Saturday, September 12, 2009
Friday, September 04, 2009
Final farewell for the King of Pop
Guest: Many wept during Jackson's funeral
Associated Press - 2 hours, 52 minutes ago 
GLENDALE, California - Paris Jackson wept as she stepped into the mausoleum where her father, Michael, was to be entombed. Katherine Jackson, overcome by sorrow, turned back when she was faced with her son's final resting place.
On a sultry Thursday evening, amid a sea of white flowers and with a bejeweled crown placed atop his casket by his children, the King of Pop was given an intimate, private version of the lavish public memorial held shortly after his death in June.
The funeral at Glendale Memorial Park was simple but touching, according to one guest. The person, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the day, said Gladys Knight's performance of the hymn "Our Father" (The Lord's Prayer) soared in the vast mausoleum and moved many to tears.
When it was over, many of the 200 mourners hugged each other. Among them were Elizabeth Taylor, Jackson's ex-wife Lisa Marie Presley, Barry Bonds and Macaulay Culkin.
The Rev. Al Sharpton, who gave a eulogy at the public event and at Thursday's service, also extolled Knight's earlier performance of "His Eye is on the Sparrow."
"Gladys Knight sang her heart out. Now we prepare to lay him to rest," Sharpton posted on his Twitter account during the service that was held outside and then within the marble mausoleum.
The mourners followed the crowned, lushly flower-draped casket as Jackson's five brothers — each wearing a bright red tie and a single crystal-studded glove — carried it into the mausoleum. The 11-year-old Paris cried as the group entered the imposing building and was comforted by her aunt, LaToya.
Paris and brothers Prince Michael, 12, and Prince Michael II, 7, known as Blanket, began the service by placing the crown on their father's golden casket. They were composed through most of the hour-and-a-half ceremony.
As it ended, Katherine Jackson appeared extremely weary and had to be helped to her car, according to the guest. Earlier, she had a difficult time going into the mausoleum; she was overcome, turned back, and it wasn't clear if she went in at all, the guest said.
The Jackson family's tardy arrival delayed the service for nearly two hours; no explanation was given to mourners. The invitation notice indicated the service would begin promptly at 7 p.m.; it began closer to 8:30.
The 77-year-old Taylor and others were left waiting in the late summer heat, with the temperature stuck at 90 degrees just before sunset, and some mourners fanned themselves with programs for the service. As darkness fell, police escorted the family's motorcade of 31 cars, including Rolls-Royces and Cadillacs, from their compound in Encino to Forest Lawn, about a 20-minute journey, with the hearse bearing Jackson's body at the end.
About 250 seats were arranged for mourners over artificial turf laid roadside at the mausoleum, and a vivid orange moon, a mark of the devastating wildfire about 10 miles (16 kilometers) distant, hung over the cemetery.
There were two oversized portraits of a youthful, vibrant Jackson mounted next to the casket amid displays of white lilies and roses. At Jackson's lavish public memorial, red roses covered his casket.
A large, blimp-like inflated light, the type used in film and television production, and a boom camera hovered over the seating area placed in front of the elaborate marble mausoleum. The equipment raised the possibility that the footage would be used for the Jackson concert documentary "This Is It," or perhaps the Jackson brothers' upcoming reality show.
More than 400 media credentials were issued to reporters and film crews who remained at a distance from the service and behind barricades. The few clusters of fans who gathered around the secure perimeter that encircled the cemetery entrance struggled to see.
Maria Martinez, 25, a fan from Riverside, California, who was joined by a dozen other Jackson admirers at a gas station near the security perimeter, gave a handful of pink flowers she had picked at a nearby park to a man with an invitation driving into the funeral.
"Can you please put these flowers on his grave?" she told him. "They were small and ugly, but I did that with my heart. I'm not going to be able to get close, so this is as close as I could get to him."
The man consented, adding, "God bless."
Glendale police said all went smoothly and there were no arrests.
Jackson will share eternity at Forest Lawn with the likes of Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and W.C. Fields, entombed alongside them in the mausoleum that will be all but off-limits to adoring fans who might otherwise turn the pop star's grave into a shrine.
The closest the public will be able to get to Jackson's vault is a portion of the mausoleum that displays "The Last Supper Window," a life-size stained-glass re-creation of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece. Several 10-minute presentations about the window are held regularly 365 days a year, but most of the building is restricted.
The Jackson family had booked an Italian restaurant in Pasadena for a gathering Thursday night, and family members and guests were seen coming and going late into the night.
"I feel like I watched Michael finally given some peace and I made a commitment to make sure his legacy and what he stood for lives on," Sharpton said outside the restaurant around midnight. "So at one level we're relieved; another level we're obligated."
