The days following Michael Jackson’s demise were “predictable”, according to author Jeffrey Alan Payne, “We all knew that the Jackson family would swarm toward publicity and profit like raccoons on a garbage dumpster, especially Joe and LaToya.”
Payne hopes that Dr. Conrad Murray’s trial for manslaughter will create a second surge of sales for his book “MFN – A Cultural Satire”, released in September 2010. “The day I started writing the book, Michael Jackson died, an event that members of his family and close circle of confidantes considered the reawakening of their careers. They unabashedly exploited every opportunity to bask in the media spotlight. That is what ‘MFN’ is about.”
The Jacksons aren’t the only celebrities who endure cynical analysis in the book. Barack Obama, David Letterman, Kanye West and Amy Winehouse all take their lumps in a story about two radio “shock jocks” that finally cross the line of inexcusably bad taste. “Amy Winehouse is the only one that I feel any remorse for making fun of. She was obviously a tortured soul, who just couldn’t make it on her own. Her life and death were very tragic.”
For everyone else mentioned in the book, from Mel Gibson to Oprah Winfrey, Payne says his attitude was, “Gloves off! If you put yourself in the public spotlight, you have to expect every mistake and faux pas to be front page news, in this day and age.”
The novelist insists that many celebrities deserve their public panning, “If you’re a recognized screen actor and big time producer, you should know better than to shout racial slurs at a cop. How did you not expect there would be circumstances after you behave that way? “
Payne independently published “MFN – A Cultural Satire”; the book was recently named an Award Winning Finalist in the Humour category at the International Book Awards in Los Angeles. It is available only on Amazon and Kindle websites, but Payne hopes that his next book may be picked up and distributed by a mainstream publishing company.
“‘MFN’ has received brilliant reviews from readers of all walks of life, but the reality is that until you can get your book into airport gift shops and big box book stores, you’ll starve. ‘MFN’ has reportedly been ‘laugh-out-loud funny’ and ‘an excellent read’ to most everyone who has sent me feedback on my website www.jeffreyalanpayne.com, but there just aren’t enough people who have read it yet. I hope that the next book will have a more auspicious send off, and maybe both books can prosper from that buzz.
