The Liz Smith Column | 07/09/2009 11:00 pm

Liz Smith: Was Tabloid Speculation Right About Michael?

Also in Our Gossip Girl’s weekend dish: The ‘Harry Potter’ kids – almost grown … Imelda Marcos – 900 lawsuits later, she’s still got all her shoes!

By Liz Smith

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Michael Jackson, March '09 © Getty Images

"Self-actualizers are somehow both mature and childlike. They manifest ‘healthy childishness’ and ‘a second naiveté,’" said one Abraham Maslow.

I see our old friends on the National Enquirer are not tooting their own horn too much, just a little bit of preening here and there, because they predicted back on January 7 that Michael Jackson had only about six months to live.

At that time, the Enquirer said the man we’ve all been immortalizing for over a week was suffering from a lethal lung disease and trying to get a lung transplant. They also cited emphysema and gastrointestinal bleeding, adding that he was taking one painkiller after another. (They have added, since he died, that he was taking more than 50 pills a day – 10,000 in the final six months of his life.)

If any of this medical guessing turns out to be true, then the Enquirer was horribly prescient. And their six-month death prediction, whatever you think of the scandal sheet, was eerily right on the money!

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European critics who’ve seen "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" say that the sixth installment is not just resting on its laurels. One Sarah Crompton writes: "It takes the saga in a dark direction, as Harry accepts his role as the Chosen One and sets about preparing to destroy the evil Lord Voldemort."

There seems to be a lot of "threat" in this movie and a fair amount of humor, although Voldemort will never actually appear. What this "Harry Potter" has is the security of its star threesome who all grew up together – Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint – (Harry, Hermione and Ron) and "one of the finest groups of British acting talent ever assembled," says Crompton.

Harry and pals almost grown up? A palpable hit!

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One of America’s controversial "old friends" is the former first lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos, who celebrated her 80th birthday in Manila last week.

The widow of the Philippine strong man, who was ousted from office in 1986, is still very popular in her own country. She has never gone to jail in spite of the 900 civil and criminal cases leveled against her.

Imelda Marcos/Image: Wikipedia

Ruth and Bernie Madoff could have taken some lessons from Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos!

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Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé and the Kaiser Chiefs, as well as Michael Jackson are all making lots of money now for a Dutch pension fund called ABP that owns the rights to numbers of their songs.

This company bought its pop-music portfolio for about $150 million last year from Universal Music Group. Now it is enjoying quite a boost from Michael’s popularity after his death.

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Those famous guys who run The Four Seasons restaurant in Manhattan, where masters of the universe still gather to pay a lot of money for a baked potato at lunch, are still celebrating themselves. On July 15 they will have another champagne reception and dinner in honor of the restaurant’s 50th anniversary and to appreciate the genius of architects Philip Johnson and Frank Lloyd Wright.

The Four Seasons, NYC/Image: Wikipedia

Julian and Alex remind us that, back in 1959, cars had fins, Hawaii was named the 50th state and the innovative Johnson and Wright built both the Four Seasons and the Guggenheim Museum.

If they miss their No. 1 client, the rich and philanthropic Pete Peterson, he’ll be out at Bohemian Grove this week lecturing those big-timers.

37 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

I am surprised Imelda Marcos is still alive. I thought she had died years ago. Maybe she would miss her shoes too much to want to leave them.

By Judy K. on 07/10/2009 6:03 am

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It wasn’t too long ago that someone made the remark that much as many of us turn our noses up at the idea of The National Enquirer, they are remarkably right on a lot of what they publish. They were the only ones to get a last picture of Charlton Heston shortly before his death. He was out on the veranda of the house and somehow they got the picture. I was amazed at how well he looked, but saddened by his known condition. In any case, what ever Michael Jackson’s cause of death it is a loss and a tradgedy. Nothing proved that more than Paris’ remarks at the funeral. She helped all of us remember that in the end he was a human being and that he had children who clearly loved him.

By Mary Utrup on 07/10/2009 6:39 am

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I could be wrong, but my guess is that The National Enquirer didn’t "get a last picture of Charlton Heston" - my bet is that they bought it.

