Bert Schneider Mourning Michael Jackson

2009 was a heart wrenching year. Very odd, very cruel. To say I was in a fog after Michael Jackson passed would be an understatement. I was overwhelmed with grief which took me by surprise. It was if MJ was a beloved family member. Michael was a symbol of my youth and with his death, it literally felt like my childhood was over. The Jackson's represented something more to Black Americans than most can verbalize. They were our royal family our Kennedy's. But let me get back to the point, some people do drugs others like me get codependent. We all have our failings. I met Bert Schneider through Quween on the scene and although we no longer are in contact, the stories these two shared and the memories are Priceless. Sometimes with great pain one receives a gift...

Oscar Winner Bert Schneider Mourning Michael Jackson

I met an extraordinary man the other day. He is an old friend of Quween's. At first he reminded me of an older version of David Bowie. If you are familiar with the movie THE HUNGER there is a scene when Bowie's character ages while waiting for Susan Sarandon. Bert Schneider is an amazing man with so much sorrow. Like Michael Jackson & Charlie Chaplin, Schneider is a creative genius. I firmly believe that everyone has a story to tell. Bert Schneider was Executive Producer for Hearts and Minds, 5 Easy Pieces, Days of Heaven, The Last Picture Show, Head and the TV Show The Monkees. I love the diner scene in 5 Easy Pieces and I told Bert. The scene where Jack Nicholson wants toast and the waitress won't give it to him. And he tries to accommodate her but she keeps giving him a hard time. To me that scene exemplifies all of us who suffer with bureaucracy, the inertia of rules and forms. 5 Easy Pieces took Jack Nicholson on his way to super stardom. Schneider kissed me on the cheek when I told him what I thought of that movie. Bert told me so many great stories and I begged him to tape them all. He said that he promised that I could do a full interview soon but not today. I told him that I learned from the Michael Jackson situation that I can no longer assume that I will be given another chance to talk with someone. Death can take anyone of us at anytime. He told Quween and I about Charlie Chaplin and Michael Jackson's admiration for each other and a Happy Birthday to Charlie Chaplin that never was...