Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett Defined My Generation

By: Jill Schlesinger

I was born in 1965, which means that I am on the cusp of two generational labels. Baby Boomers are those born between 1946-1964 and Generation X was used for those born between 1964 and the mid-seventies. We of the cusp did not grow up on the Beatles, nor were we the big fans of grunge.

We of 1965 watched the lesser-known Jackson 5 animated series from 1971-1973, then "Charlie's Angels" during junior high school (Kate Jackson was my fave) and started high school with a new, shiny vinyl copy of "Off the Wall." (Please no comments from my classmates who howled "disco sucks" and called themselves "the Take-it-Easies.")

Today I finally realized that I'm neither a Boomer, nor a Gen X-er... I'm part of the sliver of the population that was shaped by Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. How strange it is to see them go on the same day. An era has surely passed.

Jill Schlesinger
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Jill Schlesinger, CFP®, is the Editor-at-Large for CBS MoneyWatch. She covers the economy, markets, investing or anything else with a dollar sign. Prior to the launch of MoneyWatch in 2009, Jill was the chief investment officer for an independent investment advisory firm. In her infancy, she was an options trader on the Commodities Exchange of New York.
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