Death of an Icon

The tragic passing of Michael Jackson last week has had a surprisingly profound effect on me, as it has no doubt had on the rest of the world these past few days.

I say "surprising" in that while I was a tremendous admirer of his music (Thriller, in my book, is still one of the Top 5 albums ever produced) and his ability to entertain multiple generations of fans, I was not a hugely devoted fan of Michael Jackson. His death, while sad and very much so for his family and his children, does not resonate within me as it would a loved one or as it did with say a Walter Payton or a Kirby Puckett.

Those were childhood heroes of mine and their deaths affected me very personally as I felt a piece of my youth died with them. In the case of Jackson, on the surface anyway, there is nothing ultimately heroic about his life. He pulled himself, and his family, up out of poverty and into the mainstream consciousness of pop culture through song and dance. Yes, he brought joy to millions and spawned a new era of popular music that broke barriers of color and genre. And yes, he had his ups and downs and battled his many personal demons along the way, as does every human being.

Don't get me wrong. I am not in death indicting his impact on the world based on his sordid past or recent alleged transgressions. Whatever you think of the man personally is a discussion for another time and not relevant to this particular conversation.

What is relevant is that Michael Jackson's passing signifies the death of something bigger, the likes of which this world will NEVER see again: the death of the celebrity icon.

In the days that followed Jackson's departure, I had a debate with a friend of mine about who the next iconic celebrity would be whose death would generate a worldwide outpouring of sympathy and emotion and a genuine feeling of loss in pop culture. Who would that be? Think about it.

Take Presidents and heads of state out of the equation. They are celebrities but they are elected celebrities who can be measured with a variety of litmus tests that reveal nothing about their impact on pop culture.

And for that matter, take sports icons out of the mix as well. Their impact (with the singular exception of someone like Muhammad Ali whose legacy affected more than just boxing fans) is mostly limited to their individual arenas of competition.

Who is it? Who now carries that mantle?

We've lost dozens of iconic celebrities over the last decade or so: Princess Diana, Bob Hope, Johnny Carson, Frank Sinatra, Paul Newman, Charlton Heston...and the list goes on but with each death there was always another iconoclast waiting in the wings to be revered in their waning years. Honestly, who is left to come off the bench now?

Oprah Winfrey? Maybe. There's no good way to quantify the impact Oprah has made on the modern TV talk show genre. She definitely set the standard and paved the way for myriad copycats (from Maury Povich to Tempestt Bledsoe) to try and steal her crown. Ultimately though, it is that same glut of pretenders that waters down her impact on pop culture. I feel Oprah's celebrity is more a product of the media machine, branding and the amazing array of talented staffers she surrounds herself with.

What about iconic celebrity actors of our generation?

Tom Hanks? Tom Cruise? Both heavily decorated actors with strong filmographies but will either endure into their 60's and 70's as a treasured and still marketable silver screen icon in the way that Newman or Robert Redford or Jack Nicholson did?

Brad Pitt? Probably the closest thing we have to a modern day "movie star" with his combination of talent, charm and good looks and his resume is far from complete. Still I think his "celebrity" as Mr. Jolie will inevitably overshadow much of his past and present work and cast aspersions on many of his future projects.

Who can even tote Sophia Loren's or Katherine Hepburn's hatbox out of the current cadre of "A-List" actresses? Julia Roberts, Renee Zellwegger and Meg Ryan on their best days put together could not hope to do so.

And don't even get me started on the music industry because frankly there is no such thing right now.

Yes, Sir Paul McCartney is still around to be treasured but even his star has not shined as brightly into his golden years, whether by choice or just through the natural passage of time. There will be a definite sense of loss when McCartney leaves us but that wound originally opened 30 years ago when we lost John Lennon and any hope (misguided or otherwise) of a Beatles reunion.

The demise of the album and the practice of fostering style over substance spelled doom for the music business a long time ago. I'm not saying I don't respect or even enjoy The Jonas Brothers' music (because I do, even though I'm twice their age)...I'm saying that I can't do either because the industry won't allow me to do so.

For every Jonas Brothers there is an N'Sync, a Backstreet Boys, a Hanson, a New Kids on the Block and a Menudo waiting to knock the previous week's newest mega-sensations off their pedestals.

Much like tennis, the power brokers of the music business feed on rushing young talent through the grinder while the meat is still fresh, cramming them down society's throats, fleecing them for what it can, and leaving the remains for the come-back buzzards to pick at, often before many of these performers even turn 20. There is no time for a musician or a band to make a lasting impact because their shelf life has been so drastically reduced thanks to the industry and in part to another blight on pop culture, American Idol. If video killed the radio star, Idol dismembered and buried the corpse.

The concept of celebrity has become so muddled because the idea of what passes for entertainment today has become equally obscure.

When Sinatra and other members of The Rat Pack walked into a Vegas night spot or Raquel Welch strolled down Hollywood Boulevard, you knew you were seeing genuine royalty, "in your face" beautiful people, true star power, and the penultimate definition of celebrity.

Now names like "Sanjaya" or "Omirosa" or "Jon and Kate" are on the tips of every one's lips and mentioned in the same breath as revered stars of stage and screen. Surnames like "Octomom" and "Brangelina" have found their way into the celebrity nomenclature. Even pseudo-celebs like Paris Hilton or Internet-celebs such as Perez Hilton, LonelyGirl15, Star Wars Kid and others of their ilk are primarily famous for being famous. Hell, Patti Blagojevich is considered a celebrity and she's famous for being the spouse of an indicted former Governor. Should Mrs. Dahmer or Mrs. Manson be invited onto next season's I'm a Celebrity - Get Me Out of Here?

Even the coverage of celebrities has become a cottage industry onto itself. TMZ and X17 (and whatever other letters you want to pick out of the Scrabble bag) dedicate their entire operations to the 24-hour-news-cycle mentality of hunting down and documenting every moment (insignificant or otherwise) of the life of every celebrity (again...insignificant or otherwise).

Who needs scripted comedy when Jackass has all the unscripted side-splitting guffaws you could ever want? (And what voids their antics can't fill, YouTube's millions of channels of viral video entertainment can!)

Reality shows have essentially supplanted the modern game show and television drama all in one fell swoop! (So what if Detective Sipowicz may not survive a gun shot wound to the chest...that pompous ass Chet may not survive this latest session of Tribal Counsel!)

And programs like Idol, America's Got Talent or So You Think You Can Dance, which give the viewer control (or at least the illusion of control) over the outcome, have become so entrenched in the world scene that the line between manufactured celebs and actual celebs has been blurred beyond all recognition...and possibly for good.

So when Judgement Day commeth for Madonna or George Clooney or Jennifer Aniston, will the public celebrate their lives in much the same way they are now doing for Michael Jackson? Or will this phenomenon of elevating anyone seen on camera anywhere doing anything remotely entertaining dilute these modern day celebrities' eulogies to the level of a Billy Mays? (No offense intended - rest in peace, Billy.)

There can be no argument that Michael Jackson was an icon beloved (or at least renowned) worldwide. His place in history is secure as his face (whichever one you inevitably decide to use) will forever be on the Mt. Rushmore of the music industry next to Elvis Presley's...and name your other two spots (probably Lennon and McCartney for me).

Last Friday we lost a legend but we also lost a legacy...the legacy of the modern day celebrity icon.

Guess the burden now falls to either Vince the Shamwow Guy or the Dell Dude.