The ceremony ends months of speculation that the singer's body would be buried at Neverland Ranch, in part to make the property a Graceland-style attraction. An amended copy of Jackson's death certificate was filed Thursday in Los Angeles County to reflect Forest Lawn as his final resting place.
In court on Wednesday, it was disclosed that 12 burial spaces were being purchased by Jackson's estate at Forest Lawn Glendale, about eight miles (13 kilometers) north of downtown Los Angeles, but no details were offered on how they would be used.
The King of Pop died a drug-induced death June 25 at age 50 as he was about to embark on a comeback attempt. The coroner's office has labeled the death a homicide, and Jackson's death certificate lists "injection by another" as the cause.
Dr. Conrad Murray, Jackson's personal physician, told detectives he gave the singer a series of sedatives and the powerful anesthetic propofol to help him sleep. But prosecutors are still investigating, and no charges have been filed.
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AP writers Derrik J. Lang, Anthony McCartney, Sue Manning, Sandy Cohen and Ryan Pearson and APTV reporter John Mone contributed to this report.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Judge OKs Jackson deal, burial planned
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff, who is overseeing matters related to Jackson's estate, approved the deal between the co-executors of Jackson's will and Bravado International Group, a division of Universal Music Group owned by Vivendi SA.
But Beckloff postponed until Friday a decision on whether to approve concert promoter AEG Live's plans for a traveling exhibition of Jackson memorabilia. He did so amid objections from attorneys for Jackson's mother, Katherine, who said the planned exhibition may not bring enough money to the estate.
On August 7, Beckloff approved a deal between Jackson's estate, AEG Live and Columbia Pictures, a division of Sony Corp, for a movie to be released October 30 using footage from the pop star's final rehearsals.
The executors of Jackson's will, longtime attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain, have said the deals will generate millions of dollars for the estate.
Separately, Michael Jackson's father said his son's body will be buried at a Los Angeles cemetery on August 29, which would have been his 51st birthday, the New York Daily News reported on Monday.
Joe Jackson told a Daily News reporter the plan was finalized in recent days.
Media reports last week said Jackson, who died June 25 of cardiac arrest, was buried in a private ceremony in early August. But those reports were based on unnamed sources and never confirmed by Jackson family representatives.
A Jackson family spokesman did not return calls seeking comment Monday, nor did a spokesman at Los Angeles' Forest Lawn cemetery, where Joe Jackson said his son would be buried.
A public memorial for the singer was held in July, but there was never an official confirmation the "Thriller" singer was buried after the event.
The reason behind Jackson's cardiac arrest remains a mystery. The Los Angeles County Coroner's office has completed its autopsy report but its findings remain sealed until police conclude their investigation.
Los Angeles police are looking into the role prescription drugs may have played in Jackson's death and the actions of doctors who were treating him in the weeks before he died.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Todd Eastham)
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Custody of Jackson children granted to grandmother
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY, AP Entertainment Writer Anthony Mccartney, Ap Entertainment Writer – 2 hrs 35 mins ago
LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson's mother gained permanent custody of her late son's children during a hearing Monday that included a surprise objection from the pop icon's former dermatologist.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff made a series of key rulings during the morning portion of the Monday hearing. In addition to approving Katherine Jackson's guardianship petition, he also granted monthly stipends to the 79-year-old and the three young grandchildren she is now charged with raising.
The ruling came after a few tense moments in which an attorney for Beverly Hills Dr. Arnold Klein, Michael Jackson's longtime dermatologist, raised nonspecific objections to the custody arrangements. The attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, said they were based on the doctor's long-term relationship with the singer and his children.
"Legally, he is not a presumed parent," Kaplan said. He said Klein had concerns about the children's education and other day-to-day parenting issues.
Beckloff ultimately determined Klein didn't have legal standing to object to the care of Jackson's children, but said he could raise objections later. Klein has repeatedly denied tabloid reports that he is the biological father of Jackson's children, saying last month on "Larry King Live" that "to the best of my knowledge" he is not.
Diane Goodman, an attorney for Katherine Jackson, told Beckloff that Jackson's youngest son, Prince Michael II, was born through a surrogate who has no parental rights.
Katherine Jackson's approval as permanent guardian is in accordance with her son's wishes, who named her in a 2002 will as the person he wanted to raise his children. Beckloff noted that the singer's two oldest children, 12-year-old Prince Michael and 11-year-old Paris Michael, filed declarations stating their wishes for who would raise them. He did not indicate what they said.
Last week, Katherine Jackson and the singer's ex-wife, Deborah Rowe, reached an agreement over custody issues. Rowe, who did not appear in court Monday, never formally petitioned for custody, but will receive some visits with Jackson's two oldest children, to whom she gave birth while the couple was married in the late 1990s.
