I wouldn’t comment on Michael Jackson, but for the fact that he is emblematic of our culture of celebrity. I have no comment on his talent, although it was huge, or his depravities, which may -or may not - have been.
My only observation is that his life seemed to be a modern day adaptation (perversion?) of The Picture of Dorian Gray, with his body replacing Dorian’s portrait. His pact with the devil was to keep him forever in the limelight of celebrity, even when disgraced. In return, his “picture” became more and more disfigured and deformed. In the end, he was a mere caricature of himself. Now that's real irony.
“Genius lasts longer than beauty.”
chapter 1, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
