Ever wonder about the real father of Billie Jean’s son?
OPINION: TheGrio’s Black Music Month “Ever Wonder” series imagines the other side of Black music’s most iconic songs. Today, we dive into the backstory of “Billie Jean."
Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
“That Man ruined my life,’” Bill Cooper explains as he adjusts his sunglasses. “He tried to make my mama look like a skeezer… Do people even say ‘skeezer’ anymore? No? A scallywag. Jazzybell?”
If Bill sounds like he’s stuck in the 1980s, it’s because, in many ways, he is. For years, 44-year-old Bill Cooper has lived in relative solitude. He suffers from agoraphobia, a social anxiety-induced mental condition that makes him avoid leaving his home. On the rare occasion that the admittedly reclusive computer engineer leaves the suburban Southern California home he shares with his mom, it’s never during the daytime.
“Bill also has heliophobia, the fear of bright or intense sunlight,” explains Bill’s mom Belinda, who joined theGrio for our exclusive interview. “That’s why he always wears sunglasses. But I think he’s hiding because he’s paranoid. I blame myself. I should have never told him what That Man said about me.”
“It’s not your fault,” Bill interjects. “The cops asked you a question, and you told the truth. Plus, you technically never said he was ‘the one.’ You just said he was one of the men who could be my father. That man started frontin’ as soon as he heard he was the subject of a police investigation. Writing that song was wiggidy-wiggidy wack, and That Man knows it.”
“That Man” is how the Coopers refer to singer, songwriter and perhaps the most famous person to ever moonwalk the face of the earth: Michael Joseph Jackson.
When That Man released his sixth solo project on Nov. 30, 1982, no one could have predicted that it would make Jackson the undisputed “King of Pop.” Until 2018, Jackson’s groundbreaking album was the highest-selling project in the history of recorded music. For critics and fans, the album’s seven songs represent a global superstar’s magnum opus.
According to the police, the entire album is an alibi.
But to the Coopers, “Thriller” is not just a collection of songs. It is a nuclear bomb that blew their world to smithereens. It is the subject of Belinda’s ire and the bane of Bill’s existence. More importantly, it is an origin story. This is the almost, not-quite, kinda, sorta true tale of Belinda Jeanette Cooper and her only child, William — or, as they are known the world over:
Billie Jean and her son.
Belinda the Beautiful
Belinda Cooper is living proof that Black don’t crack.
At 65 years old, Cooper’s stunning beauty is as apparent as the day she began her career as a model, actress and beauty pageant contestant. “Belinda was a bad mamajama,” Sheila D’Roni told theGrio. “Just as bad as she could be.”
D’Roni knows a few things about beautiful women. Before she began hosting, organizing and judging beauty pageants, the woman known as Sheila “The 10” D’Roni earned her nickname during the 1962 Miss Thang beauty pageant. As the now-defunct pageant’s first contestant to earn a perfect score in every category, D’Roni recognized Belinda’s potential. “Back then, Black women weren’t allowed to compete in the big beauty pageants,” said D’Roni. “Miss Thang was essentially the Black Miss America. Former Miss Thangs include Thelma Evans, Foxy Brown and Helen Willis. And I was the queen of the Black beauty queens… Until Belinda came along.”
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On Oct. 23, 1980, 21-year-old Belinda Cooper broke D’Roni’s scoring record to win the 1980 Miss Thang crown. To celebrate, D’Roni invited Belinda to a VIP afterparty at a local nightclub. That’s when one of the invited celebrity guests approached the two pretty, young Thangs.
“This Jheri curl-wearing dude came up and started talking to us,” Belinda told theGrio. “Aside from a few small film roles, this was my first time entering a beauty pageant. So I knew he was trying to lay his rap to me when he said I looked like a beauty queen from a movie scene. I just waved him off and said: ‘I am the one.’”
“He accused me of causing a scene and kept asking me to dance,” Belinda continued. “The VIP section was too crowded, so we danced on the floor in the round. He really wasn’t my type – his hair was too greasy. But I won’t lie – That Man could cut a rug! Plus, he kept buying drinks. I finally told him my name was Billie Jean, which technically wasn’t a lie. That’s what my grandma used to call me. After a night of drinking, dancing and competing, I was pretty wasted. So when he suggested that he should walk me home, I agreed. That was the worst mistake of my life. I blame it on the boogie.”
Multiple partygoers corroborated Belinda’s version of the events, including when the couple left to make the three-block walk to Belinda’s apartment. “When I saw them leave, I didn’t think it was strange,” said the nightclub’s bouncer, who asked to remain anonymous because he didn’t wanna be starting something. “Mike was grinning from ear to ear like, ‘The girl is mine.’ I thought it was just human nature, but Jackson had a weird look in his eyes. That was the last time I saw them.”
