RIP Michael Jackson

[brian]

AP Source: Michael Jackson dies in LA hospital

LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson, the sensationally gifted "King of Pop" who emerged from childhood superstardom to become the entertainment world's most influential singer and dancer before his life and career deteriorated in a freakish series of scandals, died Thursday, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. He was 50.

The person said Jackson died in a Los Angeles hospital. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

The circumstances of his death were not immediately clear. Jackson was not breathing when Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to a call at his Los Angeles home about 12:30 p.m., Capt. Steve Ruda told the Los Angeles Times. The paramedics performed CPR and took him to UCLA Medical Center, Ruda told the newspaper.

Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

His 1982 album "Thriller" — which included the blockbuster hits "Beat It," "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" — remains the biggest-selling album of all time, with more than 26 million copies.

He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his feverish, crotch-grabbing dance moves, his high-pitched voice punctuated with squeals and titters. His single sequined glove and tight, military-style jacket were trademarks second only to his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance.

As years went by, he became an increasingly freakish figure. His skin became lighter and his nose narrower. He surrounded himself with children at his Neverland ranch, often wore a germ mask while traveling and kept a pet chimpanzee named Bubbles as one of his closest companions.

In 2005, he was cleared of charges he molested a 13-year-old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of plying the boy with alcohol and groping him. The case took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.

What a week.

[AnneB]

A sad end for a man who never got to be a child.

[lswot]

We lost the "King of Announcers" the "King of Pop" and an Angel.

[brian]

I heard something on the radio this morning that really made me think. There are three ways we typically leave this existence... age, illness and unexpected. And we had all three this week.

[brian]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVJscGa5vbc

[Xjmt]

A sad end for a man who never got to be a child.

Well said!

[trucker2000]

A sad end for a man who never got to be a child.

Well said!

Very well said. It's a sad day in the world.

[Xjmt]

http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuse ... d=42291868

This should be the blog of Lisa Marie Presley the former Mrs Michael Jackson.

[brian]

OMG, that was heart-wrenching.

I'm iffy on that link. I'm not sure if it'll always point to that particular entry, or just the most current one. Just in case, here's the text of it:

Friday, June 26, 2009

He Knew.

Years ago Michael and I were having a deep conversation about life in general.

I can't recall the exact subject matter but he may have been questioning me about the circumstances of my Fathers Death.

At some point he paused, he stared at me very intensely and he stated with an almost calm certainty, "I am afraid that I am going to end up like him, the way he did."

I promptly tried to deter him from the idea, at which point he just shrugged his shoulders and nodded almost matter of fact as if to let me know, he knew what he knew and that was kind of that.

14 years later I am sitting here watching on the news an ambulance leaves the driveway of his home, the big gates, the crowds outside the gates, the coverage, the crowds outside the hospital, the Cause of death and what may have led up to it and the memory of this conversation hit me, as did the unstoppable tears.

A predicted ending by him, by loved ones and by me, but what I didn't predict was how much it was going to hurt when it finally happened.

The person I failed to help is being transferred right now to the LA County Coroners office for his Autopsy.

All of my indifference and detachment that I worked so hard to achieve over the years has just gone into the bowels of hell and right now I am gutted.

I am going to say now what I have never said before because I want the truth out there for once.

Our relationship was not "a sham" as is being reported in the press. It was an unusual relationship yes, where two unusual people who did not live or know a "Normal life" found a connection, perhaps with some suspect timing on his part. Nonetheless, I do believe he loved me as much as he could love anyone and I loved him very much.

I wanted to "save him" I wanted to save him from the inevitable which is what has just happened.

His family and his loved ones also wanted to save him from this as well but didn't know how and this was 14 years ago. We all worried that this would be the outcome then.

At that time, In trying to save him, I almost lost myself.

He was an incredibly dynamic force and power that was not to be underestimated.

When he used it for something good, It was the best and when he used it for something bad, It was really, REALLY bad.

Mediocrity was not a concept that would even for a second enter Michael Jackson's being or actions.

I became very ill and emotionally/ spiritually exhausted in my quest to save him from certain self-destructive behavior and from the awful vampires and leeches he would always manage to magnetize around him.

I was in over my head while trying.

