Books: Moonwalk

The Michael Jackson biopic Michael lit up the box office for the past few weeks, but for any child of the '80s and '90s, even a big-budget 2026 production is but a pale imitation of the real thing. That's why I read through Moonwalk, Michael Jackson's 1988 autobiography.

Like the recent movie, Moonwalk was published in 1988, before the child abuse allegations and drug addiction that consumed the last years of Jackson's life. At the time Jackson told his story to writer Shaye Areheart, he was nearing the peak of his powers. He would play the Super Bowl halftime show five years later, he would be charged with child molestation fifteen years later, and he would die twenty years later.

The autobiography itself is pretty anodyne, as you might expect. There are some hints of the issues to come (passages where Jackson says he's never tried any drugs, explanations of why he loves the company of children, etc.).  The closest Jackson comes to being defensive is his frank admission of having multiple plastic surgeries - not a big deal, according to Jackson, since everyone in Hollywood gets work done. On the other hand, the book doesn't brag about the huge amounts of time and money Jackson donated to charity, either.

Whatever you think of Michael Jackson (and his legacy is being posthumously litigated now more than ever before, with documentaries and counter-documentaries left and right), he was the one of the greatest entertainers who ever lived. The best parts of the book go behind the scenes of his hit songs, his music videos, and his dance moves. If you've ever wondered where hits like "Billie Jean" or "Beat It" come from, or how the "Thriller" music video came together, well, this is one of the only places to hear it from the man himself.

Miscellany: 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon review - Bucking the Bronco

My Tesla Model 3 is in the shop after getting rear-ended last week, and the insurance company gods decided to troll me with a rental vehicle that is the polar opposite of a compact, self-driving EV: a four-door Jeep Wrangler Rubicon.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car classifies the Wrangler as a "compact SUV," but this ain't a RAV4 or CRV.  First, the good: the Wrangler is probably the most durable, capable off-road vehicle available to the average consumer, with part-time four-wheel drive, body on frame construction, and a solid front axle.  With the right tires and a little preparation, you can traverse terrain straight out of, well, a Jeep commercial.

The bad? For everything but off-roading, the Wrangler is a compromise, sometimes a severe one.  As a commuter car, my example guzzled gas (around 18 mpg combined) and delivered a bumpy, noisy ride on the highway.  The engine is decent (FCA's Pentastar 3.6L V6, good for 285 hp), but the rest of the Wrangler's mechanical design, like big knobby tires and removable doors, are counterproductive in morning traffic.

As for the interior, the layout of the dashboard is clear and sensible, and the car is pretty easy to drive. 2024 was a refresh year for the Wrangler, with the biggest change being a new center infotainment touchscreen. The screen is actually well-integrated into the dash, and thankfully, doesn't displace physical controls for climate and audio.

Most of the rest of the vehicle is unchanged.  There's a fair amount of space for rear passengers and a sizable cargo area, but neither are best in class.

The primary competitor to the Wrangler is the sixth-gen Ford Bronco, first released in 2021.  The new Bronco was and is a big seller (both my uncle and my managing partner had one), since the Bronco arguably strikes a better balance between everyday driving and off-road capability. I assume the Wrangler's 2024 refresh was an attempt to add more creature comforts to what had previously been a spartan experience. I consider it mostly successful, though my car's infotainment system crashed multiple times and had to be reset in just a week's worth of driving.

All in all, I think the Wrangler was an interesting car to drive, though I'm happy I'll be getting my car back - eventually.

Miscellany: Penn & Teller: 50 Years of Magic

I never had the chance to see Penn & Teller live in Las Vegas, so when their 50th anniversary tour stopped by Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood last month, I schlepped myself over there to catch the show.

Like their long-running TV series Fool Us, "Penn & Teller: 50 Years of Magic" was a somewhat low-key affair filled with as many jokes as magic tricks. There was lots of audience participation, plenty of forcing, and some classic illusions mixed in with new material.

This is still, at its heart, a comedy magic act, and Penn & Teller haven't lost any of their comic timing over the years.  Even though they're both senior citizens now, they nimbly adapted to what the audience gave them, and the crowd was regularly laughing out loud during the routines.

For me, the most memorable trick of the night was a teleportation effect involving a credit card that I still don't quite understand. I don't know how many more tours these two have left in them, so if Penn & Teller are coming to your town, you might want to check them out.

Miscellany: Personal Alarm Faceoff - She's Birdie 3.0 vs. POM Personal Alarm

There are very few self-defense tools you can carry with you on a plane, especially if your final destination is a city like New York or Chicago. For such occasions, and in addition to my trusty EDC flashlight and pen, I've been looking into carrying a personal alarm.

What is a personal alarm? It's a noisemaking device designed to draw attention in an emergency.  Now, you have to temper your expectations - these alarms are not flashbangs, and they will not in any way physically ward off an attacker.  However, for certain types of situations faced by travelers (purse-snatchings, hotel room invasions, vehicle fires, etc.), they make a lot of sense.

I compared the most popular alarm on the market, She's Birdie, with an alarm from POM, and there are countless others on the market just like these (I'm sure they all hail from the same factories in China). Both alarms are rechargeable via USB-C port with very similar form factors, though I much prefer the feel of the POM alarm (She's Birdie seems plasticky and cheap). I also don't like that the She's Birdie alarm has an on/off switch - it seems like an unnecessary complication and one more thing to go wrong in an emergency.  

However, the alarm on the She's Birdie 3.0 is slightly louder and more shrill - not by much, but enough to notice. Since having a loud alarm is the whole point of the exercise, I think She's Birdie is the winner of this faceoff - barely.