Fueled by a series of hit records and head-spinning short films, Michael Jackson was an entertainment phenomenon. His scintillating dance style helped catapult him to fame: the release of his 1983 short film Thriller coincided with the rise of MTV as an important medium—much as the Ed Sullivan Show had been a generation earlier. Thriller’s mass-market popularity not only made Jackson a galactic star but had a resounding cultural impact by breaking down color barriers in both video and radio formats. MTV was the perfect medium to showcase Jackson’s staccato bursts of movement. Leading dance critic Anna Kisselgoff wrote, “The moonwalk . . . is an apt metaphor for his dance style. . . . He is a great illusionist.” Thriller set a record for Grammy nominations and awards (twelve). One critic wrote that Jackson showed “if you have the energy, you can do anything. It’s the American Dream.”