№ 36 · CONTROVERSY
The Panther Coda Outrage
Black or White, 4-minute uncensored ending — pulled November 16, 1991
MICHAEL JACKSON
The King of Pop
★ RARE
← MICHAEL JACKSON
CARD N° 36 · CONTROVERSY · ★ RARE
The Panther Coda Outrage
Black or White, 4-minute uncensored ending — pulled November 16, 1991
№ 36 CONTROVERSY
The Panther Coda Outrage
The final four minutes of Black or White — the famous 'panther dance' sequence where Michael, alone in a back alley, smashes a car windscreen and zips up his fly — were cut by every American TV station within 48 hours of the global premiere. The official explanation was 'objectionable content'. Michael personally pulled the sequence and issued a public apology.
▶ THE MOMENT
Michael Jackson — Black or White, Full Panther Coda (Uncensored)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2AitTPI5U0
MICHAEL JACKSON · B·SIDE · VOL.I
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THE FACT
The final four minutes of Black or White — the famous 'panther dance' sequence where Michael, alone in a back alley, smashes a car windscreen and zips up his fly — were cut by every American TV station within 48 hours of the global premiere. The official explanation was 'objectionable content'. Michael personally pulled the sequence and issued a public apology.
WHAT MOST DON'T KNOW
John Landis had appended the four-minute solo dance sequence as a separate artistic coda — a wordless interpretive dance in which Michael transforms from a black panther into himself, then performs an extended solo of pure choreographic rage. The dance ended with Michael smashing a parked car's windows, smashing a hotel sign reading 'KKK', and grabbing his crotch (a choreographic signature he'd been using since the Bad tour). MTV, Fox and BBC1 all aired the full eleven-minute cut on November 14, 1991. By November 16, after parent-group complaints, MTV cut the coda. By November 18, MJ had issued an apology in an Ebony interview saying he 'never wanted to upset families'. He insisted the coda be re-added to all home video releases — and the extended cut remains on YouTube today. The 'KKK' graffiti was reportedly added at the last minute on set; Landis later said he had not seen the panel before shooting and would have advised against it. Choreographer Vincent Paterson has called the panther coda 'the moment Michael Jackson started saying out loud what he was actually angry about'.
▶
THE MOMENT
Michael Jackson — Black or White, Full Panther Coda (Uncensored) — The four-minute coda starts at 6:50 — pulled from TV within 48 hours.