State of Shock: How Michael Jackson (Sort Of) Introduced Rocks
Off to the Rolling Stones  Rocks Off grew up in a MTV-free
household. Never owned a spangled white glove or a "Beat It"
leather jacket, never saw 1983's Motown 25 TV special that sent
Thriller into the stratosphere and had every kid who did see it
doing a peculiar dance called the Moonwalk at recess the next
day.  But when Rocks Off was around eight years old, the family
went to visit our cousin Jill in Alief. We didn't head out there
very often; that may have been the only time we ever did. And
about the only thing we really remember about that trip is
seeing a Thriller poster in Jill's bedroom.  It was around the
time Rocks Off was becoming aware of the wider pop-culture world
beyond Star Wars and Saturday morning cartoons, and that poster
left an impression. Not terribly long after, I managed to catch
"Beat It" and "Thriller" either on NBC's Friday Night Videos or
MTV at a friend's house, and that did it. Rocks Off was
officially a fan.  About