The agenda for Monday's hearing contained a long laundry-list of issues for Beckloff to rule on. After a morning recess, the judge was expected to consider whether Katherine Jackson can mount a challenge to two men who have are administering her son's estate, attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain.
The men were named as co-executors of Jackson's 2002 will, and have already received millions of dollars in the singer's money, property and a life insurance payout, court filings show. The money is being placed into a private trust, which designates that 40 percent of the estate goes to Katherine Jackson, 40 percent goes to the children, and 20 percent goes to various charities.
It is unclear how much money Katherine Jackson and her grandchildren will receive in allowance from the singer's estate in the meantime. Beckloff did not state the figures in court and indicated he was likely to seal those details if attorneys asked him to do so.
The proposed figures have been redacted from court filings so far. Beckloff did trim the amount the three children will receive, saying that there appeared to be some duplication between the expenses Katherine Jackson listed and those listed for the children.
Katherine Jackson arrived flanked by daughters LaToya and Rebbie and son Randy Jackson. Several attorneys representing her were also in court.
The hearing was attended by more than 20 attorneys representing a variety of interests, including Sony/ATV, a music catalog in which Jackson had a substantial stake, concert promoter AEG Live, and Columbia Pictures. Several of the attorneys are also handling issues in Britney Spears' conservatorship case, and an afternoon hearing scheduled in that matter was postponed.
The attorneys were outnumbered only by media outlets jockeying for seats in the hearing. A variety of broadcast, Internet and print media outlets covered the hearing, arriving more than an hour before Beckloff took the bench to get a seat. An overflow room was also required.
source
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Jackson advisor says he turned over $5.5 million
Associated Press - July 24, 2009 10:50 PM PDT
LOS ANGELES - A former financial advisor to Michael Jackson said Friday that he was the person who recently turned over to executors $5.5 million, which had been "a secret between Michael and me."
Dr. Tohme Tohme responded to an inquiry from The Associated Press about documents in which administrators of the estate said they had recovered $5.5 million and substantial amounts of personal property from an unnamed former financial adviser.
"It was not recovered," he said. "I had the money and I gave it to them. It was a secret between Michael and me."
He said the money, which came from recording residuals, was earmarked by Jackson for the purchase of what was to be his "dream home" in Las Vegas. He said he was in negotiations for the home when Jackson died.
"He said, 'Don't tell anyone about this money,'" Tohme recalled. "But when he passed away I told them I had this money, and I gave it to them."
He said he also turned over a large number of items from Jackson's Neverland estate that were once scheduled to be auctioned. When Jackson decided to call off the auction, Tohme said he had everything put into storage. He said he turned over that personal property to the executors as well.
Tohme is the financier who advised Jackson during the last year and half of his life and was instrumental in saving Neverland from foreclosure. He also was a key figure in negotiating the contracts for Jackson to do a series of comeback concerts in London.
The estate's receipt of the money was revealed in court documents released Friday.
Attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain are serving as temporary administrators as spelled out in the King of Pop's will. The men are finishing several deals that they expect will generate "tens of millions of dollars of revenues."
They expect to submit those deals for court approval within the next week, the filings state.
The revelations were included in two motions requesting allowances for Jackson's three children and his mother, Katherine. The petitions state that Jackson was the primary source of income for his children and his mother, who receives some money from Social Security.
Katherine Jackson currently has custody of the three children, 12-year-old Michael Joseph Jr., known as Prince Michael; 11-year-old Paris Michael Katherine Jackson; and 7-year-old Prince Michael II, known as Blanket. The children and Jackson's mother are the only members of Jackson's family eligible to receive support from the estate, according to the court filings.
The monthly stipends that Branca and McClain hope to provide the Jacksons were redacted from the court records released Friday.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff refused to grant the allowances on Thursday, opting instead to consider them at a hearing on Aug. 3. The judge did allow the administrators to enter into deals that will bring reprints of Michael Jackson's 1988 autobiography, "Moonwalk" back to booksellers.
Branca and McClain "believe that the projected cash flow and the assets of the estate are more than sufficient to cover the payment of this amount as a family allowance for the benefit of the minor children."
Jackson paid for the expenses at the Jackson family home in the San Fernando Valley, the court filings state. The administrators plan to keep that arrangement, even though some of the expenses may go to other Jackson family members who also live at the home.
Jackson's children will receive Social Security benefits, which have been applied for but payments have not yet started. Their monthly stipends from the estate may be reduced, depending on much money they receive from Social Security, the filings state.
source
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
LAPD: Michael Jackson's drug history to be probed
LOS ANGELES – Detectives investigating the death of Michael Jackson are looking at his prescription drug history and trying to talk with his numerous former doctors, the Los Angeles police chief said.
