Celebutard of the Week: Joe Jackson

In the unappetizing race to scavenge the remaining flesh from the bones of Michael Jackson, Joe Jackson, the star’s Daddy Dearest, is turning the singer’s death into a spectacle unimagined by Barnum & Bailey.

Joe, to whom his son left nothing in his will, is the architect of the star’s final world tour, putting him on display like a freakish piñata. Joe also disrupted a weird press conference this week to promote his record label, unable to resist waiting a millisecond to profit from what is shaping up as the biggest celeb death of the decade.

This is why Joe Jackson is my Celebutard of the Week – in keeping with my book, Celebutards: The Hollywood Hacks, Limousine Liberals and Pandering Politicians who are destroying America. (Kensington.)

In his life, the superstar was clearly damaged beyond repair, reconfiguring his face and allegedly sleeping with underage boys. You need to look only as far as Jackson’s relationship with his father to understand where it all began. Jackson has said in interviews that his father was a tyrant, beating him mercilessly if he missed a dance step, ridiculing his dark skin and wide nose.

Michael Jackson’s pop talent was undeniable. So was his status as a predator. He seemed unaware that there was anything wrong with reliving one’s childhood through the company of young boys.

Had Joe Jackson been a better father by even one-tenth, would the world have had a Michael Jackson? He was his creation, as well as his failure.

One thing father and son have in common: Neither seemed to believe his chosen hobby is wrong.