The Jacksons: An American Dream

The miniseries was executive produced by Suzanne de Passe and Stan Margulies, produced by Joyce Eliason, Jermaine Jackson and Margaret Maldonado, and directed by Karen Arthur. The movie was filmed in Los Angeles and Pittsburgh, where director Arthur had previously filmed her feature film Lady Beware.


The Jacksons: An American Dream is based on Katherine Jackson's My Family autobiography. A critical and commercial success, the program won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Choreography, while the performances of Hilton-Jacobs and Bassett received widespread acclaim.

Plot[edit]

The miniseries stars Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs as the Jacksons' patriarch Joseph Jackson, Angela Bassett as the family matriarch Katherine Jackson. Abolade David Olatunde, Alex Burrall, Jason Weaver and Wylie Draper played Michael Jackson in different eras, while Bumper Robinson and Terrence Howard played Jackie Jackson in different eras, Shakiem Jamar Evans and Angel Vargas played Tito Jackson, Margaret Avery played Katherine's mother, Martha Scruse, Holly Robinson Peete played Diana Ross, Billy Dee Williams played Berry Gordy and Vanessa Williams played Suzanne de Passe. The opening sequence of the film features footage of the real Jacksons rehearsing, performing on stage, a few clips from the "Can You Feel It" music video, album covers, magazine covers, a snippet from their cartoon, and pictures of the family. The film is mostly based on the autobiography written by Katherine Jackson, and issued in 1990, entitled My Family. The entire mini-series spans a period of about 40 years.


Act 1 of the film is based on young Katherine and Joseph meeting and courting in the 1940s and showing how they managed to start out raising their children in Gary, Indiana in the 1950s and 1960s, how Joseph discovers the children have talent and starts entering them in talent shows, and finally how the Jackson 5 go on to have early fame and face its consequences in the late 1960s.


Act 2 of the film deals with the struggles of young Michael Jackson as he faces his brothers marrying early into the Jackson 5's success, his problems with acne as a teenager, and the group's eventual switch to Epic Records in the 1970s, his eventual solo superstardom based on the success of his albums Off the Wall and Thriller, the commercial mishap that caused his hair to ignite, and his legendary Motown 25 performance of "Billie Jean", as well as confronting his difficult relationship with his estranged father in the 1980s.


Michael Jackson's voice is heard on: "Beat It", "Human Nature", "Billie Jean", "I Want You Back", "I Wanna Be Where You Are", "I'll Be There", "Rockin' Robin", "ABC", and "Dancing Machine". On all other songs, the Michael Jackson vocal part is performed by Anthony Harrell, Jason Weaver or Kipp Lennon.