The Wild Events That Reportedly Kickstarted Michael Jackson's Journey With Plastic Surgery

Michael Jackson once sang "If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make that change." While the sentiment behind "Man in the Mirror" goes beyond superficial themes to emphasize making a positive difference in a flawed world, the lyrics speak to Jackson's personal issues with identity. Those problems were aided by countless visits to the plastic surgeon, which changed the King of Pop's appearance from the youngest member of the Jackson 5 to the "Smooth Criminal" star he became.

It's no secret that Jackson went under the knife, especially when looking at before and after photos of the pop icon's nose. His rhinoplasty is said to be the cosmetic procedure that started it all for him. Dr. Wallace Goodstein, who worked alongside Jackson's surgeon in the 1990s, told People magazine in 2009 that the musician would routinely receive cosmetic alterations, approximately every two months, totaling up to 10 or 12 surgeries during the two years Goodstein was there. The doctor specifically recalled that Jackson "had multiple nose jobs, cheek implants and he had a cleft put in his chin. He had eyelid surgery ... You name it, he had it."

Micahel Jackson's fixation on plastic surgery allegedly all began with one man, Scott Thorson, whose nose influenced Jackson's decision to change. Thorson, the ex-lover of famed pianist and singer Liberace, told the story to SiriusXM in 2013, and again in the 2024 documentary "The Wonderland Massacre & The Secret History of Hollywood," about Jackson's first encounter with plastic surgery. He explained that his own nose job caught the eye of Jackson, who supposedly wasn't fond of his own nose, and reminded him too much of his father, Joseph.

"Later on, Liberace decided to have plastic surgery. Michael decided to have his nose done. I was having my chin done and nose. So we had it on the same day," Thorson said in the doc. However, a routine procedure went south when Thorson noticed the plastic surgeon, Dr. Jack Startz, was allegedly drunk on the job. He recalled having to take a needle full of the painkiller known as Demerol away from the surgeon before he pumped Liberace with the drug. In other words, Jackson's first experience with plastic surgery was somewhat unusual.

"I almost feel kind of guilty about Michael having his nose job because I introduced him to the doctor," Thorson said in the docuseries. "That's what started the plastic surgery. He didn't like his nose. He always hated his looks. He thought he was ugly." Thorson added that the pharmaceutical drugs he was given post-nose job are what started his drug addiction, though reports have also claimed that he started taking pain medication after suffering from burns while filming his infamous 1984 Pepsi commercial. Jackson ultimately lost his battle with addiction and died in 2009 due to a lethal overdose of the anesthetic propofol.