Candle in the Wind…
I know I’m not breaking any news when I say that last week Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson all passed away. First off – I need to confess that I wasn’t personally a huge fan of any of them. In fact, I was much more touched by the deaths of Heath Ledger, LeRoi Moore (the Dave Matthews Band saxophonist), and Natasha Richardson. The work of all of these people touched my life in a way that mattered to me. As for McMahon, Fawcett and Jackson – after watching the coverage and being on Twitter when the news broke – it’s blatantly obvious that their lives and deaths meant a lot to a LOT of people, regardless of my personal feelings.
And while watching the incredible response online – it struck me that all three were somewhat troubled and on the downside of iconic careers. And, in that sense, I’m relieved that none of them are with us any longer. McMahon’s health and financial troubles were widely publicized his last few years and I’m happy that he no longer has to anguish over unpaid bills or live in poor health. Fawcett suffered a drawn out battle with cancer and I’m sure friends and family are just thankful she’s not in pain any longer. And as for Jackson – loosely paraphrasing George Clooney in From Dusk till Dawn – Hopefully he found the peace in death that he could not seem to find in life.
In the book Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs*A Low-Culture Manifesto, Chuck Klosterman talks about how after the Oklahoma City bombing the names of all the victims were listed in the paper along with a one sentence summation of their lives. Sadly, the same will be done with McMahon (Johnny Carson’s sidekick of 30 years), Fawcett (70’s Icon), and Michael Jackson (King of Pop).
I guess that’s how we process information – in short snippets, just the headlines. If you were to describe your friends today the chances are good that just a few traits or stats come to mind for each one. It seems crazy to me that an entire life could be described in a sentence or two. But really – isn’t that what we all do on our MySpace and Facebook pages? A few sentences, a few facts, likes and dislikes and somehow people garner a general outline or sense of who we are.
I guess what we can draw from the experience and loss of these three icons is to make what we do today count. Now, I’m not trying to be all Self-Help Guru here – I despise all the hokey songs and clichés that urge us to live each day as if it were our last. And, though I’m sure none of us want to die while seemingly past our peak – this isn’t about preparing for death – it’s about living our lives. If in the end, if only one sentence will describe your life – what do you want it to include? How do you want to be remembered? And what do you need to do to get there?
Oh well, just wanted to give you all something to think about while you’re dusting off your Thriller LP’s, TiVo-ing Charlie’s Angels reruns, and Googling Tonight Show clips…
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Tags: celebrities, death, Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, George Clooney, Heath Ledger, Michael Jackson
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