Entertainment News
2006-04-22
George Michael
vs. Elton John: Round 2
British pop star
George Michael has reignited his feud with Elton John,
saying recent harsh media treatment of his personal life
British pop star
George Michael has reignited his feud with Elton John,
saying recent harsh media treatment of his personal life
started when John made adverse comments about his
state of mind. British tabloid the Daily Mirror
printed the headline: "Drugs Could Kill George
Michael" after the 42-year-old was arrested in
February for possessing illegal drugs.
"The trajectory
of my particular soap opera [with the press] launched
from that statement Elton made about 18 months ago when
Elton hadn't seen me for years," Michael told ITV host
Michael Parkinson. "Elton said he thought I was really
miserable for some reason. From that point on I've
been trying to prove that I'm not. Unfortunately, it made me
incredibly vulnerable to the press."
In December 2004,
John said Michael appeared to be in a "strange place,"
wasting his talent by staying at home and shunning the
limelight. "The subtext to it is, 'Well, he was all right
before he came out, and now he lives this depraved gay
life, and he's miserable and fat,' " Michael said,
adding that he feels fine.
Michael ended
years of speculation about his sexuality by announcing he
was gay after he was arrested in 1998 for engaging in a
"lewd act" in a public toilet in Beverly Hills, Calif.
John, 59, was one of the first to take advantage of a
change in British legislation last December allowing
civil unions. Michael, the former front man for Wham!
said he planned to legally register his partnership with
Kenny Goss when the couple reach their 10th
anniversary later this year and was planning his first
tour in 15 years for later in 2006.
"I haven't felt
this good since I was a lot younger," he told ITV
television in an interview to be broadcast on Saturday
evening. A transcript was made available on Friday.
Michael has sold more than 80 million records and
performed hits such as "Careless Whisper," "Last
Christmas," and "Faith." "It's...a strange frustration
to have to keep looking at this parallel life, this Fleet
Street life," he added, referring to the London street where
major newspapers used to be based. (Mike
Collett-White, Reuters)
Click here to follow The Advocate on Twitter.
Page 1 of 1