On January 18th, New York author and film critic Armond White will be presenting and discussing the musical works of Michael Jackson and what impact Michael Jackson has had on the media and entertainment world as it exists today. The 90 minute presentation is called "Pop Video Artists and Hollywood Influence" and is part of the "Dance on Camera Festival 2008" event.

The new blog, "The Wow Jones Report," has published an exclusive interview with Armond White and why he has decided to showcase Michael's work in a special presentation like this

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Armond White: The Wow Jones Report

January 14, 2008

Transcribed / Interviewed By: http://wowjonesreport.blogspot.com/

TWJR = The Wow Jones Report
White = Armond White

TWJR: Why is Michael Jackson’s music video work the focus of your presentation?

White: Because he’s the single most important show-biz performer of the past quarter century.

TWJR: Do you think that people still care about Michael Jackson and his work? If so, who?

White: Sure. Absolutely, from those who are obsessed with Michael Jackson’s notoriety to those who still feel the joy and beauty of his art.

TWJR: What makes you think that Michael Jackson still matters?

White: The evidence is everywhere from the constant reference to his music by other musicians and filmmakers and in all media. Michael Jackson may have dubbed himself the King Of Pop; but the fact is Howard Stern stole his real title, because Michael Jackson is the King Of All Media.

TWJR: Where’d the idea for a music video presentation on Michael Jackson come from?

White: Joanna Ney, who runs the Dance On Camera Program at Lincoln Center; requested the show in response to the number of Michael Jackson videos I have shown in past music video presentations at Lincoln Center.

TWJR: Why the attempt to link to past Hollywood Influences? Isn’t it obvious?

White: No it’s not obvious to most people. It’s fascinating to see the source of so many of Michael Jackson’s movements and visions.

TWJR: Is it fair to compare and contrast Michael Jackson’s dancing in his music videos to those of old Hollywood Dance Icons like say…Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire and/or Bob Fosse?

White: Of course it’s fair, we do it all the time. We always respond to new artists in terms of artists we’re already familiar with. And it’s clear that Michael Jackson was inspired by artists who came before him.

TWJR: In light of the current option and ability to say…watch clips on DVD or on an IPOD, why is this Michael Jackson music video presentation necessary?

White: They won’t get these insights or this program of videos any other way. Besides, I’ve always relished (and been thankful for) the opportunity to show this kind of work in this manner: LIVE and on the BIG movie screen—it’s unique and rare.
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Source: MJJR.net / Wow Jones Report / FSLC

I guess I'm going to avoid going through the Lincoln Center area on Friday.

Damn, I can't make it.

Good to know that he is being honored and remembered for his work in music and entertainment.

It is ironic it is happening the day MJNO is closing its doors.

Is it possible MJ will attend?

purplecam said:

Because you know "they" may show up.....



but then again, they mostly live in Europe so you're pretty safe

bboy87 said:

LOL

bboy87 said:

Thank goodness. The American fans aren't that far behind.

Will he be dancing on Expeditions again?

purplecam said:

But I wish I could go. It sounds like a fascinating presentation. Just imagine: a discussion of Michael Jackson that focuses on the art.
[Edited 1/15/08 21:20pm]

purplecam said:

They aren't that crazy But those Europeans? Beware like a muthafucka They're the ones who broke into Michael's hotel suite back in 2006 and stole shirts and tried to fight his bodyguards saying "He wants to see us!"

Then why is he hiding in the other room?

Is Mike going to attend?

dag said:

He's didn't attend the BET honors. So I don't expect him to attend this.

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Wow Jones EMAIL: wowjones@gmail.com
Website: http://www.wowjonesreport.blogspot.com

MICHAEL JACKSON THE SUBJECT OF A STATE-OF-THE-ART MUSIC VIDEO PRESENTATION AT LINCOLN CENTER IN NEW YORK CITY.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008 by Wow Jones

Finally! Michael Jackson gets his due regard. This past Friday on January 18, 2008, Film Critic Armond White made Pop Star Michael Jackson (and sister Janet Jackson) the focal point of an astonishing music video presentation at Lincoln Center.

Patrons of Lincoln Center’s 2008 Dance On Camera Festival were treated to an eye-popping presentation on Friday night. Esteemed Film Critic Armond White made his Jackson Pop: Video Artists and Hollywood Influence music video presentation and to those lucky enough to see it; witnessed the smashing of the prevailing, conventional view of Michael Jackson.

