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WTF? Michael Jackson Wanted to Ask Kim Jong Il to Free Laura Ling and Euna Lee?

If this doesn’t win “WTF of the Decade,” it’s an honorable mention:

The last time I spoke to my friend Michael Jackson was about a month ago, 3 weeks before his shocking death. He had called me late one night to ask about another of my close friends who he had read about in the news. Laura Ling, a former colleague and friend, was detained originally by North Korean border guards along with her colleague Euna Lee on March 17th. [….]

Michael had read some of the details regarding Laura and Euna’s predicament. As was often the case with him and global events he read about ““ from famine in Africa to victims of natural disasters in far off countries, to orphans created by wars ““ he felt a deep sense of empathy for Laura and Euna. When I shared with him that Euna had a four-year-old daughter, he was even more anguished.

michael-jackson-clothing-line-blueflys-blog-flypaper.jpgHe asked me whether I had had any contact with Laura. I told him I had written her a few letters and had been assured they were getting through. Outside of that, her own family had only heard from her twice ““ brief monitored phone calls ““ in the over three months they had been imprisoned. When I told him that, Michael paused.

“Do you think,” he said hesitantly, “that the leader of North Korea could be a fan of mine?”   [Gotham Chopra, Herald de Paris]

Someone please pipe up and tell me this is a parody.

I didn’t really know how to respond. Not much is known about the reclusive Kim Jong Il or “Dear leader” as he is called in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Over the years it’s been alleged he has a thing for Hollywood, certain NBA stars, Elvis, and specific liqueurs. Still, I’d never heard about any connection between Michael Jackson and Kim Jong Il.

Michael said he had seen some pictures on the internet of the Dear Leader. “You know, he wears jackets like mine.

Well, now I’ve seen everything.  I don’t know if I actually believe this, but don’t count Michael Jackson out as a Special Envoy to Kim Jong Il just because he’s deceased.  He’s still more charismatic than Al Gore, looks more alive than John Kerry, has a better ethical record than Bill Richardson, is less of an embarrassment than Joe Biden, and has more influence with President Obama than Hillary Clinton.

Update:   A reader reminds me that, by a happy coincidence, the Eternal President of North Korea also happens to be a dead guy.  Wow.  That could be the most lively conversation since Ban Ki Moon met Warren Christopher.  And at the rate things seem to be going, Kim Jong Il and Michael Jackson will be together soon enough for everyone but the people in these places.

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11 Responses

  1. I’ve seen many interviews with Gotham Chopra and his father (Depac sp?) following his death, so I trust the interview. I’ve also heard though various sources that “His (nearly-dead) Majesty” was indeed a fan of Michael Jackson. Who knows, could have been another diplomatic angle.

  2. I’m just trying to picture a concert hall with the Dear Leader and a gaggle of party cadres watching Michael Jackson perform. Seems disjointed.

  3. I guess it could not be any more disjointed than watching the Baby VOX performance in Pyongyang in front of cadres and their wives.

  4. I wonder if the crowd who watched that along with the Shinwha performance were promptly executed afterwards…

  6. Well, now it all makes sense. Obviously Kim had his special ops people kill Jacko to keep Laura and Euna behind bars.

    I mean, since they couldn’t knock off Park back in the 60s, this was the most logical #2 option, right?

  8. Michael Jackson would not be allowed on North Korean Soil. I love Michael Jackson but after he performed one song, he most likely would have been thrown into a North Korean labor camp. Michael Jackson represents freedom and art, North Korea represents repression and communism to its fullest. Their Great Leader Kim Jong-Il would never allow his people to listen to his music.
    Maybe if Michael Jackson changed all the songs and lyrics supporting North Korea. Example “Beat it Americans (Beat-it)“, “Great Leader Kim Jong-Il is on the Dance Floor (Blood on the Dance Floor”, Kim Jong-Il (Billie Jean)” or “North Korea’s Earth Song (earth song)“. Every one of North Korea’s songs is about “their great leader” and I know Michael Jackson could not handle their twisted regime and would want out fast.
    The world loved Michael Jackson but North Korea probably never knew he existed or Kim Jong-Il never allowed his country to listen to his songs. Therefore, Michael Jackson never had a chance to make a difference with the North Koreans or free the journalists. His heart was in the right place and I’ll miss him.

  9. Apparently apart from Matt, we have lost our healthy regard for the power of music to scare the shit out of communist dictators: For a credible discussion of Michael Jackson based on East German archival files, see “Fearing the Moonwalk Revolution: East German Stasi Spied on Michael Jackson,” Der Spiegel.

    Just because he’s a freak doesn’t mean he can’t be a useful implement in a nation’s foreign policy. Last time I checked, Jackson, like you and me, had a U.S. passport.

    If you think this notion is ridiculous, check East German archives about how the Stasi and the Freie Deutsche Jugend (“Free [e.g. communist] German Youth”) were freaking out about Bruce Springsteen back in the days of ’89.

  10. Adam, did you get the e-mail I sent to your university address? Maybe during summer you check “One Free Korea” more often. I tried to leave a comment on your blog but encountered technical difficulties.

    My favorite celebrity to visit North Korea was Muhammad Ali. He actually was there with pro wrestler Ric Flair for a World Peace sports festival in 1995. In Ric Flair’s autobiography, “To Be The Man”, the wrestler shares an anecdote about something in Pyongyang that made his hair stand up on his head:

    Because of the ravages of Parkinson’s disease, it was difficult to understand Muhammad Ali when he spoke. But at one function, we were sitting at a big, round table with a group of North Korean luminaries when one of the guys started rambling on about the moral superiority of North Korea, and how they could take out the United States or Japan any time they wanted. Suddenly, Ali piped up, clear as a bell, “No wonder we hate these motherf*ckers.”