Michael Jackson, the greatest performer of our lifetime, died at the age of 50 in a Los Angeles hospital on Thursday. Before he became a pale-faced punchline the King of Pop was the biggest star on the planet. No Internet, no hype. Just dancing and hit after hit.

Nobody likes to admit it now (Like nobody admits to owning one of the millions of records MC Hammer sold) but there was a time when it was cool to be like Mike. It was common to see dudes sportin’ the orange Thriller jacket or one glove, and everybody tried to master the moonwalk. Read the full story