Through the judicious use of classic movie clips and music videos, White led an appreciative audience through an entertaining and insightful look at a rarely studied or discussed aspect of Michael Jackson’s work. White notes, “Michael Jackson’s 1982 album Thriller is well known as a hugely popular album, a sign of his immense popularity and impact. But that renown isn’t just for his music and singing. It’s also for his dancing. This program is a good opportunity to examine THAT aspect of his art.”

In the program, White linked Michael (and sister Janet) Jackson’s era-defining movements to Broadway and Hollywood choreographers Jerome Robbins, Michael Kidd, and Bob Fosse, cultural hero Cab Calloway and Hollywood Icons Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly. While doing this, White also helped illustrate how Michael Jackson preserves the dance tradition and through his distinct talent and personality transforms it.

Throughout the evening, one heard rounds of applause, yelps of laughter, and a continuous, whispered hush of astonishment—the sounds of an attentive audience. The manner in which this work was presented was most noteworthy. Not only did spectators see the towering figure of Michael Jackson with his whirling, elegant and rapid dance moves; they also looked up at Janet Jackson getting down in her acrobatic and precise manner in a way usually reserved for silver screen stars of the past - - larger than life and bigger than you. This deluxe, cinematic way of seeing these works added to the kinetic and visceral pleasure that these music videos afford.

Joanna Ney, Curator of The Dance On Camera Festival, observed, “Armond White is the kind of writer who makes one reassess one’s opinions. Not that he wants us to change them, but perhaps to think a little differently, and he has often been an eye-opening influence on me and made me much more aware and interested in the possibility of music video as an art form.”

Folks,

By the way, the host of the Michael Jackson event at Lincoln Center, Film Critic ARMOND WHITE wrote a series of fine essays on the work of Prince while he was the Arts Editor at the now defunct black New York City newspaper THE CITY SUN (1984-1996).

While at THE CITY SUN he wrote about:

Purple Rain (Movie)
Under The Cherry Moon (Movie)
Sign Of The Times (Album)
Sign Of The Times (Movie)
Prince on VH1, The "Count The Day" Music Video
The Gold Experience CD
The Most Beautiful Girl In The World Music Video
The Symbol Album
The Diamonds & Pearls CD
and
The Batman Soundtrack.

Here's a sample of what he had to say about the Sign Of The Times movie...

NOTE: These are EXCERPTS from Armond White's essay on The Sign Of The Times Movie.
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PRINCE PUTS THE WRITING ON THE WALL
The City Sun -- Dec 9-15, 1987 By Armond White

What would Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong or Duke Ellington have done in the 1930s or 1940s if they could have commanded the means and opportunity to film a documentation of their musical performance and a visual extrapolation of its ethos? In the writing, direction and performance of his Sign Of The Times concert-film, Prince has found a truly lyrical aesthetic that simply but certainly redefines the shape of the movie musical.

…the whole thing works because Prince is a stage-musical master; in the midst of a song he casts a smile at the audiences in Antwerp and Rotterdam, Holland (where the film was shot), checking their enjoyment to see if his performance is getting the response he intended. That smile of confidence is born of his experience as a musician. …The way Prince keeps his eye on the audience - - shrewdly - - proves a knowledge of artistic process as savvy as any of the old Hollywood moguls.

…Prince has found a simple solution to the problem of suspended disbelief that has antiquated the form of the traditional musical by turning the concert stage into a cinematic field. Along with a superb team of photographers, editors, and sound engineers, he exploits/embellishes the stage space imaginatively. At times, the film combines aural, visual and sensual effects into a style of irresistible delirium.

The ‘Housequake’ number is designed in a limitless sequence of hypnotic red shades: pink, ruby, scarlet, rose, salmon, crimson, vermillion, all glowing in the dark. The best musical playlet, ‘If I Could Take The Place Of Your Man,’ crowns a trenchant anecdote about desire and commitment with a beautiful composition of Prince playing his guitar solo against an abstract-expressionist background of slanted blue light beams.

…Finally, there’s the performance of ‘It’s Going To Be A Beautiful Night;’ few scenes in movie history are this joyous and convulsive. It’s an extended vamp in which Prince and band link influences that range from Ellington to James Brown. It’s a great moment, not incidentally summing up and making up for the unjust, unequal expression Black musical artists have had throughout film history.

…If there were a soundtrack album for this movie it would have included the celluloid ghosts of Billie Holiday as a maid, Aretha Franklin as a waitress in The Blues Brothers, Louis Armstrong as an itinerant musician in High Society, all rejoicing at last.

Bet $$ we have all seen 99% of this material serveral times.