‘Michael is
not gay
’
It was difficult to imagine Michael Jackson viewing romantic relationships in a positive light when he was surrounded by such poor examples. His parents' marriage had rarely been happy. Marlon's marriage to Carol had been troubled, though they had reconciled. It was difficult to know what was going on with Jermaine's relationship, but Hazel seemed domineering to most observers. Jackie's marriage was also in trouble at this time, because he had cheated on Enid. The two would end up divorcing, and the final decree would not occur until August 1987, after they had put each other through as much misery – and litigation – as possible. Luckily, Tito seemed to be faring well with Dee Dee. Still, Michael had learned early on to be cautious before committing himself to any relationship that could become serious. Therefore, he stayed alone – except for the occasional youth, such as Emmanuel Lewis and, in 1984, a ten-year-old kid named Jonathan Spence who had become a constant companion. The two were seen nuzzling and hugging throughout the fall of 1984.
Along with Michael's huge success came a resurgence of rumours about his sexuality. Michael had always been extremely sensitive about the issues of sexuality, and nothing annoyed him more than the fact that it kept coming up every few years. Yet, by September 1984, the question remained: was Michael gay?
However, being a twenty-six-year-old virgin teen idol devoted to a sexually repressive religion is not easy, especially when show business dictates that a male celebrity be ‘romantically involved’ – to use Michael Jackson's words – with a woman, thus the existence of Tatum O'Neal and Brooke Shields in his life. But the public could see through those charades, and tongues continued to wag.
One rumour had it that, when Michael was younger, Joseph had ordered him to be injected with female hormones to ensure that his voice would not change with maturity. He wanted it to remain high-pitched and, thus, commercial. ‘Not true,’ said Michael's vocal coach, Seth Riggs. ‘He started out with a high voice, and I've taken it even higher. It's ridiculous. I don't even know if it's possible to do that.’
During one break in a vocal lesson, according to Seth, he said to Michael, ‘You know, everybody thinks you're gay.’
Michael nodded his head and told Riggs this story: a tall good-looking blond approached him one day and said, ‘Michael, I think you're wonderful. I sure would like to go to bed with you.’
Michael glared at him. ‘When's the last time you read the Bible?’ he asked.
The blond said nothing.
‘You know, you really should read it, because there is some real information in there about homosexuality.’
‘Sure, I guess if I was a girl, it would be different story,’ said the fellow. ‘
Then
you'd have sex with me.’
‘No, I wouldn't,’ Michael told him. ‘There are some very direct words on
that
in the Bible too.’
Still, there were some odd reports about Michael. For instance, reporter Denise Worrell was writing a story about him for
Time
and had tried to arrange an interview with him, but to no avail. Instead, she interviewed his parents. Unbeknownst to Michael, Joseph decided to give the reporter a tour of the house. He knocked on Michael's bedroom door. There was no answer. ‘Michael I have someoneI want you to meet,’ Joseph said. He opened the door. ‘Can I bring her into your room?’
Denise reported that Michael was inside with a male friend, about twenty years old, watching television. The glow from the set was the only light in the room. She noticed the outline of Michael's mannequins against a wall.
Michael was startled by the presence of his father and his guest. He nervously introduced Joseph to his friend, using just a first name. Michael then shook hands with the journalist who reported that his handshake ‘felt like a cloud’. He ‘barely said hello’. Michael's friend then nervously extended his hand; she reported that it was ‘damp’. Michael stared at the writer for a moment and then began watching television, again.
As Joseph and Denise backed out of the room, Joseph had the look of a man who'd just opened Pandora's box. ‘Michael has a friend over,’ Joseph explained. ‘He isn't about to give any interviews. You got pretty close, though,’ he added, with a nervous chuckle.
After Denise left the house, a security guard came running after her. Joseph and Katherine wanted to speak to her again. Joseph must have told his wife what had occurred in the bedroom.
‘We were hoping you'd set the record straight and put a stop to the rumours,’ Katherine said as soon as she saw Denise. ‘They say Michael is gay. Michael is not gay. It's against his religion. It's against God. The Bible speaks against it.’
‘Michael is
not gay
,’ repeated Joseph, emphatically.
Perhaps Michael is
not gay,
but he was curious about the lifestyle just the same. One friend remembered the day he and Michael went into a gay bar on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood. ‘Michael was recording at Larrabe studios, which is across the street from a bar in a predominantly gay section of Hollywood,’ the friend recalled. ‘I said to him, “Hey, man, let's go get a drink at that bar.” He told me he didn't drink, but perhaps he could get an orange juice. “You know, it's a gay bar,” I warned him. “Really? I've never been to a gay bar,” he said. “What goes on there?” he asked. I told him he should go and see for himself. He hesitated. “Well, I've always wanted to. Okay, let's do it.” So, in we went.
‘“Why is it so dark in here?” Michael wanted to know. I had the impression he had never been in
any
bar, let alone a gay one. There were a few guys in there, but it was early, so there weren't many. Michael took a deep breath and went up to the bartender and ordered an orange juice. The bartender said, “Hey, aren't you Michael Jackson?” He said, “Nope. But I'm told I look like him.” He turned to me and winked.
‘He and I sat in a corner and watched all the guys. He was recognized by a few, but they left him alone. Not one person came up to him.
