Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was born August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. The fifth son of steelworker Joe Jackson, Michael displayed a talent for music and dance from an extremely young age.  He was, to an extent, sheltered from the outside world by his mother's Jehovah's Witness faith. Joe began to... More

Michael Joseph Jackson was born August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. The fifth son of steelworker Joe Jackson, Michael displayed a talent for music and dance from an extremely young age.  He was, to an extent, sheltered from the outside world by his mother's Jehovah's Witness faith. Joe began to organize a family musical group around his three eldest sons in 1962, and Michael joined them the following year.

Dubbed the Jackson 5, the group signed to Motown in 1968 and issued their debut single in October 1969, when Michael was just 11 years old. The Jackson 5 became the first group in pop history to have their first four singles top the charts.

Michael recorded his first solo album as an adult, “Off the Wall,” in 1978, and went platinum. Solo success for Michael was inevitable, and by the 80’s he had become infinitely more popular than his brotherly group. Record sales consistently orbited, culminating in the biggest-selling album of all time, “Thriller.”

In the 90’s the down side of the 80’s pop phenomenon began to show. Michael became increasingly introverted and offended many of his fans. A rather androgynous figure to begin with, his physical appearance began to change drastically and his behavior grew alarmingly bizarre, making him a consistent target for scandal-making. Two brief marriages -- one to Elvis Presley's daughter Lisa Marie Presley -- were forged and two children produced by his second wife during that time, but the purposes were obviously image oriented. Despite it all, Michael Jackson's skills as a singer, dancer, writer and businessman are unparalleled, and many hope these prodigious talents will ultimately prevail over the extremely negative aspects of his seriously troubled life.

Michael Jackson(3)