The Men in the Mirror

Before Michael Jackson’s death, his impersonators’ lives were, at best, uneventful. Now they’re in high demand—and have strangers weeping in front of them.

Last week, Harry Connick Jr. made international news by shooting down a blackface parody of the Jackson brothers on an Australian talent show, indicating that the road of Michael Jackson imitation is paved with peril.

But for the most part, said Frederick Henry, “Michael is hot again.” And Henry would know: Here in Las Vegas, he performs as Jackson in American Superstars, a show at the Stratosphere Hotel & Casino on the Strip that also offers takes on Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, and Elvis. Jackson’s death has reignited the industry of his impersonators, and Tribute to the Legend, Michael is now the featured part of the Stratosphere program—one of several places you can see “Michael Jackson” in Vegas.

Click the Image to View Our Gallery of Michael Jackson Impersonators.

There is no irony allowed among Michael Jackson impersonators. In their world, his genius was never diminished—not by any accusations hurled his way, not when critics panned his final disc, Invincible, in 2001 (to those who make a living performing as Jackson, it is a masterpiece). And, by the way, don’t call them impersonators—these are tribute artists.

Like Elvis, Jackson had a distinctive look and voice, qualities that lend themselves to imitation—and Vegas loves to replicate success. Jackson was ubiquitous here in effigy long before his death, but because his popularity waned after his legal tribulations tainted him, the market for Jackson clones saturated. Fredrick Henry, for one, left Vegas for many of those lean years.

Times have changed since the singer’s death on June 25: Jackson tributes are front and center again. The Jackson-centrism taking place at American Superstars, which also includes billboards on I-15 and signage in the casino, is just one example of a show using this moment to put their Jackson, Henry in this case, forward in the marketing lineup.

“You can get a Mini-MJ for $2,500 plus expenses. That is recession priced,” said Las Vegas impresario Jeff Beacher, whose cast of little people performers features Michael Jackson.

Or, as another Jackson impersonator, Michael Firestone, put it: “The day after he died people started crying as I performed. Now, it happens two or three times a day. Since he passed I regularly see, like, 65-year-old white men come up to me and cry. You can tell these are the people who three months ago hated Michael Jackson. Deep down I know they feel guilty. Everyone knows he did not do anything wrong.” (Jackson impersonators, online and in person, tend to discuss his death as almost a martyrdom, and seem oblivious that anyone could dissent from that.)

Then there is Beacher’s Madhouse: a Vegas show that mixes vaudeville gimmicks, foolish contests, B-list celebrities and lots of jiggle into a bachelor party experience that fills a Las Vegas showroom—first at the Hard Rock, now at Mirage. Its impresario is the giddily opportunistic Jeff Beacher, who proudly chases pop-culture trends with a cast of little people that create ripped-from-the-headlines impressions: mini-Britney Spears, mini-Donald Trump and, why not, even mini-Kevin Federline.

Beacher said that since Jackson’s death, he has been exporting his Michael Jackson impersonators around the country to gigs from casinos to corporate functions. “You can get a Mini-MJ for $2,500 plus expenses. That is recession priced,” he said.

And what are they buying for that money? “The music is upbeat. People love little people. It is a high energy thing. I have always had a Michael Jackson in the show. But since the guy died people want to see the impersonators more than ever and I can just send them on the road without the rest of the Madhouse.”