Brooke Shields: Michael Jackson Was 'Asexual'

When I was five I wanted to sucker-punch Brooke Shields.

It was 1984. While I was listening to the Thriller album over and over on my dad's record player and kissing Michael Jackson's face through the TV on Solid Gold (yep, I was that kid), Brooke Shields was a stunning teenager who was busy climbing out of limos and cavorting into celebrity parties on his arm. They were both bright-eyed, white-toothed, glitter-donning adolescent superstars; a match made in Hollywood—but in an exclusive interview for Rolling Stone's tribute issue to the King of Pop, Brooke finally reveals the truth about their relationship. Michael Jackson's Lovelife: A Timeline

MSNBC.com reports Brooke as saying in the interview, which is available this Friday, that she and Michael were simply very good friends and nothing more. She said he often wanted to talk about the birds and the bees, asking what first base and second base meant with a childish giddiness, but he never actually wanted to pursue those activities. The older he grew, she says, "the more asexual he became to me." He had a curiosity about sex that she said one could only understand if they knew him. To strangers he may have appeared heart-throbbish, but in fact he was rather sheltered. She said women "wanted to throw themselves at [Michael] and feel like they were going to teach him."

Now 44, Brooke says the last time she saw Michael Jackson was in 1991 at Elizabeth Taylor's last wedding. She reports they snuck in and took pictures of themselves next to her dress, and that being with Michael always reminded her of when they were kids.

Fine. I suppose 25 years later now that the truth is out, I'll put my gloves back on...but say what you want about Michael Jackson: for Brooke Shields and for me, he made being a kid in the '80s something to remember. Michael Jackson: The First Man I Ever Loved

Watch Brooke Shield's emotional eulogy from Michael Jackson's memorial.