Two months after the superstar who would become “That Man” disappeared into the cool October evening with the woman he only knew as “Billie Jean,” the 1980 Miss Thang winner would make history again.
“It is with great disappointment that we accept the resignation of Belinda Jeanette Cooper,” read a statement from Miss Thang Beauty, Inc. “Unfortunately, her pregnancy will prevent her from fulfilling her duties as the 1980 Miss Thang. While we cannot comment on the rumors of the father of her child, we wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors. We also ask that you pray for her speedy recovery from the horrific crime she experienced.”
That is where Belinda’s story turned into a nightmare.
The Thrill Killer
In the weeks preceding the Miss Thang pageant, public records show that there had been 12 fatal attacks in the neighborhood surrounding Belinda Cooper’s apartment. While the attacker left bloodstains on the carpet of the only surviving victim (a woman named Annie, who was not OK), DNA science had not yet evolved enough to determine the identity of the smooth criminal. According to FBI profilers, the culprit likely committed the murders because they enjoyed the “thrill of the kill.” Still, to this day, the serial killings remain unsolved.
“A lady never talks about her personal life,” Belinda told theGrio. “All I’ll say is That Man didn’t do anything I didn’t want him to do when he was at my apartment. After we finished um… talking, we were standing outside waiting for That Man’s limo to pick him up. That’s when everything happened.”
What happened? Was Billie Jean the 13th victim? Was Jackson involved?
To piece together what happened on the evening in question, theGrio reviewed police interviews with Jackson, Cooper and people in the surrounding area.
Belinda says there was a full moon that night (which theGrio confirmed). She and Jackson were outside waiting on his limo to pick him up when she commented on how beautiful the moon looked. “I was just about to tell him my real name,” Belinda recalled. “But as soon as he looked at the moon, he started acting strange — you know how y’all do after y’all lose interest. Then I heard a sound. It was close to midnight, so I wondered what was lurking in the dark. I don’t remember much after that.”
According to our investigation, neighbors remember hearing a high-pitched scream, followed by an unsettling laugh. “I’m an alto, so that wasn’t me,” she added. “I recall trying to scream, but I was too terrified.” Belinda described a man who came out of nowhere, which fits the description of the Thrill killer. “He was a tall, thin, Caucasian male with long fingernails and an unkempt beard,” Belinda told theGrio. “He kinda looked like a hairier, green-eyed Chet Holmgren. I froze when he looked right into my eyes. But apparently, someone wasn’t paralyzed. I looked around and That Man had already beat it. That’s when I fainted.”
When Belinda awoke at the hospital, she asked if Michael Jackson had survived the attack. Unfortunately, the doctors, nurses and police investigators assumed she was still delirious or drunk. Hospitalized for weeks, she thought Michael Jackson was dead. When she turned up pregnant in her routine medical exam, she assumed the late singer was the father of her child. During her welcome home party a few months later, the DJ played the second song on the number-one album in the country. As everyone danced, Belinda slowly realized that Jackson had not only abandoned her, he was abandoning any involvement in the life of her yet-to-be-born child.
Is the kid That Man’s son?
William James Cooper has no interest in taking a DNA test.
“Why would I want a father who doesn’t want me,” he told theGrio. “I believe my mother. Plus, where am I going to get a DNA sample?”
Neither Bill nor his mother have ever filed a paternity suit. In fact, Belinda has always insisted that Jackson could be the father. But when Belinda told her son the story of her strange encounter with the King of Pop, Bill dropped out of school and began conducting his own investigation into the unsolved murders and the identity of his birth father. “That was mostly about the bullying,” Bill explained. “My classmates called me ‘Willie the Werewolf ’ because I don’t like daylight. Or maybe it’s because I had a full beard at seven years old. Anyway, I told my third-grade teacher I was Audi 5000 and went to night school instead.”
Unfortunately, after years of collecting evidence, Bill still hasn’t solved either mystery. Instead, he focuses on his engineering career. He admits that he smokes marijuana 28 days a month, which helps him relieve his anxiety. “I don’t feel comfortable in the daytime,” he explained. “I really don’t feel comfortable at night either, except when there’s a full moon. Reefer is the only thing that helps.”
Meanwhile, Belinda hasn’t worked since her attack. She received a large settlement in her discrimination lawsuit against Miss Thang. She also receives a large monthly check from an anonymous donor. “All I know is the return address is 2300 Jackson Street, she said. “It’s probably a coincidence but I don’t question fate.”
When asked if they have ever considered whether the song “Thriller” may be the true origin story and not “Billie Jean,” Bill fell silent while his mother revealed the strangest part of their entire story.
“Can I tell you a secret?” Belinda asked. “Neither of us has ever heard that album.”
Now, that is weird.
Michael Harriot is a writer, cultural critic and championship-level Spades player. His NY Times bestseller Black AF History: The Unwhitewashed Story of America is available in bookstores everywhere.
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