Michael Jackson has died from cardiac arrest at age 50.

Love him or loathe him, Jackson’s talent was undeniable, and his contribution to pop music will likely never be matched. While I was never a huge fan, particularly in later years, I will still mourn his passing. Perhaps his most memorable video, and my favorite, below (excuse the ad at the front, but it was the best quality I could find):

As my partner so eloquently put after hearing the news… today we are “saddened by the passing of an Angel, and the death of a King.”

Good bye Farrah. Goodbye Michael. You will both be missed.

It’s hard not to be moved to tears… Here is a quote from Black’s acceptance speech…

When I was 13 years old, my beautiful mother and my father moved me from a conservative Mormon home in San Antonio, Texas, to California, and I heard the story of Harvey Milk. And it gave me hope. It gave me the hope to live my life; it gave me the hope that one day I could live my life openly as who I am and that maybe even I could fall in love and one day get married…

Most of all, if Harvey had not been taken from us 30 years ago, I think he’d want me to say to all of the gay and lesbian kids out there tonight who have been told they are less than by their churches, or by the government, or by their families, that you are beautiful, wonderful creatures of value. And that no matter what everyone tells you, God does love you, and that very soon, I promise you, you will have equal rights federally across this great nation of ours.