Today the world lost one of the most talented entertainers. In case you haven’t heard, Michael Jackson died Thursday of a heart attack in California. Surely some of the cynics will focus on his eccentricity or his legal and financial troubles. I even saw one Facebook comment of “good riddance”. Few people doubt that he was a bit unusual and made some poor choices. Michael seemed to live in his own little world. Maybe I would, too, if I’d lived his life. But I’m still not convinced he was guilty of the molestation charges, and neither was the jury. I prefer to remember him as an electrifying singer, dancer, and songwriter who brightened the world a bit.

Growing up in the 80s, my sister Lisa and I listened to Thriller on – get this – VINYL. I wonder whether Brenden will ever hear music from a record. The cover was black with Michael in a white suit and a tiger. When we wanted to rock out, we turned that record up in the game room. We liked lots of the songs, but when “Beat It” came on, we loved to dance on top of the pool table. Eddie Van Halen provided the awesome guitar solo on that track, although I didn’t know it was him until today. Michael was so cool he got one of the greatest rock guitarists around to play on his album. Lisa and I also watched the bizarre, groundbreaking, amazing video for the song “Thriller” on this weird new station called MTV. Vincent Price always creeped me out at the end with his “Darkness falls across the land…” reading. Even today, “Thriller” reminds me of Halloween.

A few years ago we attended a friend’s wedding. The groom, although normally preferring to avoid the spotlight, could do the Thriller dance. His groomsmen and friends pitched in and raised a huge amount of money for their honeymoon to get him to do the dance at their wedding reception. And after initial reluctance, he did. You remember the dance, right? Zombie-style? Hands folded down, arms extended, marching in unison for the world’s weirdest line dance? Yeah, he did it. After a while I think his boys joined him. It was coolest reception dance EVER.

My other main memory of Michael was at Super Bowl XXVII in January 1993, the only time I ever saw him in person. My dad took me to Pasadena to see the Cowboys destroy the Bills. Michael Jackson provided the halftime show. Each of us received a large, folded piece of paper in a solid color. When we got the cue during “Heal the World”, we held up our papers so that the entire stadium turned into a 360-degree picture of children of all races. Remember that show? I had a white paper that formed the background. It was one of the best parts of a fantastic day.

Yes, he was a little strange, but we haven’t seen many people with his combination and level of talents. CNN.com posted a tribute to Michael that discusses how much ground he broke in the music industry and the staggering number of records he sold. Mark Davis wrote his own excellent tribute to Michael’s troubles and triumphs. We are all poorer for his loss.