I saw someone on twitter posts a series of MJ clips apropos of nothing, and I immediately felt a pit in my stomach. I’d worried about this guy for years, but always expected he’d have the comeback of the century. Rushed here to see this thread… been stunned on my couch, watching his parts on my phone the past two hours.
It is so strange how grief for pro skateboarders who I’ve never even met cuts so deeply. I remember when Shane Cross died, even though I wasn’t all that much a fan of his skating, I was affected in a way that I did not expect. Dylan’s passing was the only one of the avalanche of 2016 celeb deaths that caused me to shed tears. Come to think of it, the only non-skater “famous person”’s death that caused me to cry was David Berman.
Losing Marc is going to take years to digest. Difficult to imagine someone who dedicated himself more wholly to his craft, who put more of himself into realizing a vision, who had such preposterous levels of talent combined with such (literally) maniacal drive. He was so obviously troubled for so long. At his peak, it seemed clear that he achieved such outrageous levels of greatness at severe personal cost.
So much to unpack. It’s so crazy to revisit the Seven Steps to Heaven part and remember that he used to be a Puleo-esque “underground secret” kind of figure. I don’t think any other viewing of a video part left me as reeling and dumbfounded as seeing his Yeah Right part at a premiere at Active Temecula in 2003. How many other figures are in the same pantheon? 5? 10? He left an oeuvre that is utterly immortal.
Rest in Peace
Topic: R.I.P. Marc Johnson (Read 76681 times)