Making Michael by Mike Smallcombe

Author:Mike Smallcombe [Mike Smallcombe]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781910782521
Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
Published: 2016-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

NEW YORK LIFE

Michael always made sure everybody on the studio team was taken care of, and he often shared his privileges. “He got one of the first PlayStations from Sony in his lounge,” Rob Hoffman recalls. “We snuck in late at night to play the games that hadn’t been released yet.” Michael’s private lounge at the studio was filled with candy, drinks and toys. A few crew members also hadn’t seen the movie Jurassic Park when it was released the previous summer, so Michael arranged a private screening for them at Sony.

In July 1994, Michael invited everybody from the studio to watch his sister Janet in concert at Radio City Music Hall. “The studio crew got free tickets to the Janet show so we all went right from work one night,” Hoffman said. “About halfway through the show we see this dude with a long beard, dressed in robes dancing in the aisle behind. I mean really dancing…it was Michael in disguise, kind of like the costume Chevy Chase wears in Fletch while roller-skating.”

Hoffman also saw Michael’s childlike side. “We recorded a Christmas song during the summer of 1994 that needed a children’s choir,” he said. “Michael insisted that the entire studio be decorated with Christmas lights, tree, fake snow and a sled for their recording. And he bought presents for everyone.”

Working with Michael in the studio was never short of funny and memorable moments. During one session, Michael called producer Brad Buxer to his lounge and threw a pie in his face. “That pie that Michael nailed me in the face with so completely covered me that I had to go back to the hotel to change clothes because I was such a mess,” Buxer said. “I was covered from head to toe, and it was the nastiest pie, some kind of Boston cream pie with chocolate and custard whipped cream and whatever else. Michael of course couldn’t stop laughing.”

Even in the studio, Michael couldn’t always escape the negative attention in the media. “Once, while we were taking a break, I think we were actually watching the O.J. Simpson case on TV, there was a news program talking about him being in Europe with some little boy,” Hoffman recalls. “I was sitting next to the guy while the news is making this crap up. He just looked at me and said, ‘This is what I have to deal with’.” Hoffman also remembers how Michael yearned for everyday normality while in the Big Apple. “Bruce [Swedien] and I were talking about walking to the studio every day in NYC, and what routes we took. Michael looked at us and said we were so lucky to be able to do that. He couldn’t walk down the street without being harassed. It was a sad moment for all of us.”

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.