After a Chatauqua Airlines pilot was accidentally locked in his plane's lavatory, a terror scare ensued when a passenger with an accent tried to help him by banging on the cockpit door, reports the New York Post.
- Loic Le Meur
The last time people reacted this way to a famous music star dying was the day Elvis died. I was in elementary school and still remember my neighbors playing his music. Michael meant more to my life than Elvis.
It's a very weird night for news like this. But I agree, Michael was an icon, still is..
- Mark Aitken
Especially during the Thriller days. If you weren't there, you don't understand how crazy everyone was over MJ.
- Eric
I'm wondering when the riots will start in LA..
- Mark Aitken
Somehow I'm completely without emotion regarding MJ's death. No idea why.
- G Dub of the Carolinas
Same here Mona - I don't remember feeling this way about any celebrity's death before.
- Jesse Stay
Robert, what about John Lennon's death? That was also a huge jolt at the time.
- John E. Bredehoft
from fftogo
I'm sure there are watershed moments for every generation. Elvis passing was more a Baby Boomers thing (IMO) while MJ is probably more a GenX thing. No doubt these things will impact everyone differently. Still, it's odd waking up to such news this morning.
- Threepwood
Is it really that big of a deal? The guy was a freak and a child molester. Sure he was huge in the Thriller days, but his star is not only not as bright, but a little tarnished as well.
- MarkCarras
For me and my crew, the day Jerry Garcia died was met with a similar reaction. For me it was much more profound.
- nicholas einstein
John: yes. I think Elvis was bigger though.
- Robert Scoble
I liked his Thriller album and videos, but after that he seemed to go downhill. And the child molestation thing tainted how I felt about it.
- RobinDotNet
50 is young. But Michael started his professional career at an extremely young age, so he's a true flash.
- Louis Gray
I like his music too, but I don't like his actions.
- Andy
I agree completely with Mona and Jesse, this is the first time that I feel like someone really close died, even though I never got a chance to meet him.
- Diego Espinoza V.
@MarkCarras ...and Elvis died on his toilet or something. So close to his passing most people are choosing to remember the GOOD things he did in his life.
- Bryan Zirkel
I wonder if people will try to whitewash over his history as a child molester and just focus on his fame?
- MarkCarras
The thing here is we've all seen his life through a glass window. He's been a very public figure, but with a private part to his life. I think we all recognise how much was lost tonight.
- Mark Aitken
I've never understood the way people worshipped him even now, years after he has done anything successful.
- RobinDotNet
Very strange day, sad. MJ was incredibly talented... a true star.
- Susan Beebe
it has been discussed 4 a few hrs already. RIP King of Pop
- polou/indigo_bow
Same age here, and that was a strange weekend. There's nowhere near the social influence in this case. No movies to pay over and over all weekend.
- Jason Nunnelley
What about when John Lennon died? Was that bigger than MJ's death?
- Sam Houston
I remember all too well when Elvis died, I was 9 years old, standing on Paige street in Lindsay, California, playing with my friends. Weird, how you remember things like that?
- Rob Fahrni
No disrespect to MJ but I think the same reaction would be happing right now if it was Madonna.
- manielse (Mark Nielsen)
I wonder if Madonna would get more coverage, actually... I preferred her as an artist.
- Tamar Weinberg
I'm too young to really have been a part of the big days of MJ, but I still LOVED his music. I hope he's remembered fondly. lots of stuff in the media about him that's not good. I choose to ignore a lot of it
- Chris Brakebill
Can't believe it really happened. Bigger for me than elvis, lennon, cobain or even diana. I hope people remember him for the brilliant musician that he was and not his other antics.
- Raj Narayan
Wow, has anyone realised we can measure the coverage of these celebs now with the tools we are all using? I'll bet we see lots on the news tomorrow about the social web coverage of tonight's story.
- Mark Aitken
Folks, the real reason we react with such a deep personal response when a celeb like this dies is that it smacks us in the face with our own mortality. We identify ourselves a little with these celebs, whether we like, approve or even appreciate them as artists. I've been listening to Michael Jackson music since he was a teenager. I don't like seeing artists that were popular when I was a teen dying because it reminds me my time/era is fading just like that of my parents.
- Jason Nunnelley
Jason - same feeling here. Very close to home for some reason.
- Mark Aitken
@MarkCarras what happened to the presumption of innocence? He was never tried on the first case due to lack of evidence, and acquitted on all counts on the second one
- Juan Tarrío
@Helen - I remember the Diana situation too, and all the hype around it.
- Tyson Key
Wow, what a bold statement. Jason, do you know me? Do you know the reason why this hits so close to home for me? What if I told you the very first cassette tape given to me by my dead mom was Michael Jackson's Thriller? Think twice before yapping like a know it all.
- Mona Nomura
i think of john lennon & frank sinatra in comparison to how big a legend michael was. the difference is, i grew up listening to michael jackson. sad day.
- Jim Halligan @jim
Mona, I'm not sure how your statement is incongruous with my own. Sounds like you agree.
- Jason Nunnelley
Juan Tarrio -- I would have felt that way too, if according to papers on the smokinggun from the first child molestation trial (the one he settled out of court) didn't reveal that the kid knew personal specific details about MJ's personal parts. Ick. I can't believe I just typed that.
- RobinDotNet
For me it was the loss of Peter Sellers and John Lennon. I think because they had so much more to give us.
