While neither a superhero nor a villain, The Sandman is a DC comic book series and a character that’s interacted with many superheroes in the DC universe. While it’s no secret that the suave character of Lucifer Morningstar in the aforementioned comic book series was inspired by David Bowie, it’s interesting to note that Michael Jackson was quite interested in playing the role of Morpheus.

King of Pop Portraying the King of Dreams

Neil Gaiman has openly spoken about how difficult it was to create a screen adaptation of The Sandman that’d truly match the comic books. Gaiman shared that, back in the mid-90s, Michael Jackson phoned one of the representatives at Warner Bros and put himself up for the role of Morpheus. Gaiman admitted that having the King of Pop play the King of Dreams was a thrilling idea. All they were looking for as a casting preference was an English-speaking actor with well-defined cheekbones. Michael Jackson fit those criteria and, by Gaiman’s admission, would’ve looked iconic in the all-black costume that was thought up for the character.

A Lengthy Casting Process

Although Michael Jackson probably could’ve done the role justice, The Sandman didn’t come out until 2022. Tom Sturridge was cast to play Dream as one of the top picks since casting began. It took weeks of auditions and seeing over 1500 actors to make this casting decision. The diverse cast has gotten a lot of praise. Kirby Howell-Baptiste has done a splendid job playing Death and Jenna Colman has enjoyed her role as Johanna Constantine tremendously. Gaiman praised Gwendoline Christie’s performance saying she was the perfect pick for the role of Lucifer.

The Sandman Is Receiving Positive Reviews

Although it would’ve been amazing to see Michael Jackson play Dream, based on the outstanding reviews that The Sandman is getting, many are saying that Gaiman was right to take his time developing this adaptation. It appears to have lived up to the comic book fans’ expectations and has been on the streamer’s Top 10 list since it came out on Netflix on the 5th of August.

Not all friendships are created equal – some are stronger than others. Perry Charles and Scott Edwards are an example of true friendship. More than 30 years ago, they made a promise to each other — if one of them won the lottery, they’d split the win. Earlier in July, Perry kept his promise when he split his $361,527 jackpot win with Scott.

The Promise

Perry and Scott first met when they were working at a Winn-Dixie supermarket. They became good friends and often talked about splitting up any lottery winnings they might get, regardless of whether they bought the ticket together or separately. They made a promise to “share it with each other,” and more than three decades later, they made that happen thanks to Perry’s lucky ticket.

A Lucky Lottery Ticket

When asked about how he got his ticket, Perry shared that he had just gotten off of work when he saw how much the lottery win had grown. He recalled thinking he really wanted to win, and he bought a $5 Double Win ticket at the Mast Food Mart, not really thinking much of it. The Fast Play jackpot at the time stood at $723,054, and his ticket would get him half of the jackpot amount.

As soon as he found out he actually won, he called his friend Scott. He was both excited and shocked and extremely happy to share the news with his bestie, who he considered to be part of his family. When he went to collect his prize, Perry had already told Scott they’d be splitting the jackpot. The lottery organization even added both of their names to the winning check.

After removing the required federal and state tax withholdings, Charles received $128,361. According to a statement from the North Carolina Education Lottery, both men said that they were hoping to use this newfound money to pay some bills.