On a Friday night in the early 1980s, the set of Taxi did not go quiet when the cameras stopped rolling. Instead, it came alive.
The cast and crew had a tradition. Every week, after filming wrapped, they threw a party right there in the studio. Friends from nearby sets wandered in. The atmosphere was loose, loud, and completely unpolished. According to Danny DeVito, those nights were “really wild,” and nobody involved thought much beyond the next drink or the next laugh.
At the time, Taxi was becoming one of the sharpest comedies on television. DeVito’s portrayal of Louie De Palma was turning him into a breakout star, eventually earning him an Emmy in 1981. His career was taking off, but it still felt grounded.
Then, one night, Michael Jackson showed up.
He simply arrived because he loved the show. Jackson did not join the center of the party. Instead, DeVito recalled that he stayed up in the technical booth, watching everything unfold from above.
This was the moment just before everything changed. Jackson had already found success with Off the Wall, but Thriller had not yet transformed him into a global phenomenon. The future had not caught up to him, or to anyone else in the room.
Danny DeVito Reveals That He Partied with Michael Jackson on the ‘Taxi’ Set
Danny DeVito did not ease into that role. He forced his way in. Before Louie De Palma ever ruled the dispatch office, DeVito took a risk that could have ended his shot entirely. His audition was confrontational, raw, and completely against the rules. It shocked the creators and instantly defined the character’s energy.
Danny DeVito Really Took A Chance With His ‘Taxi’ Audition | PeopleTV | Entertainment Weekly
That quiet visit to the Taxi set also hints at something else about Michael Jackson that people often forget. Even back then, he wanted to be part of that world, not as a guest, but as a character. Years later, that curiosity finally paid off in a small but unforgettable way. His cameo in Men in Black II shows the same wide-eyed enthusiasm, the same sincerity, and the same sense of fun that likely brought him to that studio decades earlier.