I need to take some time off. If you read this, thanks for being patient with me <3 <3.

I am pretty down. My laptop is dead and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to get it fixed. It’s hardware problem. I’m using my boyfriend’s computer right now.

Fortunately, I have everything backed up, so all my MJ photos intended for this blog are saved. Unfortunately, I don’t know where I placed the back-up, though. What is also unfortunate is that I don’t have any of my bookmarks backed up. I had 100’s of ideas for this blog saved into my browser’s favorites that I can’t transfer to this computer because the other is completely dead….

This discourages me and I don’t know what to do about the blog.

From Wikipedia:

The Jackson 5ive was a Saturday morning cartoon series produced by Rankin/Bass and Motown Productions on ABC from September 11, 1971 until September 1, 1973; a fictionalized portrayal of the careers of Motown recording group The Jackson 5. ABC rebroadcast the series during the 1984-1985 Saturday morning season, which were also years when Michael Jackson had been riding a wave of popularity. The series was animated mainly in London at the studios of Halas and Batchelor, and some animation done at Estudios Moro, Barcelona, Spain. The director was Spanish-American Robert Balser.

Overview

Other than appearing in the introduction where actual photographs are shown morphing into animated cartoons, the actual Jackson brothers themselves—Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael—were unable to contribute to the show in any way due to scheduling conflicts. Only their music was used; however, during the music montages, a clipping of the Jackson 5 appearing in concert would air occasionally to blend in with the cartoon. Though Berry Gordy/The J5’s producer did not provide the original voice (his character was voiced by Paul Frees) nor advertised his name, his character was frequently involved as the “adult figure” to the group. R&B/Pop singer Diana Ross contributed to voice her fictionalized self in the debut episode. The premise of the show is that the Jackson Five would have adventures similar to Josie and the Pussycats, Alvin & the Chipmunks or The Partridge Family, with the unique addition being that Berry Gordy, the manager of the band in the show’s universe, would come up with an idea for publicity for the band, such as having to do farm work or play a concert for the President of the United States.

Music

A specially recorded medley of four Jackson 5 #1 hits—”I Want You Back”, “The Love You Save”, “ABC”, and “Mama’s Pearl”—served as the show’s theme song. Each episode would feature 2 songs by the Jackson 5. The songs were derived from their albums Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5, ABC, Maybe Tomorrow, and Third Album (with the exception of their cover of the song “Bridge over Troubled Water”). In the newer episodes, from 1972-73, songs were derived from Michael Jackson’s album Got to Be There and two songs from the Jackson 5 album Lookin’ Through the Windows.

Good evening! I’m wimping out a little bit on tonight’s entry because I’ve been noticing a lot more hits on this blog recently these past several weeks and need to fix some messed-up entries. A few photo links are broken on some of the back entries, so I just decided to do maintenance on the entire blog to make sure that every link works and such. It’s a bit time consuming, but I’d hate for anybody to look over this thing and discover a bunch of half-empty entries. I’m almost to the half-year mark, so I figure it’s time anyway!

So, anyway, hello to any new readers or MJ fans passing through! If you have anything you think I might be interested in reading or adding to the blog, feel free to send it my way: mjj365 AT yahoo.com. Also, right now specifically I’m looking for photos of Michael disguised in public. I have some in my collection, and haven’t begun searching through any other forums for photos, yet, but I just wanted to put the word out here first.

The intro post for MJ365 is right here if you’re curious about why I’m doing this blog.

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For tonight’s entry, you get a handful of photos that make me go, “WTF” every time I browse through my collection looking for something else, haha.

The article attached to today’s entry comes from a blog that you might want to check out if you’re looking a very interesting and out-of-the-norm read called “I Love Headstones… Adventures in Grave Hunting” maintained by Lisa Burks. Ms Burks explores cemeteries and basically tries to learn about the lives and deaths of the “residents”.

The other day she joined Michael Jackson fans in visiting his resting place and wrote about her experience:

Michael Jackson Fans Bring Christmas to Forest Lawn
By Lisa Burks

Grave hunting requires a certain amount of emotional detachment, least you absorb the residual tears left in any cemetery you explore. The end of the year holiday season is the exception to the rule for me, a time, oddly enough, when sentiment runs deepest.

At no other time of year will you see the volume and variety of decorations and tokens of love on graves as you do in December. Theraputic expressions of grief and remembrance of the dead sparkle and shine in the face of sadness. Appreciation for the past, acknowledgment for what is lost in the present and a hope toward future healing.