- m9m, Crone of FriendFeed
My personal idol of the early 90s who never had a real private life now gets what he deserves - liberty for the rest of his...being
- Naii
His music was the soundtrack to a large part of my life. What a difficult life. RIP.
- Marlin Forbes
John Lennons death was under different circumstances, he was murdered and also coming back with a record from what I heard reported on Sky. I was too young for John Lennon so for me the closest comparison is with Princess Diana. RIP
- Joe Dawson
Never an Elvis fan, but I was a huge Beatle fan, so John Lennon's death was a shock to me. I do enjoy Michael Jackson's music.....unfortunately I found the man questionable at best, but also feel sad for him dying at such an early age. At least he no longer has to suffer whatever personal demons drove him.
- Bonnie Foster
People were pretty hung up when Lennon passed. Same with when Aaliyah and Lisa Lefteye Lopez passed away. I sincerely disagree with the sentiment that the last time there was a unified mourning of a musician was Elvis.
- Mattie Kenny
from fftogo
Aaliyah dying seemed to have a pretty big impact, even though it was soon overshadowed by 9/11. I remember seeing a lot of baby girls born after 2001 named Aaliyah.
- Victor Ganata
Mona, Jessie... Hits close to home with me too. And it also hits me like when Princess Diana died.
- Jannifer @wordsforliving
Michael Jackson? I can understand the Beatles, Stones, Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Dylan, the Grateful Dead and dozens of others. But the King of Pap?
- George F. Snell III
@George - CNN pointed out that Thriller is the best selling album in history at 50 million. Love him or hate him that's a big impact.
- Daniel J. Pritchett
No denying he was bigger than life - what a strange world he lived in - seems like he got lost somewhere along the way...
- Mark Harai
I see several people on this thread wondering why "GenX" is so impacted by MJ's passing, here is a reason why (http://www.youtube.com/watch...). He was hands down the best performer, crowd-puller, the 80s has known. When it comes to celebrities, I like to view the artist separate from the person, and as an artist, he was up there with the very best.
- Shivanand Velmurugan
i was having an early dinner at a restaurant when i saw this on the local news....couldnt believe it.....truly sad and socking
- goutham
thought the same thing Robert. I was at the roller-rink when Elvis died. I will probably always remember where I was when MJ died - the gym.
- BEX
My favorite reaction from this news: "Don't worry, he's still alive on YouTube" - my four-year old nephew from Perth, Australia about Michael Jackson RIP.
- Iggy Pintado
I remember that reaction too and some don't seem to understand that Michael was an international superstar, who brings back incredible memories of our childhood. At 45 I literally grew up with his music and am shaken by his death.
- Karen Swim
Like Cristo I remember the day Lennon died. Walked into the student coffee shop on campus and it was like a morgue. Yet, I grew up with Michael. I remember sock hops at lunch time. My first slow dance was with a boy to the Jackson 5 song, I'll Be There. Michael's death makes me face my own mortality. Michael's death is the end of an era.
- Arleen Boyd
I was stuck on the Test Track ride at Epcot when I heard the Michael Jackson news.
- Mike Reynolds
There's no doubt about Jackson's talent and if it hadn't been for his (for lack of a better word) eccentricities in the last several decades in my opinion there would be an entirely different bent to the epitaphs today. I kept thinking over the years, if he could just remain.. well.....normal...... but, would normal have produced Thriller? Billie Jean? The glove? Moonwalking? The...
more...
- Molly
As a musician, Elvis meant more to my life. But Michael was.. simply Great. RIP.
- Thierry R. Andriamirado
@Daniel Oh, I don't doubt his impact on pop music - although I think his impact is more on packaging, marketing and style rather than in the music. I just don't understand the blind devotion of his fans.
- George F. Snell III
Of course there are 1000s of people who meant more to our lives. The reason we feel a sense of loss when celebrities like MJ pass is because his songs bring back certain memories from our lives. Brings back memories of my childhood. Less about MJ and more about his music and the memories.
- Curt Mercadante
Andy: Are you okay? You don't like his actions...did you ever see the man dance?
- Garin Kilpatrick
There are some people you're just glad that they are gone, not because you dislike them, but exactly because you _do_ like them. The guy was pushed into the showbiz by his dad, had no childhood, had no privacy, and the only people he cared about (i.e. children that lived crappy lives) were used against him to the demise of his career. MJ is far better away from this place we call Earth.
- Rodrigo Jaroszewski
I was a 13 year old on the family trip driving trip that summer that started in connecticut, went through florida, across to arizona and then back across the center of the country. We woke up in Oklahoma city flipped on the TV and got the announcement that Elvis had died. Our next stop was supposed to be Memphis...
- Armen Chakmakjian
Don't forget Kurt Cobain. I actually cried when he died. I won't cry for Michael Jackson. :-/
- Dane Deasy
another instrumental in my list of favorites - Armen Chakmakjian from Blip.fm
- urdumania1
I"m sorry the kitteh has a broken arm, but it makes me really happy that his people were willing to shell out the money to get him fixed up. I've known people who would rather have an injured animal put down than spend money to help them.
- Joey Gibson
As someone who is spending thosands of dollars to treat my dog for cancer I can't fault someone who doesn't have the means to pay for expensive veterinary care. And most people don't have pet insurance.
- The original Kevin