George Michael, the British pop superstar who reached early fame with WHAM! dies at 53.
George Michael said he wanted to be a pop star ever since he was seven years old, but like so many celebrities, he found fame wasn't all he thought it would be.
In 1990, the singer only did a handful of interviews to promote his second solo album, Listen WithoutPrejudice Vol. 1, and in them he announced he wouldn't be making any music videos for the album and wasn't planning an extensive tour.
He made those decisions in the hope that he could reduce the strain that came with his celebrity status.
"It's quite simple, really," Michael said to the LA Times in 1990, "I decided that the thing I really enjoy ... the thing I really needed was my songwriting. I didn't need the celebrity.
"I'm sure a lot of people are going to believe all this is just some sort of gimmick ... just another way to stir interest.
"But I'm also sure that most people find it hard to believe that stardom can make you miserable. After all, everybody wants to be a star. I certainly did, and I worked hard to get it. But I was miserable, and I don't want to feel that way again."
Michael's comments disappointed his fans and they also upset one of the world's most famous singers, Frank Sinatra.
Ol' Blue Eyes, who was in his mid-70s at the time, felt compelled to write George Michael an open letter in response, which was published in the LA Times' Calendar liftout.
George Michael performs at 'Concert of Hope' at London's Wembley Arena in 1993. Photo / AP
Here's what Frank Sinatra wrote to the pop star:
"Dear Friends,
"When I saw your Calendar cover today about George Michael, 'the reluctant pop star', my first reaction was he should thank the good Lord every morning when he wakes up to have all that he has. And that'll make two of us thanking God every morning for all that we have.
"I don't understand a guy who lives 'in hopes of reducing the strain of his celebrity status'. Here's a kid who 'wanted to be a pop star since I was about seven years old'. And now that he's a smash performer and songwriter at 27 he wants to quit doing what tons of gifted youngsters all over the world would shoot grandma for - just one crack at what he's complaining about.
"Come on, George. Loosen up. Swing, man. Dust off those gossamer wings and fly yourself to the moon of your choice and be grateful to carry the baggage we've all had to carry since those lean nights of sleeping on buses and helping the driver unload the instruments.
"And no more of that talk about 'the tragedy of fame'. The tragedy of fame is when no one shows up and you're singing to the cleaning lady in some empty joint that hasn't seen a paying customer since Saint Swithin's day. And you're nowhere near that; you're top dog on the top rung of a tall ladder called Stardom, which in Latin means thanks-to-the-fans who were there when it was lonely.
"Talent must not be wasted. Those who have it - and you obviously do or today's Calendar cover article would have been about Rudy Vallee - those who have talent must hug it, embrace it, nurture it and share it lest it be taken away from you as fast as it was loaned to you.
