Michael Jackson

This doll I found at an outlet that gets overproduced things. This Michael Jackson-doll is part of a series called Street Life that is sold in Europe by the French company AB Toys - they have also made singing Spice Girls^TM dolls.
Michael comes in two versions; one ordinary, mute doll and one that sings. Both are dressed in this black and white outfit. The singing dolls comes with a cassette that you put in his back and when you push a button on his belly, the doll sings "Black and White".

There is also a fashion set with Michael Jackson's red leather jacket and black pants. This set includes a cassette with the song "Beat it". I've bought two dolls as one will have the original set of clothes and the other the red outfit.

May 9, 1999: I have now changed clothes on one of the dolls. What great quality they are! The doll is made in China and that really shows. His arms have that joint at the shoulder that can make him move his arms any way, his elbow is jointed and the hands can be turned. He has molded-on "white shorts with black waistband". The legs are made of a rubbery plastic with two clicks and they can be put in any position - he can do the split (to the sides I mean of course, an ordinary split can any doll do).

The clothes then. They all have labels marked Michael Jackson / China. The black pants are all lined in white (polyester?) to prevent staining and perhaps for easier dressing on those rubber-legs. The "leather"-jacket is also lined, in red.
His right white glove is made of a thin, very soft plastic that can be turned inside out if necessary - I had to do that to get it off and was afraid his hand would follow (wonder how those kids manage to do this without that happening). He has these black "leather" things around his knees and one lower shin that are made of plastic and were very easy to remove with that "belt-closure".
The only thing I have to complaint about, were the socks he wore (still wear, I didn't bother change those as they were the same in the fashion-set) as they hardly was holding together. The seams had all gone up somehow - or they weren't well done in the beginning. Otherwise I just love him!
His head is a tad too big, just like the Hasbro Super Model-dolls but that, I can live with!

The cassettes includes a whole copy of Michael Jackson's hits "Black and White" or "Beat It" and I guess they are of mp3-format to get room in these tiny computerized cassettes.

Below left: the hole in his back and the cassette, middle: his features with those bendable legs and the labels and right: Michael dressed in the Beat It outfit.