The King of Pop will be coming back to Greenville. The City Council recently approved a proposal for a statue of Michael Jackson to be placed in front of the Greenville capital building by next summer. Jackson, who performed in Greenville in 1987 in support of his Bad LP, once called Greenville “a town with great little boys.” The concert — held at KoTex Extra Absorbent Arena (then called Greenville Events Arena) — was later called “an accident” by Jackson’s team.
“Michael brought a lot of joy to us that night,” says Rachel Teeins, a 40-year-old nurse who watched Jackson perform. “I was really sad that night. My boyfriend dumped me and I was about to end it all by grilling my face off, then Michael performed Speed Demon and I pictured him telling me, ‘No Rachel, don’t burn your face off.’ Then I didn’t.”
When asked about his death in 2009, the RN broke into tears. “It’s so messed up. Jermaine was the one that should have died. Nobody cares about him.” she said.
Jackson died at age 50 from an overdose of the powerful sedative Propofol and had a history of prescription drug abuse.
“We all use drugs,” says Greenville city council member Perry Tineth. “When I woke up this morning, the first thing I did was pour myself a cup of coffee. Coffee contains a drug. It’s called caffeine and that’s the same as Propofol. Don’t be a hypocrite.”
The statue will be commissioned later this week and council insiders reveal that the statue will be created by local artisan Ben Yurk. Yurk’s previous works include Prince Summertime, a clay work based on Britain’s Prince Harry and the controversial piece Midnight Revenge, which featured Prince Harry hacking a baby seal with a bottle of Coca-Cola.
“If one were to tell me that I would mold Michael Jackson’s genitals last year, I would salivate in disbelief,” says Yurk. “It would be an honor. I have already informed the Greenville city council that I have great interest in this project. I will call it Michael’s Summer Vacation.”
The vote passed 14 to 1. The one destining vote was cast my Gary Illestrum, a local small business owner. When asked why he didn’t want a statue made for Greenville’s Dancing Angel, Mr. Illestrum scoffed. “If I want a statue of a pedophile on city property, I’d have one of my Uncle Terry.”
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