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He wrote on his website;
Michael: “Michael was like this. He was the type of kid who loved kids. I remember, .. a long time ago, when I used to give him his allowance after the shows. He would use it all up to buy a lot of candy. He would get the children in the neighbourhood to sit down with him in a circle, and he would keep feeding them candy, laughing and having the time of his life. I would look at him and it was beyond me, how in the world he got the most pleasure watching other kids eat candy.
Another thing, he was so fast. That boy was quick. Once we had a very mean dog in the yard, a black doberman. This dog was so mean and fierce, we called him by a dictator’s name (I can’t mention the name). Now every Sunday, Michael would practise his dancing for about 2 to 3 hours. He had just got done doing his routine and was out walking with Randy his little brother. They did not notice that the dog had got out of the yard and it came chasing after them. Michael was so fast, dashing out of the dog’s way in the split of a second and jumping on top of the car. The dog did however get Randy, biting Randy on his back leg. I rushed after the dog and was able to set Randy free. It was very dangerous because Randy might never have been able to walk again, had the dog continued its bite. Years have gone by and I can still see it all happening like a movie. How Michael was able to outrun the dog that fast, and still have the presence of mind to Jump is beyond me.
What else … Let me see, He was also a master at imitation. He could see something once, and would be able to imitate it. The songs he did, he did at home, so when he went into the studio, he knew exactly what he wanted. Somehow he knew how to think ahead.
He did save my life once. During the early days, there was this gang who would come to shows without paying and take our instruments which we had paid dearly for with the little money we had. My boys and I were getting ready to do a show, when this group showed up. I was not having it anymore this time and I stood up to fight them by myself. I was putting up a fight, when one of them knocked me in the back of my head with a microphone, knocking me out cold. As I lay unconscious, bleeding, little did I know, but Michael had run into the street to pay phone. He called out to people walking by if they could carry him, as he was unable to reach the phone because of his height. They did lift him up, and he called 9-1-1.
After the ambulance got to the show and worked on me, I was barely able to get up. I remember Michael and the boys looking at me with their youthful eyes, full of confusion as if asking “What do we do know?”. I looked straight at them and without any hesitation said “You go on stage and do the show, like nothing has happened. The show must always go on!” Michael internalized that lesson and over the years, even in pain, stress, sadness, he would never let the public see it. He was a professional till the end. In my eyes “The Greatest Entertainer that ever lived”.
What else … Let me see, He was also a master at imitation. He could see something once, and would be able to imitate it. The songs he did, he did at home, so when he went into the studio, he knew exactly what he wanted. Somehow he knew how to think ahead.
He did save my life once. During the early days, there was this gang who would come to shows without paying and take our instruments which we had paid dearly for with the little money we had. My boys and I were getting ready to do a show, when this group showed up. I was not having it anymore this time and I stood up to fight them by myself. I was putting up a fight, when one of them knocked me in the back of my head with a microphone, knocking me out cold. As I lay unconscious, bleeding, little did I know, but Michael had run into the street to pay phone. He called out to people walking by if they could carry him, as he was unable to reach the phone because of his height. They did lift him up, and he called 9-1-1.
After the ambulance got to the show and worked on me, I was barely able to get up. I remember Michael and the boys looking at me with their youthful eyes, full of confusion as if asking “What do we do know?”. I looked straight at them and without any hesitation said “You go on stage and do the show, like nothing has happened. The show must always go on!” Michael internalized that lesson and over the years, even in pain, stress, sadness, he would never let the public see it. He was a professional till the end. In my eyes “The Greatest Entertainer that ever lived”.
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