By KatyDid Wells on 07/12/2009 5:05 pm

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It appears to have been taken at an elevated angle. As if someone was in a tree somewhere and "caught" him on the veranda of his house. It was heartwarming and heartbreaking to see it. On the one hand he was clearly getting very good care and looked as you might expect him to at that age. On the other hand, to know that someone who had once been a very leading light in theatre and movies now no longer remembered his own name made it hard to look at.

By Mary Utrup on 07/13/2009 7:41 pm

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It may have been difficult to look at, but the truth of the matter is that many of us are headed for a similar end. Alzheimer’s is on the rise and as it has run through many in my family, it scares the hell out of me.

As for Heston, at least he’s now at peace. As for us? We can still watch him as a young and vibrant Judah Ben-Hur anytime we want.

By KatyDid Wells on 07/13/2009 8:19 pm

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You are absolutely correct when you say many of us are headed in the same direction! I think it really isn’t so much "on the rise" as that we are more aware of it’s possibility…esp baby boomers! Once such a title of renown, now a title of hapless possibility. I am glad with you that Mr. Heston is, indeed, at peace and that his most memorable roles are preserved not only for us but future generations as well.

By Mary Utrup on 07/13/2009 9:23 pm

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The National Enquirer has only one use and it isn’t reading.

I can’t wait to see the newest instalment of Harry Potter. I am a huge fan:)

By S G on 07/10/2009 7:17 am

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I would not give the Enquirer too much credit. Think on how many headlines you have seen blaring that other stars are on their deathbeds, yet they are still here: Liz Taylor comes to mind, for instance. If you keep predicting celebrity disasters, sooner or later one will pan out just on statistics.

They may have coincidentally predicted the season of MJ’s death, but the cause is probably way off. I expect that all the pills had more to do with it. You can’t put that many chemicals into your body without ruining your health.

By Lila Kuh on 07/10/2009 7:46 am

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I had not meant to give "The Enquirer" too much credit. All the same, they have "hit the nail on the head" on a number of occasions. It can cause chagrin given all the times they have been WAY OFF BASE! As regards Michael Jackson, one can only hope that those of the current "younger generation" will gain some insight into the tradgedy he became.

By Mary Utrup on 07/13/2009 9:26 pm

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When I was a kid, my siblings and I use to tease our Mom whenever she’d tell us that we should listen to her advice because Mom knows what she’s talking about, and "remember that time when …some example where her advice was really good…"

We’d tell her, "Well, if you’re always talking, you’re bound to get something right sooner or later." ;) It generally didn’t do us any favors to say, lol, but the point is a valid one (though not applicable to her, lol).

By Rachel F on 07/15/2009 10:15 am

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Liz: "
Ruth and Bernie Madoff could have taken some lessons from Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos!"

Madoff did enough damage without help!

By Jeannot Kensinger on 07/10/2009 7:50 am

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Jeannot….Madoff had lots of help…don’t you find it interesting that there were no less than 8 written reports about his dealings over 16 years…that never got to the proper authorities?

Ask where Meaghan Cheung, Simona Suh and Doria Bachenheimer went to…and then ask why they did not act on the information that was sent to them?

Who hired them? Who did they report to?

Where are they now??

By Kelly In Texas on 07/11/2009 11:59 am

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I’m no fan of the National Enquirer and never buy them. (Of course, we’ve had this discussion before - hardly anyone admits to buying them. Yet they manage to stay in business). Regardless, one can’t avoid seeing them in check-out lanes and such. I actually think they may be a bit more accurate in recent years than they were in the past. I just don’t particularly need to know everything they tell.

By Deena B. on 07/10/2009 7:56 am

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My husband is in the advertising business and sadly he told me the statics that National Enquirer is the number one magazine in the country and senior citizens are at the top of the list for purchases them. They have been sued so much that the accuracy rate may be better but it is still a rag. To think that some people never read books but read that magazine.

By Barbara B on 07/10/2009 8:09 am

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I don’t think Maslow had someone like Michael Jackson in mind when he was describing self actualization. There’s a big difference between retaining a childlike curiosity and being arrested forever in a Neverland psyche.

Bob Woodruff’s wife has been such a strength for him and their family through all these years. Now here’s a gal who should have some garlands put around her neck.

By phyllis Doyle Pepe on 07/10/2009 8:11 am