Jackson's father, Joe Jackson, told ABC News in an interview that he believed "foul play" was involved in his son's death. But in the interview aired Friday on "Good Morning America," Jackson did not elaborate.
Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton told CNN that police are waiting for the coroner's report before ruling out any possibilities in their "comprehensive" investigation into the sudden death of the 50-year-old pop star two weeks ago.
The coroner's report will determine the cause of death and hinges on time-consuming toxicology tests.
"Based on those we'll have an idea of what we're dealing with," Bratton said Thursday. "Are we dealing with homicide? Are we dealing with an accidental overdose? What are we dealing with?"
Bratton said detectives are gathering evidence, including items seized from Jackson's rented home and arranging interviews with his many physicians, but the police chief deferred to the coroner to determine the cause of death.
"The next move really is his," Bratton said. "We're not marking time waiting for his report."
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the state attorney general's office, which keeps a database of prescription drugs, are assisting investigators.
An attorney for Dr. Arnold Klein, one of Jackson's many physicians, told the Los Angeles Times that the dermatologist was subpoenaed for medical records, which he turned over to the county coroner's office.
Bratton refused to discuss details of the case.
Jackson, who died June 25, had a well-known history of using prescription medications, especially painkillers. Following his death, Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse who had worked for Jackson, told The Associated Press she repeatedly rejected his demands for the potent anesthetic Diprivan, also known as Propofol.
Jackson had multiple doctors, friends and staff who came in and out of his life. Which people were being interviewed by police was unclear because the LAPD has said virtually nothing about the probe.
Joe Jackson said he didn't know anything about drugs his son was involved in.
"I don't even know the name of them," he said. "I do know that whatever he was taking was to make him rest because he had been working so hard."
Police towed a doctor's car from Jackson's home hours after he died and said later it could contain medication or other evidence. Coroner's officials also said Jackson was taking prescription medication but declined to elaborate.
Meanwhile, Joe Jackson told ABC that he and his wife, Katherine, should have custody of Michael's three children. "They'll grow up to be strong Jacksons," he said.
He said Michael's daughter, Paris, who spoke at the Tuesday memorial service, was taking the death hard and was crying whenever Michael's name is mentioned. He said that she might have a future in the entertainment business along with the youngest son, nicknamed Blanket, who "can really dance."
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Lawyer: Jackson's doc didn't give excessive drugs
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY, AP Entertainment Writer
LOS ANGELES – A lawyer for Michael Jackson's doctor said his client never gave or prescribed Jackson the painkillers Demerol or OxyContin, and denied reports suggesting that the doctor gave the pop star drugs that contributed to his death.
Edward Chernoff said in an interview Sunday with The Associated Press that any drugs that Dr. Conrad Murray gave Jackson were prescribed in response to a specific complaint from Jackson.
"Dr. Murray has never prescribed nor administered Demerol to Michael Jackson," Chernoff said. "Not ever. Not that day. ... Not Oxycontin (either) for that matter."
Saturday, June 27, 2009
What Will Happen To Michael Jackson's Children?
Posted Fri Jun 26, 2009 2:17pm PDT by Sarah Parsons
The death of Michael Jackson at the age of 50 has raised many questions about his health, finances, and legacy. But at the top of many people's list of questions is the fate of his three children: How are they coping, and who will get custody of them?
Debbie Rowe, a nurse who Jackson married in 1996 and divorced in 1999, is the mother of Prince Michael, 12, and Paris, 11; Prince Michael II (also known as Blanket), 7, was reportedly born to a surrogate mother, whose name has never been released.
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Friday, June 26, 2009
Neverland Ranch Investigators Discover Corpse Of Real Michael Jackson
March 16, 2005
SANTA BARBARA, CA—During a search for evidence at the Neverland Valley Ranch, investigators discovered a corpse that has been identified as that of Michael Jackson, Santa Barbara police officials announced Tuesday.
"Coroners have officially pronounced Michael Jackson dead. From what we can tell, he died between 18 and 20 years ago," forensic investigator Tim Holbrooke said. "We are not certain, at this time, who—or what—has been standing trial in that Santa Maria courthouse."
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Michael Jackson, the 'King of Pop,' dies at age 50
Associated Press - 49 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - Michael Jackson, the sensationally gifted child star who rose to become the "King of Pop" and the biggest celebrity in the world only to fall from his throne in a freakish series of scandals, died Thursday. He was 50. Jackson died at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. Ed Winter, the assistant chief coroner for Los Angeles County, confirmed his office had been notified of the death and would handle the investigation.
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