billyworld99
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I know the Gardner school has been covered, but this is a larger, very important story about Michael's legacy, and it's significant as it's in the New York Times,
By IAN LOVETT
Published: October 30, 2010
LOS ANGELES —
...
The uncovering of the [Gardiner School] sign is only the latest evidence of what may be a posthumous renaissance of the King of Pop. Immediately after his death from a prescription drug overdose in June 2009, Mr. Jackson’s music once again dominated the airwaves; a few months later, the movie about preparations for his final concert tour, “This Is It,” became the top box office draw. After years of rumors about financial trouble, Forbes magazine this month named Mr. Jackson the richest dead celebrity.
Mary Murphy, a senior lecturer at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California, said support for uncovering the sign would have been unthinkable before his death.
“When Michael Jackson was going through the ****philia charges and trial, people thought that his legacy would be these charges against him,” Ms. Murphy said. “It turns out that his music is going to be the legacy of his life.”
Mr. Jackson attended Gardner from 1969 to 1970 after his family moved to Los Angeles to record the Jackson Five’s debut album. When he returned in 1989 for the dedication of the auditorium in his honor, he was the most popular performer in the world.
...
Since Mr. Jackson’s death, however, school officials said they had received a groundswell of requests to uncover his name. The president of the school’s P.T.A. said that on parents’ night, when the principal broached the subject, all 200 parents assembled were in favor of restoring the sign. Steve Zimmer, a Los Angeles Unified School District board member, said they had received no negative feedback from parents.
“As we remember Mr. Jackson, we want to remember the musical genius and the contributions to our cultural landscape,” Mr. Zimmer said. “Having plywood covering up his name is not really showing that we’re making an effort to recognize the positive legacy.”
While Mr. Jackson’s legacy may have remained more controversial in other parts of the country, his affiliation with the school represents a point of pride for many parents here in Hollywood, where bus tours bring people from all over the world to see celebrity homes and hangouts.
...
At Gardner Street Elementary, which has a racially diverse student population, the school’s most famous former student has become an almost uniformly popular figure. A ceremony with the Jackson family at the school has been planned for December, after the sign, which still bears the dust of its seven years in hiding, has been polished.
Many students, especially the younger ones, do not understand why Mr. Jackson’s name was covered in the first place.
“Michael Jackson is the best singer in the world,” said Sean Kaplan, a fourth grader. “We like to sing ‘Thriller,’ and we like to do his dance moves on his tippy toes.”
And with that, Sean moonwalked back toward the playground.
ORGINALLY POSTED BY BO G FROM MJFC
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/31/us/31michael.ht
By IAN LOVETT
Published: October 30, 2010
LOS ANGELES —
...
The uncovering of the [Gardiner School] sign is only the latest evidence of what may be a posthumous renaissance of the King of Pop. Immediately after his death from a prescription drug overdose in June 2009, Mr. Jackson’s music once again dominated the airwaves; a few months later, the movie about preparations for his final concert tour, “This Is It,” became the top box office draw. After years of rumors about financial trouble, Forbes magazine this month named Mr. Jackson the richest dead celebrity.
Mary Murphy, a senior lecturer at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California, said support for uncovering the sign would have been unthinkable before his death.
“When Michael Jackson was going through the ****philia charges and trial, people thought that his legacy would be these charges against him,” Ms. Murphy said. “It turns out that his music is going to be the legacy of his life.”
Mr. Jackson attended Gardner from 1969 to 1970 after his family moved to Los Angeles to record the Jackson Five’s debut album. When he returned in 1989 for the dedication of the auditorium in his honor, he was the most popular performer in the world.
...
Since Mr. Jackson’s death, however, school officials said they had received a groundswell of requests to uncover his name. The president of the school’s P.T.A. said that on parents’ night, when the principal broached the subject, all 200 parents assembled were in favor of restoring the sign. Steve Zimmer, a Los Angeles Unified School District board member, said they had received no negative feedback from parents.
“As we remember Mr. Jackson, we want to remember the musical genius and the contributions to our cultural landscape,” Mr. Zimmer said. “Having plywood covering up his name is not really showing that we’re making an effort to recognize the positive legacy.”
While Mr. Jackson’s legacy may have remained more controversial in other parts of the country, his affiliation with the school represents a point of pride for many parents here in Hollywood, where bus tours bring people from all over the world to see celebrity homes and hangouts.
...
At Gardner Street Elementary, which has a racially diverse student population, the school’s most famous former student has become an almost uniformly popular figure. A ceremony with the Jackson family at the school has been planned for December, after the sign, which still bears the dust of its seven years in hiding, has been polished.
Many students, especially the younger ones, do not understand why Mr. Jackson’s name was covered in the first place.
“Michael Jackson is the best singer in the world,” said Sean Kaplan, a fourth grader. “We like to sing ‘Thriller,’ and we like to do his dance moves on his tippy toes.”
And with that, Sean moonwalked back toward the playground.
ORGINALLY POSTED BY BO G FROM MJFC
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/31/us/31michael.ht
