Picture a row of Spanish police officers on horses and motorbikes, lined up in a Madrid police yard on a weekday afternoon. They’re waiting for a pop star to walk out and join them.
That really happened. But first, Michael Jackson had a stadium to fill.
In September 1992, he was crossing Europe on his Dangerous World Tour, named after his album Dangerous. He said he was touring to raise money for his new Heal the World Foundation, a charity he’d set up to help children.
The tour had kicked off in Munich, Germany, at the end of June. By the time it reached Spain, he’d been on the road for nearly three months.
Spain got three shows. He opened in Barcelona on September 18, played Oviedo in the north a few days later and then headed for the capital.
Madrid already knew him well. Four years earlier, on his Bad tour, he’d played the same place, the Vicente Calderón. It was the big stadium on the banks of the Manzanares River, home to the Atlético Madrid football club, and it’s been torn down since.
On show day, cameras were waiting for him outside his hotel.
This one comes from Spain’s official Michael Jackson fan club.
Michael Jackson – Salida del Hotel Villa Magna de Madrid (23/09/1992)
The concert was that night, Wednesday, September 23. The stadium was sold out, with around 40,000 tickets gone.
And the start of the show was something else. Jackson came flying up from under the stage on a hidden lift while fireworks went off around him, an effect known as “the toaster.”
He went straight into “Jam” and then “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’,” with two giant screens set up beside the stage so the people way up in the back could catch every move.
Footage of that night survives, and a fan channel has cleaned it up in 4K. If you’ve got a few minutes, see what the crowd in Madrid saw.
Michael Jackson | Live in Madrid – September 23rd, 1992 (4K Remaster)
He didn’t leave town right away.
That same week, Jackson turned up at the Canillas complex, a base for Spain’s National Police in Madrid. A big film crew had come over from the United States, and officers from the mounted unit and the motorbike section turned out, along with riot police.
According to the police, they filmed for about two hours, from 4 to 6 in the afternoon.
Spanish newspapers back then said the footage was meant to open his concerts. The idea was to show kids that the police were there to help them and keep them safe.
Then the tape sat unseen for years.
On August 29, 2018, the day Jackson would have turned 60, the National Police posted a 38-second clip from that afternoon on Twitter. Their message ended with “¡Felices 60 al Rey del Pop!” That’s Spanish for “Happy 60th to the King of Pop!”
It’s over fast, so keep your eyes on him as he walks along with the officers.