson's rhinestone glove and ''Thriller'' jacket became iconic aspects of his outfits, which American youth sported all too eagerly.
Line 78 ⟶ 77:
Jackson continued his charity work in 1985 by co-writing, with [[Lionel Richie]], the hit [[Single (music)|single]] "[[We Are the World]]". The charity single helped to raise money and awareness for the [[famine]] in [[East Africa]] and was one of the first instances where Jackson was seen as a [[Humanitarianism|humanitarian]]. The song also won a Grammy Award for "Song of the Year".<ref name="mj80" /> "We Are the World" became one of the top five best-selling singles of all time, selling over 20 million copies worldwide.
▲[[Image:Michael Jackson Ronald and Nancy Reagan.png|thumb|left|250px|Jackson with the Reagans in 1984.]]
▲[[Image:Beat It Video Clip.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Jackson in the video for "[[Beat It]]." The ultimate crossover hit and one of Jackson's most popular songs, "Beat It" topped the Hot 100 charts for three weeks in 1983.]]
Controversy began when Jackson purchased [[Share (finance)|shares]] in the [[Sony/ATV Music Publishing|ATV Music Publishing]] (a company which owned the rights to most of [[the Beatles]]' songs), making himself the majority [[shareholder]]. This move angered close friend and songwriter [[Paul McCartney]], who had also made a bid for the company. Ironically, it was McCartney who advised Jackson on the merits of song ownership.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.snopes.com/music/artists/jackson.htm |title=Michael Jackson owns the rights to the Beatles' songs |accessdate=2006-11-11 |format= |work=[[Urban Legends Reference Pages]] }}</ref> Their creative co-writing ended after this event. Following this controversial business deal, [[tabloid]] stories of Jackson sleeping in a [[hyperbaric oxygen therapy|hyperbaric oxygen]] chamber to stall the aging-process, and an allegation claiming Jackson attempted to purchase the bones of the [[Joseph Merrick|Elephant Man]] inspired the [[pejorative]] [[sobriquet]] "Wacko Jacko". The name "Wacko Jacko," which was first used by British media, would come to be detested by Jackson.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:os320r4ac48b~T1 |title=Michael Jackson: Biography |accessdate=2006-11-11 |format= |work=All Music Guide }}</ref>
| |||