Being A MJ Impersonator

(5-11-2012) Michael Firestone plays the King of Pop at the "MJ" show at the Rio hotel in Las Vegas (USA). Off the stage, he looks nothing like Michael Jackson, but makeup makes the transformation possible. He spends about $3,500 a year on makeup and learned how to apply makeup from drag queens in Atlantic City.

However, when it came to getting Michael Jackson’s famous footwork down, Firestone took advice from the source himself. He once met Michael at Caesars Palace. Firestone handed the star his card, and to his surprise, Michael called him, and the pair talked for hours.

"It was both amazing and sad," Firestone said. "I mean, he had to be bored. I’m not that interesting."

Michael even gave Firestone a few pointers.

"He said, 'When you do Billie Jean, you’re doing it backwards,'" Firestone recalled. "When I was kicking, I was turning my back to the audience. He said if I did it with the other leg, I didn’t have to turn away from them. I changed it the next day.

"Some Michael Jacksons I see just look mean. But I got to talk to him. I could see how nice he was. I want to reflect that in his eyes."

His dozen-plus costumes cost $2,000 each. One jacket lasted only seven performances.

Since Michael’s death, people across the country have hired Firestone to help them remember the star. He has performed in Michael’s hometown of Gary (Indiana, USA) and drew long lines at the Rio on the singer’s birthday. He was so devastated by Michael’s death that he said he almost quit the act he had been perfecting since 1999.

"I didn’t want people to think I was taking advantage of it," he said.

Source: MJFC / Las Vegas Sun