Six months ago the death of Michael Jackson and 70 days of heavy media coverage leading up to his burial caused a sensational, seismic shift in the world’s attention to the business of death, grief and cemeteries. The news crews are gone now, yet based on my observations of holiday cemetery activity in general, I believe that continuing to cover his story here at Christmas time has value. There is something to be learned from his fans about the grief process and how it relates to cemeteries.

On December 3, a dozen MJ fans gathered at the Holly Terrace of the Great Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Glendale to remember their idol. They have designated the third of each month as their regular visitation day because it coincides with his September 3 funeral and entombment there. I’ve spent a lot of time in cemeteries but never with fans on a pilgrimage, so joining them on their sojourn last week was a first for me. I was immensely touched by what I experienced, and it drove home for me the reason why cemeteries are for the living.

The fans brought with them not only their own flowers and Christmas decorations, but also dozens of holiday mementos of love (many handmade) from 90 other fans. Over 100 items in all, sent from across the United States as well as Europe, Great Britain and the UK, Hungary, Jordan, Egypt, the Philippines and Malaysia. Among the packages were cards, small gifts, and ornaments which were placed on a white Christmas tree.

What’s remarkable is that the holiday memorial drive was initiated on Facebook by fan Erin Jacobs just one week prior to the date of delivery to Forest Lawn. Additional envelopes and packages earmarked for future delivery continue to flow in to the post office box donated by fan Antoinette Albert.

Judy Faass, a MJ fan from Colorado, sent a card, and gave me insight as to what her participation in the event meant to her:

I’m forever grateful to the ladies that made that happen! I live in Colorado and it will be awhile before I can get to FL to visit with Michael. I was pleased to be given the opportunity to share in the remembrance and celebration on Dec 3. I feel his loss on a daily basis and grieving his loss has been very difficult. I lost my mom in 2006 and I think the MJ situation brings up memories of her as well. Makes it much more difficult. Knowing that my card made it to MJ’s Resting Place brings more tears, but a small sense of closure as well.

Since I can’t possibly cover every card and gift with this post, I’m hoping that anyone who sent something in reads this story and shares their thoughts and feelings in the comments area at the bottom of this page.

An element missing from the groups’ holiday decorating experience, one that most people are afforded under normal circumstances, was being able to personally place the items at Michael’s sarcophagus because it is private and off limits to the public. Per Forest Lawn, currently no one is allowed to visit him unless accompanied by a Jackson family member.

The items were delivered however, thanks to Forest Lawn security personnel who took each and every token inside Holly Terrace while we were there, and put them at the Ascension Windows alcove where Michael was entombed. We were able to catch glimpses of the area at the end of the hall when the door was opened.

The experience of seeing the grave of someone you care about is difficult for many people, but is an essential part of the grief and healing process, I believe. It’s a fundamental part of acceptance of loss, the reality check needed to move forward. This is why, after much thought, I opted to include in this report visuals of his sarcophagus captured that day with still and video cameras, taken from outside the building through the doors.

The world may be getting a better view of it soon enough anyway. Word has it that Michael’s brothers were there last week with a camera crew and director. But for now, this is my contribution to satisfying public curiosity and hopefully providing a measure of comfort for those who need to see such images.

My photos from the day are viewable at Flickr.com.

As a writer, I hate to admit to not being able to find adequate words to convey what I have witnessed and felt, so thank goodness for YouTube. Here is my interpretation of the day’s events and the lovely fans I spent time with. I chose MJ’s song “You Are Not Alone” because I think it speaks to their reasons for visiting Forest Lawn each month, especially this first Christmas, as well as how MJ fans feel about each other.

Thank you Michael Jackson Fans of Southern California for including me in your holiday gathering. And special thanks to my friend, Joe Acuña, for lending me his video camera so I could capture the moments.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to MJ fans and grave hunters alike.

I got so caught up with watching concert clips on Youtube tonight that I didn’t realize it’s quickly approaching midnight!

Here’s one of my favorites:

I think going to give up the fight with my poor internet service tonight and post another “Favorite things” pic post quickly to be sure to make the “deadline” tonight (lol, so srs).

So, once again, some of my favorite MJ photos:

Part 4
Part 3
Part 2
Part 1

I just wanted to make a small update.

I’ll be approaching the half-way mark in this blog in about a month! I can hardly believe I’ve been doing this every day since July!

I might be interested in doing another poll when I approach that date similar to the one I did before if I can think of enough good questions. There are a few questions that I could repeat. Actually, if anybody else has any poll ideas for next time, you can leave a comment or email to me.

Also, I wanted to point out that a lot of this blog currently needs maintenance. What happened was that I hosted a lot of the thumbnail photos at an outside source which recently died so now I have a lot of entries with broken photo links. I’m frustrated because I don’t have a lot of time to work on this, so the posts are just sitting there looking incomplete.

