Over his career, the Thriller star rocked the charts with hits that would eventually lead to him being dubbed ‘The King of Pop’. Michael Jackson’s stunning sound, dynamic dance moves and sleek style would lead him to notoriety all around the world. One particular clothing item that became synonymous with the star was his single glove – made of white cotton decorated with either Swarovski crystals or sequins. The unusual piece was even believed to have been adopted by law enforcement in Japan as a tribute to him – but the truth behind the story is actually rather different.
On the podcast ‘No Such Thing as a Fish’ episode 308, which aired on February 14, they explained the real reason behind the unusual white glove trend.
Co-host Anna Ptaszynski explained that the myth was actually a “huge misconception” and instead attributed it to The Beatles.
Hideo Yamada was in charge of security when The Fab Four first landed in Japan to play for eager fans in Asia, back in 1966.
In a 2010 interview, he confirmed that it was all because of British boyband – who consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison.
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Mr Yamada’s belief was that it would create a barrier between and create boundaries during their physical interactions.
The chief of police hoped it would encourage his men “to be as proper in action as appearance”, according to a 2013 Japan Times article.
Ms Ptaszynski added: “It was to reinforce this thing called ‘reigi tadashii’ – which is sort of ‘a notion of proprietary.’”
Prior to this point, it was only Japan’s Imperial Guard who wore white gloves.
Anne Miller, a guest on the podcast, quipped: “The Japan subway is famously very, very, very busy.
“They have people whose job it is to push people into the carriages to crowd more people in and I’m pretty sure they wear white gloves,
“Maybe it’s to make it a bit more polite rather than ‘I’m shoving you’, it’s ‘I’m officially shoving you.’”