Thriller - 25 years on

I remember watching the special TV presentation of MJ's "Thriller" video in a darkened living room with my brothers - it blew us away. I also recall how my mates and I tried to copy the dance moves from the video (with varying degrees of success).

Michael Jackson's Thriller went on to become one of the bestselling albums of all time, winning eight Grammy Awards, selling between 45 and 100 million copies worldwide and its importance to popular music has been compared to the advent of Elvis Presley and the Beatles. While MJ's personal life has been somewhat...controversial, one can't deny that "Thriller" is a masterpiece.
Last month, twenty-five years after its groundbreaking release, the video was commemorated by the American Film Institute and earlier this year, the album was remixed, repackaged and re-released to celebrate its silver-anniversary (a waste of time, in my opinion. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, but I digress)....

Anyway, we all know what became of the "King of Pop" since the release of Thriller....but what of his co-star, Playboy model and actress Ola Ray? Apparently she was paid just £600 for her role as MJ's "girlfriend" for the 14 minute pop promo.



Ola also had a role in "Beverly Hills Cop II" alongside Eddie Murphy, but was charged for cocaine possession in 1992 and spent some time in rehab. Now 47 years old, Ola currently lives in Sacramento, California with her daughter, and is a full-time mother with plans to take up a singing career and write a book.


Ola Ray on the Internet Movie Database
I was star of Michael jackson's £700m Thriller video... and got paid £600
Wikipedia entry on Thriller (album)
Wikipedia entry on Thriller (music video)