Where are Michael Jackson’s giant HIStory statues 30 years later?

In June 1995, a giant statue of Michael Jackson provided a surreal spectacle in the heart of London when he was floated on a barge at the bottom of the Thames.

This 32 -foot (10m) pop colossus was only one of the 10 that appeared worldwide to promote the album of the Superstar History: Past, Present and Future, Book I.

The fiberglass titans then followed Jackson during his world tour.

Thirty years later – and 16 years after his death – the king of pop continues to attract controversy, but some of the statues are still held with challenge in the unexpected corners of the world.

Jackson’s double album was a mixture of his greatest successes alongside 15 new songs, including Earth Song, which would spend six weeks at the top of the British board.

In America, the sculptor Diana Walczak consulted the pop star to create a clay sculpture that was digitally digital for the album cover.

The artist based in Hertfordshire, Stephen Pyle, who had built sets for the world productions of The Phantom of the Opera, was questioned by a Sony employee called Robbie Williams (not this one) to make 10 huge statues based on this album cover.

He hired the sculptor Derek Howarth to develop the statue in polystyrene sections, which Mr. Pyle used to make fiberglass molds and casts.

Everything was assembled in the workshop of Chris and Liz Clark at the Elstree studios in the Hertfordshire, where they were painted to look like stone.

The team worked without access to the prototype of Ms. Walczak, which led them to appear slightly different.

Mr. Pyle says: “Do 10 statues in four months was completely challenged, but thanks to Derek, Chris, Liz and the rest of my workshop team at the time, we became an effective factory for the monoliths of Michael Jackson!”

The fate of certain statues is uncertain and they may have been locked in storage or destroyed. But others have remained exhibited in improbable places.

For many years, a monument of the king of pop dominated in a parking lot of McDonald’s in the village of Best in the Netherlands.

The owner of the restaurant, Peter Van Gelder, bought the statue from Sony during a charity gala in 1996 for the Ronald McDonald Children’s Fund.

“The restaurant had just opened and did not yet have the big ye yellow,” he said. “It was my intention to place it as a yier.”

Jackson fans began to flock on the spot, taking photos and playing his music. The crowds became so frequent that Peter had to close the statue to prevent people from climbing on it.

Each year Jackson’s birthday, and the day of his death, it became a sanctuary, with fans gathering to play music, hang photos and leave flowers.

Things changed in 2019 after the Documentary of Neverland de HBO leveled new allegations of sexual abuse on children against Jackson.

“In the Netherlands, there was no strong reaction and my intention was to leave the statue there,” said Peter.

But he said that pressure from the United States of the fast food chain has resulted in its withdrawal and storage in a “secret location”.

McDonald’s said to the BBC: “In 2019, after the documentary, it was decided to delete the statue.

“We felt and thought it is important for all customers to feel comfortable when visiting one of our restaurants.”

Peter hopes to give the statue to a fan club, but due to its size, a construction permit is necessary. “Many have approached me, but no one was able to obtain a license,” he said.

“The years have passed since his death and I noticed that the interest in the statue decreases … So the statue of Michael Jackson is rested under a tarpaulin in an insignificant hangar.”

The court of an abandoned club in a small town at 18 miles (30 km) west of Vienna is not the place where you expect to find an imposing effigy of the king of pop.

The owner Franz Josef Zika won the statue in 1998 during a radio auction by radio in favor of the Red Cross and spent 150,000 Austrian schillings (£ 9,300).

He remembers: “The big problem was when I got home and I had to tell my uncle, who was the family’s boss, and he said:” You’re crazy! “”

Visitors to Baby’o in Judenau-Baumgarten may have been surprised to find Michael Jackson in the smoking area, but Franz saw it as an excellent way to promote his club.

“There were also many bars next to the statue, so there was a party around Jackson,” he said.

Last year, the club was forced to close after a new residential building built nearby.

Now Franz wants to find someone to open a small coffee or pizzeria on the site, but must first get rid of the pop monolith.

He said: “I have been trying to sell it for two years. I would be happy if I get € 25,000 (£ 21,000) for that.

“I had some interest from Sweden and some in Hungary, but the problem is that people don’t have enough money.”

What if he can’t find a buyer? “We don’t know. Maybe I’m going to send it to Mars. Elon will do that for me!” He laughs.

For more than 50 years, an annual fairground event called Luna Park has taken place in Lausanne, Switzerland.

It is one of those flashing lights and bright colors that another Jackson statue can be found.

He received a slight renovation, with golden painting added to his false military uniform.

The organizers tell the BBC that they bought it 2008 from a man who had bought it in Sony for years earlier.

The statue has not been displayed in recent years, but they do not say why – but they underline are not for sale.

When Jackson brought his history tour to South Africa, he had one of the 10 statues with him.

Santarama Miniland, which opened in Johannesburg in the 1970s to present the country in miniature, is now abandoned.

The attractions have been deleted and the miniature train no longer works, but an MJ repainted monolith is still held, visible in the satellite images of Google Earth.

2summers.net’s blogger Heather Mason visited the park in 2013.

She remembers: “It was quite strange to see a giant statue of Michael Jackson in the middle of the miniland, where the general theme is that things are smaller than life, no bigger than life.

“But I certainly enjoyed it! The MJ statue was the best photo shoot in the park.”

A new layer of paint and a new pair of sunglasses have not made this silhouette in too unrecognizable fiberglass.

In June 2019, Europark Idroscalo Milano unveiled the “restored” statue after a Flash Mob on the theme of Jackson.

An advertiser has told the gathered crowd: “This statue is dedicated to all of you, who continue to love it over the years.”

The dramatic revelation occurred only a few months after the documentary Leave Neverland.

A spokesperson for the park told the BBC that the statue was bought at the end of the tour but remained abandoned for many years before ending up in the park.

They said that the Titan had covered his face for a while after allegations of children’s mistreatment because the owners of parks at the time “did not want to show that MJ welcomed children in the park, so he was transformed almost into a robot”.

Despite the work to restore and repaint the statue, the owners of the park have now put the renovated statue for sale.