I had my children to care for, I had to make a decision.

The hardest decision I have ever had to make, which was to walk away and let his fate have him, even though I desperately loved him and tried to stop or reverse it somehow.

After the Divorce, I spent a few years obsessing about him and what I could have done different, in regret.

Then I spent some angry years at the whole situation.

At some point, I truly became Indifferent, until now.

As I sit here overwhelmed with sadness, reflection and confusion at what was my biggest failure to date, watching on the news almost play by play The exact Scenario I saw happen on August 16th, 1977 happening again right now with Michael (A sight I never wanted to see again) just as he predicted, I am truly, truly gutted.

Any ill experience or words I have felt towards him in the past has just died inside of me along with him.

He was an amazing person and I am lucky to have gotten as close to him as I did and to have had the many experiences and years that we had together.

I desperately hope that he can be relieved from his pain, pressure and turmoil now.

He deserves to be free from all of that and I hope he is in a better place or will be.

I also hope that anyone else who feels they have failed to help him can be set free because he hopefully finally is.

The World is in shock but somehow he knew exactly how his fate would be played out some day more than anyone else knew, and he was right.

I really needed to say this right now, thanks for listening.

~LMP

[lswot]

Wow.......quite a tribute.

[trucker2000]

The saddest part of this whole ordeal is the battles are just beginning. It truely is a shame.

[brian]

Michael Jackson's final rehearsal for London concerts may be released as album

Michael Jackson's final rehearsal for his London concert tour was recorded in high definition video and audio on the eve of his death -- and could be released as the King of Pop's final album, sources said Sunday.

The rehearsals at the Staples Center in Los Angeles were taped by concert promotion company AEG Live to produce an album and DVD of what Jackson had billed his "final performance" tour called "This Is It," according to Sharon Waxman of the Hollywood blog TheWrap.com.

One AEG official boasted to a colleague this weekend, "We have a live album in the can," Waxman writes.

Jackson had failed to appear at many of the scheduled rehearsals in Los Angeles over the past two months, but he was there for an "electric" full rehearsal on the night before his death.

The rehearsal, which went on for several hours, included dancers, musicians and aerial performers. Three people close to the production said it had been captured by multiple cameras, and the audio was digitally recorded in a manner that could be used to produce surround-sound DVD and audio products.

Randy Phillips, president and CEO of AEG Live, the nation's second largest concert promoter, emailed that he would not comment for the story. The spectacular 50-concert series at London's 02 arena was set to begin in July.

AEG Live may stand to lose millions due to the unexpected cancellation of Jackson's 50-show London concert series, but potential earnings from recordings of the star's final moments could offset the losses - and then some.

Retailers like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble have reportedly sold out of Jackson goods in the days after his death.

Patrick Woodroffe, a lighting designer for the concerts, watched the final rehearsal, he told the BBC.

"We had rehearsed for the last couple weeks. We put together a complicated show, quite a spectacular show," Woodroffe said.

"Of course a huge part of it was him, and I would say for the last week he hadn't really been with us. He would appear, and he would rehearse sometimes, and he would not rehearse," he said.

"I guess that we were nervous whether we would be able to carry off this show at the 02."

[lswot]

There's always a way to make a buck.

[brian]

Michael Jackson's death sparks bus brawl

MIAMI (Reuters) – A fight broke out on a Florida bus when news of Michael Jackson's death sparked debate over whether he should be remembered as a great musical talent, and one passenger was charged with assault, police said on Friday.

The bus was moving through the city of North Lauderdale on Thursday when passenger James Kiernan received a text message about Jackson's death on his cell phone, and he read it aloud on the bus, the Broward County Sheriff's Department said.

The unidentified bus driver opined that "Michael Jackson should have been in jail long ago," prompting Kiernan, 60, to retort that "the world just lost a great musical talent," the police report said.

It said the last remark enraged another passenger, Henry Wideman, who started a swearing match with Kiernan, then pulled out a knife and chased Kiernan down the aisle with it.

The driver called his dispatcher and pulled over near a convenience store to wait for sheriff's deputies, who arrested Wideman, 54. He remained in jail on Friday on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

[Xjmt]

Whatever happened to, "You're entitled to your opinion no matter how wrong you are?"