Blackink12 at PostBourgie posts the Jackson 5’s video Blame it on The Boogie. The thing that stands out to me about the video is the Jackson’s faces. I can only match Michael’s because Off The Wall was my first favorite album. BlackINk12 goes on to ask:

Why did The Jacksons release a music video in the late ’70s? Who would have been playing it? And why was Michael ever unhappy with his face?

via Random Midday Hotness: Looking for Blame. « PostBourgie.

The operative question is why were any of the Jackson’s unhappy with their faces? All signs point to Joe Jackson (i know what a revelation). Michael Jackson recounted stories about how his father called him ugly and derogatory names regarding his looks (eg “Big Nose” or “Ugly”). These insults were apparently an sort of ritual before Jackson 5 performances and rehearsals. I doubt he was the only one. I would imagine Jermaine endured these insults when he was first billed as the star of the family band The Jackson Brothers and co-lead of the Jackson 5 and this carried over to Janet, LaToya and the other siblings who have also manipulated their faces. Michael was just the one who had the money to completely remove his face, over and over again.

This is pretty stark change. The a person’s eyes, noses and mouths are the main features people use to recognize each others faces. (Apparently eyebrows are as important as eyes). This type of face masking/changing surgery isn’t limited to the Jacksons, but they aren’t alone in changing their face so much they don’t resemble their old selves. Remember Jennifer Grey from Ferris Beuller’s Day Off and Dirty Dancing?

(I wonder if she remember’s that Jennifer Grey or does she thinks its one of Sarah Jessica Parker’s siblings?). The difference is Grey’s rhinoplasty is not as seemingly unnatural as the Jackson manipulations. Even though Grey completely changed her nose, the proportions of her face and angles of her features don’t seem sculpted. They seem pretty natural. It must be and odd situation when someone has a child and they see their old nose that they decided to remove forever. “I hated my nose, it looks good on you though”

Even disregarding Michael’s grotesque and tragic transformations, many of the Jackson’s have had so much surgery, their features seem odd to many at first. A shame for what most people would, and did, think was a perfectly handsome family.

Anyway, here’s to the Jackson faces.