Lastly, The Official Michael Jackson Opus is coming out December 7th. One of the fan stories that was chosen as content was the one I published as my 28th entry in here way back in August by Annie! I saw the version they’re including in the Opus and unfortunately it looks like they edited it down quite a bit, but for the full thing, click here! It’s one of the most touching fan stories I’ve ever read. Congratulations to her for making the book!

(article source)

Over the weekend, HBO held the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame 25th Anniversary concert and, just like many other shows have done in recent months, it too included a moment dedicated to the late King of Pop Michael Jackson. Michael’s friend Stevie Wonder and John Legend sang “The Way You Make Me Feel,” with the former breaking down in tears in the middle of the song, as the Examiner can confirm.

Things got off to a good start, with Wonder urging the audience to welcome John Legend as he deserves to be welcomed on stage, with wild applause. As Legend sat at the piano and started to play, Wonder began a brilliant rendition of Michael’s hit. At the second verse, though, something seemed wrong as Stevie suddenly covered his face with his hand and appeared to be sobbing uncontrollably. The memory of Michael, who was one of his closest friends, was too strong to allow him to go on.

The music continued to play, but it took Wonder several good seconds to catch his breath and regain his composure. When he did, he sang just as beautifully as before, for which reasons the crowd gave him a standing ovation at the end, while Legend hugged him warmly. Fans on websites that are currently hosting the video say that, of all the tributes Michael Jackson has been paid in recent months, this was certainly the most sincere and, because of it, the most moving.

“Legendary performer Stevie Wonder performed a tribute to Michael Jackson on HBO’s Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame Anniversary Concert, and it was enough to bring the man to tears. During a performance of Jackson’s ‘The Way You Make Me Feel,’ Stevie starts to break down during the second verse of the song and takes a few seconds to recover. At the end of the performance, John Legend embraces the icon as he receives a standing ovation,” Examiner writes of the performance.

Below is the video of the highly emotional Stevie Wonder & John Legend rendition of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.” Enjoy.

I hate to admit this in an MJ fan blog, but I never paid much attention attention to “HIStory” because when it came out I had fallen into the rock music scene more than pop and initially thought the album was purely a “greatest hits” type + with “Scream” and “You are not alone” included, so now I’m going back and really giving the other songs a listen. Don’t get me wrong, I always liked Michael and listened to the albums I already had in my collection, but as I got caught up in an underground rock scene, I unfortunately lost interested in purchasing any more pop albums for years and I stopped paying attention to a lot of mainstream pop-culture. I’m aware that this makes me sound like a terrible fan, and listening to some of the lyrics in the “HIStory” songs really drives that point home and depresses me because I feel like he’s calling me out for abandoning him.

I was listening to this song tonight. I do vaguely remember the controversy surrounding it and I remember thinking that if people were REALLY as confused as they were acting as to whether Michael was being anti semitic in his lyrics, then they were complete idiots. I didn’t understand what the confusion was about because the message in the lyrics didn’t seem vague at all to me. The media definitely was trying their hardest to destroy him at this point and radio stations were hesitant to even play the song here in the US. However the song made the top ten in all the European countries.

For more about the controversy surrounding the song, you can check out the Wiki page.

“They Don’t Care About Us”

Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Situation, aggravation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
Bang bang, shot dead
Everybody’s gone mad

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

Beat me, hate me
You can never break me
Will me, thrill me
You can never kill me
Jew me, sue me
Everybody do me
Kick me, kike me
Don’t you black or white me

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

Tell me what has become of my life
I have a wife and two children who love me
I am the victim of police brutality, now
I’m tired of bein’ the victim of hate
You’re rapin’ me of my pride
Oh, for God’s sake
I look to heaven to fulfill its prophecy…
Set me free

Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
trepidation, speculation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
black man, black male
Throw your brother in jail

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

Tell me what has become of my rights
Am I invisible because you ignore me?
Your proclamation promised me free liberty, now
I’m tired of bein’ the victim of shame
They’re throwing me in a class with a bad name
I can’t believe this is the land from which I came
You know I do really hate to say it
The government don’t wanna see
But if Roosevelt was livin’
He wouldn’t let this be, no, no

Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Situation, speculation
Everybody litigation
Beat me, bash me
You can never trash me
Hit me, kick me
You can never get me

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

Some things in life they just don’t wanna see
But if Martin Luther was livin’
He wouldn’t let this be

Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Situation, segregation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
Kick me, strike me
Don’t you wrong or right me

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us

All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don’t really care about us