With the recent tragic news of Michael Jackson's death, its no doubt he influenced the world in countless ways.

That being said, what was a special way he inspired your life? Was it his music? His dancing style? His signature falsetto voice? The moonwalk? The robot? We are the World? Beat it? The glitter glove?

...was it a combination of these things, or countless others i havent even scraped the surface of?

The Michael I will remember would be that of circa 1982-1987. The Thriller album & Bad album. I was in grade school and every kid liked him. No matter if they were black, white, asian, etc, etc...every kid loved at least one song from him, and idolized him.

It was the 80's, and it was a simple and magical time for the King of Pop. Before the negative talk ensued upon him, before the media slandering. Everyone who knew Michael always had something positive to reflect about him.

The "We are the World" video seems outdated today..but back then it was never seen before, never done before...here united together was country artists, pop artists, rock artists, soul artists, ..all coming together for a good cause. It was definitely the buzz for quite some time when it debuted.

The videos I like best are "Thriller" and "Billie Jean"...to be able to illuminate anything you touched,.just seemed like the coolest thing in the world.

...and who could forget his apperance in the Wizard of Oz remake: "The Wiz"!!

I got the MJ glitter glove kit one Christmas as a gift. It was a simple white cotton glove that came with glue, sequins, glitter, etc..so any kid could design his own version of the glove. Sounds cheesy 25 years later, but back then..it was awesome.

I always wanted to own the Moonwalker video game on Sega Genesis..never got to..but was about to buy it on Amazon about a month ago...wow..I bet the prices have surely skyrocketed now...(anyone care to check for me?)

Wow how soon people forget about all of the countless children that he "touched" and how their lives were "changed".

Wow how soon people forget about all of the countless children that he "touched" and how their lives were "changed".

Can we please just put aside all the bad publicity? This thread is about the positive influences MJ had on everyone of us. Keep it that way!

Easier that way isn't it? If we just act like it didn't happen, to bad the kids that were effected won't be able to just put it aside as "bad publicity" huh?

And as for the "positive" I am sorry but people make choices in life that cancel out any "positive" they may have done. In his case he did it and then paid his way out of it rather than suffer the consequences of his actions IMO.

And one last thing the the original question is "How did MJ influence you?" is it not? Sorry if his influence on me was negative but am I not able to share my opinion just the same as the next person even though it may not be one that you share?

dalelakin, this thread was intended to discuss the great things on MJ. At least, that is what I felt mireaux was intending to do. Maybe a Moderator can correct the subject line to be more specific.

I'd think it is better to separate the good and the bad. If you want, start a bad thread on him and see if the Moderators will agree to allow it.

Seriously, this guy is dead, so why attack the dead that isn't able to defend?

Sometimes it is best to just ignore...

Most of my life I have listened to oldies, classic rock and country...but I loved MJ's music and MTV Videos. He was thee best entertainer of our time.

dalelakin, this thread was intended to discuss the great things on MJ.

Err, the thread is titled, "How did MJ influence you?" - not how did he influence you [ONLY] positively.

The Chicago Tribune had it right with their headline on Michael Jackson: A Complicated Legacy.

Like many people, I enjoyed his music. I also felt that his father would have made the Jon & Kate plus 8 folks look like Child Protective Services by comparison. MJ was exploited from early on and no one in his life was (apparently) able to help him work through problems that he obviously experienced, be they the loss of normalcy and childhood or his obsession with vanity or his relationships with children. Only God knows Michael Jackson's heart and soul and it is for Him alone to judge.

The influence MJ had on me was that of a cautionary tale: no matter the talent, riches or fame, the condition of humanity is frailty.

There are so many ways I don't know if I can voice them all.

I remember one of my first boyfriends (1985 so I was maybe 12...lol) yeah, he had the jacket and the glove.

I would wait in front of MTV all afternoon, you know..back when all they played were videos and we didn't have DVR, just to hit record on the VCR to record his videos so I could learn the dance moves.

I remember fighting with the entire family the night his world music video premiere happened. Because then you only had one TV and evidently I was making them miss something important. I won.

He taught me to be a little more tolerant of those who are different. He taught me to have a little empathy and understanding for those around us because you never know what they have gone through or what kind of childhood they had or what kind of demons they have had to battle. He taught me to open my eyes to what's going on in the world and there are people starving and there is a way to help. He also taught me to not place value on a person's life over one thing they may have done wrong but to respect and appreciate all the things they did right.

As easy as Thriller looks...I learned doing it over and over and over in front of a crowd (Molly Murphy's) wears you out and gives you lots of memories.

And I don't think I would have ever had the passion I do for music today had it not been for Michael. Who knows what I would have ended up doing.

Thriller was one of the very first records I bought. He was an amazing entertainer.

dalelakin, this thread was intended to discuss the great things on MJ. At least, that is what I felt mireaux was intending to do. Maybe a Moderator can correct the subject line to be more specific.

I'd think it is better to separate the good and the bad. If you want, start a bad thread on him and see if the Moderators will agree to allow it.

Seriously, this guy is dead, so why attack the dead that isn't able to defend?

Looks like I need to step in here and clarify this ordeal...

My initial intent was a place for those to reflect on the life of MJ, and since I have a positive view I had naturally expected to hear from those with similiar views.

I suppose its a fault of my own, but at the time I created this thread my mind was on the many around the world who were shedding endless tears over his death. I didnt stop to think that the thread may garner negative feedback.

But I believe in free expression, so if MJ somehow influenced you in a bad way, go ahead and leave your reply, but do so in a professional manner.

who knows, if MJ influenced you in a bad way, maybe years down the line he can help you "make a change, by looking at the man in the mirror" to help you become more positive.

I had forgotten about Michael Jackson until recently. I have been rediscovering music from the '80s and I realized I was missing my Michael Jackson. And frankly, I came to appreciate his music more in recent months than I did in 1985.

And I, too, like to remember the dead for the good they contributed and try not to speak ill of them.

I remember when I was real young seeing the Thriller video! and like MJ or not there will never be a better entertainer ever in history!!!!!!!!just based on his carrer and not the legal and weird things he had going on,who else's carrer stacks up to his? Elvis,Sinatra,The beattles-maybe but almost for four decades MJ was making hits, these other legends were making hits but nowhere as long and they werent as global as MJ!

It looks like Michael influenced Sammy Sosa

Check out the before and after pics of the steroid king :omg:

Sammy Sosa says he isn't a racist, but his skin color raises troubling questions about racial identity - ESPN (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/091113&sportCat=mlb)