Gasp!

Book Review: The Mysterious Death of Michael Jackson by Rob Simone

The Mysterious Death of Michael Jackson
by Rob Simone
Lulu, 39 pages, 2009. $10.88 paperback, $5 ebook

It's very possible that Rob Simone's book, "The Mysterious Death of Michael Jackson" is the first publication on the pop star's death. Rather than being a retrospective of  his life, Simone has written a 39-page tome on why he thinks Jackson died.

Under most circumstances, such observations or thoughts would be irrelevant. After all, the coroner has yet to speak. The toxicology reports haven't come back. 

Rob Simone is a Los Angeles talk show host. He discuss all subjects on his show, including the unexplained. Leonard Nimoy, Janeane Garofalo, Charlie Sheen, and former CNN anchor Cheryll Jones have appeared on his program. Simone has connections in Hollywood, and he's outside the mainstream media. Not a bad thing these days.

Simone alleges that Jackson had a condition called Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, a genetic disorder which can show up in young adulthood. It can cause early-onset emphysema. If it becomes severe, it may require a lung transplant.

Though he says his source is a doctor who treated Jackson, Simone is not the first person who made this claim. Ian Halperin made similar statements in an interview with In-Touch magazine. The Jackson camp denied that Michael had a health condition.

After further describing the disorder, Simone pieces evidence together media reports of Jackson's doctor visits. He believes that Jackson wore a surgical mask in public because he had this genetic disorder.

Simone believes that this deficiency, along with an addiction to prescription painkillers, is what caused Jackson's demise.

Considering the fast turn-around time of this book, anybody would have low expectations. Perhaps Simone is just trying to make a quick buck off a dead man. But there are two things that Simone does well: He doesn't disrespect Jackson and he shatters the veil of silence. For too long, people around Jackson were silent. If he was addicted to painkillers, then that silence only enabled him to continue.

The people around Jackson were doing him a disservice. Many times, family and friends of addicts would prefer the addiction to continue. Stoned and drunk people are far easier to manipulate and control. Like many other cash-cows and idols, Jackson had far too many leeches glued to him.

I strongly suspect that Simone has had pieces of this booklet in his back pocket for a while.It feels more like a radio show than a book. That's not a bad thing. After all, the guy is a radio show host. And this booklet might help satisfy grieving fans who are beginning to crave answers. If Simone is right about the genetic disorder, it will cast a whole new light on the life of Michael Jackson.

For more info on Rob Simone's show

"The Mysterious Death of Michael Jackson" by Rob Simone, available in print and ebook editions on Lulu. 

Farrah Fawcett's Early Life

It's hard to believe Farrah Fawcett is gone. Stranger still, to look through newspaper archives and see her life before she went out to Hollywood. If you are lucky enough to access the Corpus Christi newspapers, you occasionally glimpse old pictures of Farrah.

• October 28, 1959: The cheerleaders of St. Patrick's School Shamrocks, in green and white costumes, will lead the yells at 2:30 p.m. Saturday when their team meets the 'eleven' from Our Lady of Sorrows. Farrah is the one on the far left.
  
• February 14, 1965: Farrah is voted the most beautiful girl at Ray High School annual favorites dance.
  
• April 1, 1965: "Four W. B. Ray seniors will be honored at a punch party from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. today at 352 Palmetto. Hostesses will be Mrs. Louis J. Wehmeyer and Mrs. Edward P. Thomas." Farrah was listed as a member of the house party.
  
• May 17, 1965: Farrah is listed on the permanent honor roll at Ray High School.
  
• April 2, 1967 in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times: "Miss Farrah Fawcett, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James W. Fawcett, the Cliff House, left Saturday for Acapulco. She will spend her ten-day spring vacation from the UofT with classmates in Mexico. She has been named Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps sweetheart at the UofT. Mrs. Fawcett will join the group in Acapulco Monday."

• July 3, 1970: An ad for the film Myra Breckinridge, playing at National Twin I in Corpus Christi lists Farrah as one of the stars, along with Rex Reed, May (sic) West and Raquel Welch.

• August 30, 1970: "The Houston Astros seek a new "Miss Astro" to represent the ball club today in final ceremonies at home plate at 1:30 p.m." Farrah and Kristina Allen, each a former Miss Astro, received movie contracts. Clearly this position is a stepping stone.