‘“Is this all they do here?” Michael asked me. “They just drink and talk and watch videos?” I wondered what he
thought
people did in bars. As we were sitting there, two men walked in and immediately began kissing each other. When Michael saw them making out, I could feel him tense up. Finally he said, “Okay, I've seen enough. Let's leave.” So we got up and walked out. On the way out, Michael said, “I can't believe those two guys kissed one another. How can they do that?”
‘“Maybe they liked each other,” I told him.
‘“Well, if that's what they do in gay bars, then I don't think I'll be going to any more,” Michael decided.’
This same friend remembered the day he and Michael went into Drakes, a novelty store on Melrose Avenue in Hollywood that specializes in sex toys and pornography. In the back of the shop, behind a gated area, a browser could find gay reading material and photo magazines.
‘Hey, what's back there?’ Michael wanted to know as soon as he walked in.
‘You don't want to know,’ said his friend.
‘Yeah, I
do
want to know,’ Michael insisted. He then proceeded to go boldly where probably no Jackson had ever gone before.
Thirty seconds later, he came running back. He looked shaken, as if he had just seen a ghost. ‘We gotta go, now,’ he said nervously.
‘Why?’
‘You don't want to know,’ Michael answered.
The more enigmatic Michael remained, the more people would talk, and even joke, about him. His videographer, Steve Howell, once asked him about a comedy sketch Eddie Murphy had performed on
Saturday Night Live
in which he played an effeminate and affected Michael as a guest on a fictional talk show,
Guy Talk,
along with an equally fey Liberace played by another actor. The two bragged about their sexual exploits with women; it was ludicrous and extremely funny.
Michael had smiled. ‘I don't mind it,’ he said softly. ‘The more they make fun of me, the more people are going to wonder what I really am. I don't care when people call me a fag. No one knows the truth. No one knows who, or what I am.’
‘You don't care what people say about you?’
‘They can say what they want to say, because the bottom line is they don't
know
and everyone is going to continue searching to find out whether I'm gay, straight or whatever,’ Michael explained. ‘It doesn't bother me, and the longer it takes them to discover this, the more famous I will be.’
Perhaps that's how Michael
sometimes
felt, but he was also a man who told
Rolling Stone
writer Gerri Hirshey that he lives his life with obsessive caution, ‘just like a haemophiliac who can't afford to be scratched in any way.’
In August 1984, a tabloid alleged that Michael was having an affair with British pop star Boy George, an allegation which was not true. Michael was livid. His publicist, Norman Winter, recalled, ‘Michael was angry that there were these stories about him being gay, that little kids who could barely read were hearing about these rumours, maybe from their mothers who buy the tabloids and talk to others about them. Who knows? The point is that he felt that he was getting a reputation he didn't want. He told me that he wanted to organize a press conference to refute the stories. I told him I thought it might not be a good idea. ‘Why give them any credibility? Maybe they'll just blow over,’ he said. ‘No, they just keep getting worse. I have to do something now.’
‘Frank [Dileo] was against the idea, but Michael is a very strong-minded person. He told me what he wanted to say, I wrote the text of the statement, he approved it, and we went from there.’
The problem was that Michael decided that he did not want to appear at the press conference; he was too shy to face the press and discuss such a personal matter.
On 5 September 1984, a major news conference was arranged in a West Hollywood sound studio. Frank Dileo – in dark sunglasses and with a cigar in his mouth – stepped in front of a podium to announce that he was about to read a two-page statement from Michael, ‘who, as you all know, has risen to the pinnacle of success in his field.’
In a gruff, tough-guy voice, the burly manager read: ‘For some time now, I have been searching my conscience as to whether or not I should publicly react to the many falsehoods that have been spread about me. I have decided to make this statement based on the injustice of these allegations and the far-reaching trauma those who feel close to me are suffering.
‘I feel very fortunate to have been blessed with recognition for my efforts. This recognition also brings with it a responsibility to one's admirers throughout the world. Performers should always serve as role models who set an example for young people. It saddens me that many may actually believe the present flurry of false accusations. To this end, and I do mean
END
: NO! I've never taken hormones to maintain my high voice; NO! I've never had my cheekbones altered in any way; NO! I've never had cosmetic surgery on my eyes. YES! One day in the futureI plan to get married and have a family. Any statements to the contrary are simply untrue.
‘Henceforth, as new fantasies are printed, I have advised my attorneys of my willingness to institute legal action and subsequently prosecute all guilty to the fullest extent of the law.
‘As noted earlier, I love children. We all know that kids are very impressionable and therefore susceptible to such stories. I'm certain that some have already been hurt by this terrible slander. In addition to their admiration, I would like to keep their respect.’
After reading the statement, Frank refused to answer questions from the assemblage of reporters, and left the podium.
No celebrity had ever gone to such lengths to proclaim his or her heterosexuality. The fact that Michael didn't appear in person dampened his declaration. Also, his statement was full of half-truths. Perhaps he hadn't had surgery on his eyes, as he claimed, but he certainly had surgery on his nose, and three times. How could he repudiate one story relating to plastic surgery without admitting the whole truth about work done on his nose? Because of this obvious omission, one was forced to wonder what else Michael was not revealing. In the end, the press conference backfired; if anything, it raised more questions than it answered.