Sorry if its a repost...

It sure is. I've been noticing a lot of these type of videos popping up lately. Michael was definately influenced by a lot of the old time greats.

Old news. It was posted in one of those Michael Jackson RIP threads. But yes, the mash-up video is awesome!

I watched Singin' in the Rain recently and could not help but think of the influence Gene Kelley and Donald O'Connor had on MJ.

MJ was great but those guys were legends and had way more moves then MJ could ever dream of having.

japanrocks said:

bit harsh. I'd say MJ in the mid-seventies might shut your mouth for you.

TonyVanDam said:

nobody reads the jackson rip threads

so this is new info for some of us

japanrocks said:

Exactly

japanrocks said:

That is only because some of you lack the patience to post in a Jackson RIP thread.
[Edited 9/15/09 7:27am]

A great dancer pays homage to those who influenced him


japanrocks, Michael's skills weren't limited, but he had his own style and groove and stuck with it. I've seen this guy do popping, locking, tap, a bit of ballet,


Mike was the dude who taught (my other hero) Sammy Davis Jr. how to breakdance for the "Tap" movie

Great dancers inspire one another. There's a reason why Sammy, James, Jackie, Fred, The Nicholas Brothers, and Gene all had love for Michael

that was awesome

TonyVanDam said:

Thats right,,,,,now sit your ass down, Tony

Harlepolis said:

I'll be back.
[Edited 9/16/09 0:17am]

Harlepolis said:

bboy87 said:

Ya know what though, Jay?

ALL these years of watching The Band Wagon, I never noticed the similarities between that sketch and the Smooth Criminal video before EVEN down to the simple stuff like MJ's suit which is straight up from THAT clip. Its crazy

Def a great homage,,,,,and it gave me a new appreciation for both of the movie and the video.

Harlepolis said:

it kinda tells me that MJ was not as original as people may think.....he borrows a lot of his dance routines from the past and James Brown of course

kinda like Kanye borrows music from the past that we may or may not have heard

both are artists influenced by the greats before them

and they both take that influence and create their own style which, in turn, influences future artists

japanrocks said:

NOBODY is 100% proof genuinely ORIGINAL James Brown was influenced by Earl "Snakehips" Tucker & the likes, and since we're talking honestly lol Fred Astaire borrowed most of his routine from Bill "Bojangles" Robinson,,,,,and the aforementioned people were influenced by others before them as well.

ALL of them however, incorporated their OWN touch into their material which made each & every one of them stand out on his own.

japanrocks said:

don't be such a dumb ass.
of course MJ was original.

He took lots of inspiration from Astaire and Fosse and all the greats before him, because he was a student who became a master.
He created his own moves while at the same time, creating his own style and fashion by being inspired by the greats.

Who else had the vision to use Astaire's movie to create such a stunning masterpeice of work like Smooth Criminal???
You talk as though any tom dick and harry could have done it.

Well tell me then?? who else did it like Michael did?
Don't be such a wiseass.

Ya'll know the truth. If it wasn't for MJ, you'r smart ass probably wouldn't even know this fucking Fred Astaire movie existed.
Thanks to MJ, we get to see what his inspirations were.

In that clip above, its obvious MJ was inspired by the look and feel of it.
So he used it for Smooth Criminal, at the same time, creating something completely different, and creating masterful choreography and music.

MJ is the last of the greats it seems, there is no one today who would watch old films from the 40s, 50s and 60s to get inspiration like MJ did.

So grow some balls please people and show some respect to the king.
Fucking idiots!!

Harlepolis said:

When I saw it, I was like "Yo! so that's where the idea came from"

He pays tribute to all his favorites in his performances:

The Grammy Awards performance from 1988 was a homage to Sammy Davis Jr., the intro to his performances of Dangerous was a homage to Judy Garland, Smooth Criminal to Fred AND Gene, and I don't know if anyone has picked up on it, but the song "Bad" was pretty much a tribute to James, the horns in the original mix, his vocals....that was Mike channeling James


Gene Kelly's said back in 1987 that he knew Michael was great and that he wanted him to keep going because there weren't many song and dance men left

when he passed away, I realized....damn, they're all gone

bboy87 said:

The video though was inspired by Beat Street, esp the confrontation

But man, after absorbing that video and MJ's whole videography,,,,it dawned on me that he was a STAN for those MGM musicals

And what Judy Garland/Sammy Davis homages? I'm not that hip into his live per4mances,,,,,I gotta admit.

japanrocks said:

He did this because Fred Astaire had died that year. He also dedicated Moonwalker to him.

Harlepolis said:

Yeah Michael was a huge stan They showed a video of his room and he had a
LIBRARY of movies. My mom said she was jealous that he got to meet all her heroes and was friends with Gene and Fred and especially Barbra Steisand

Michael's 1988 performance of The Way You Make Me Feel, the intro was a homage to Sammy. I saw a clip of sammy from the 50s or 60s and was in awe

Judy: check out her performance in Summer Stock


and then check the intro in Michael's performance of Dangerous



Michael was taking notes!

My mom said something a couple of months ago. She said "With Michael, you know he gives it his all when he's on stage because, you can tell by his expression"

He was an angry dancer, like Astaire said

bboy87 said:

Do you know if they were still friends in the '90s?

StillDirrty said:

I think so

Most of his videos were inspired by either musicals or b-movies.

japanrocks said:

well yes...and no.

Every idea is created and inspired by another idea. MJ basically took themes from other pieces of work and made them into his own.

And Smooth Criminal was an obvious homage to Fred.

japanrocks said:

Umm, I don't think so. MJ improved and enhanced those moves and developed his own style. Sure he was influenced by the late greats, but I believe he was much more versatile. And I too remember reading something about Gene Kelly saying Michael was outstanding and admired him.