• January 23, 1973: From Dorothy Manners: "I was on their first date together so it is of particular interest to me that Lee Majors and Texas beauty Farrah Fawcett, after five years of togetherness, will be married on June 28th. Both are doing very happily in their careers as well as in private life. Farrah recently appeared in "The Great American Beauty Contest" (20th-Centurty Fox) and Lee is finishing a pilot, "Cyborg," about an astronaut.

• March 15, 1974: On an episode of The Six Million Dollar Man, airing at 8 p.m. in Corpus Christi: "Seems Steve (Lee Majors) is assisting the first female to go into space as an astronaut. She is played by Farrah Fawcett Majors, Lee's wife. There is a problem in space, so they must rendezvous at Skylab. Turns out Steve is no longer .invincible up there. Some good effects,  realistic dialogue and science editor Jules Bergman as himself to add authenticity."

We tend to remember life in moments rather than spans of time. When I think of my life in San Francisco, I think of walking down Market Street in the late afternoon, dodging pigeons and homeless people. I remember the crisp air and  slanted sunlight on brick buildings. It's spooky to think that when I die, I might feel all that again, for one more fleeting moment.

Farrah's death is a reminder of a lost world. Maybe it's hit me harder because of my Dad's recent death. I've spent a lot of time lately, considering death. What  happens when we die? The more I think about it, the less I'm inclined to think of time as a rigid construct. I'm also thinking that the live people are less alive than the dead.

Book Review: Ghost by Fred Burton

Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent
by Fred Burton
Random House, $16, 288 pages, Released: June 9, 2009

"The bodies fell out of the sky and plummeted into a shepard's field. A Greek peasant, minding his flock of sheep, discovered them battered and smashed almost beyond recognition. Before this horrible day, the trio had been a family: one grandmother, one daughter, one infant granddaughter. These were terror's latest targets."

Fred Burton served in the Diplomatic Security Service, part of the Department of State. From the mid-80's to 1998, Burton investigated terrorism acts against the United States. He advised the government on ways to protect assets and personnel. Burton also shuffled world leaders around town, protecting them as they met with American officials or appeared at public events. In his memoir, "Ghost" he remembers with stinging detail both the perpetrators and victims of terrorist attacks.

Burton takes readers by the hand, leading them a variety of events. Making calls on a scrambled, high-security phone system, he becomes familiar with Oliver North. We see Terry Waite, hostage negotiator, asking to speak with Oliver North on the phone.

"I look at the number. It is a direct White House line. I glance down at the STU-III and wonder what I should do next. Something doesn't smell right here. Why is Waite tied in with the NSC? Is Waite the administration's go-between with Hezbollah? I thought he was working on behalf of the archbishop of Canterbury."

Later, we learn: "Terry Waite was just a cover for the real negotiations,ones that treated each hostage as capital that the Iranians and Hezbollah could use to buy TOW missiles."

 Burton investigated the death of Pakistani President Zia, and provides evidence on how the KGB took his plane down. He also discusses Ramzi Yousef and the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center, and how he assisted in the capture of Yousef.

These episodic stories are structured in a whodunit form, fraught with tension. Burton describes his own role with humility. He is not heroic in these stories. Rather, he presents himself as a public servant who cannot forget the innocent men and women who have been killed. It is reminiscent of "Dragnet", except in this case, the protagonist has more personality.

Burton makes certain that readers identify with the victims of terrorist attacks. It will be difficult to forget the sad details of the attacks, along with the sociopathic mentality of the terrorists. While presenting new information about historical events, Burton manages to involve readers emotionally. "Ghost" is a compelling book.

DVD Review: Dance Off The Inches: Country Line Dance with Amy Blackburn

My review of Dance Off The Inches: Country Line Dance with Amy Blackburn was published in today's edition of The Birmingham News.

"From the moment Amy Blackburn says, "Hey, y'all!" you know that "Dance Off the Inches: Country Line Dance" will be a hoot. Armed with an infectious smile and a super-short denim skirt, Blackburn makes fitness a whole lot of fun. "

Read the rest. ¶