Michael Jackson Rare Banned E.T. Story Book
A very rare opportunity to own the Michael Jackson Rare Banned E.T. Story Book including an unreleased version of ‘Someone in The Dark’
This rare banned E.T. story book was released in 1982 and after only a few hundred copies were sold it was pulled from music stores.
The dispute arose over the promotion of Michael Jacksons’ Thriller album and the E.T. story book being released at the same time.
What makes this box set so rare?
Early (“illegal”) release in November, 1982 of Michael Jackson’s song, “Someone In The Dark” recorded on this album caused a record label lawsuit that ended up in the Supreme Court. The Court ruled that all releases and sales of this song were immediately prohibited and ordered that all current recordings and copies of the song be instantly recalled and pulled from record shelves across the world, leaving the few already-sold recordings and albums to become instant collector’s items and very hard to find.
The box set includes a full colour poster and 20-page book with story lines and pictures from the movie, the original LP and a picture disc LP and an E.T. membership invite card.
Two versions of ‘Someone in The Dark’ are on this LP – ONE OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN RELEASED ON ANY OTHER FORMAT.
Condition Report: Vinyl’s are in excellent condition. The box is in poor condition.
According to the biography Michael Jackson: The Magic and the Madness, written by journalist J. Randy Taraborrelli, the pop singer had shown an early attachment to the story of E.T. After a publicity photo shoot for the soundtrack album in which an animatronic robot of the extraterrestrial character hugged Jackson, the singer stated with wonderment, “He was so real that I was talking to him. I kissed him before I left. The next day, I missed him.” Jackson later revealed in the December 1982 issue of Ebony magazine—in which both he and E.T. appear on the cover—that he felt he actually was the creature during the album recording and shared his thoughts on why he had such a strong connection to the character:
“He’s in a strange place and wants to be accepted—which is a situation that I have found myself in many times when travelling from city to city all over the world. He’s most comfortable with children, and I have a great love for kids. He gives love and wants love in return, which is me. And he has that super power which lets him lift off and fly whenever he wants to get away from things on Earth, and I In can identify with that. He and I are alike in many ways”
