Jacko, His Rise and Fall: The Social and Sexual History of Michael Jackson (117 page)

In the immediate wake of Michael Jackson's death, over the July 4 holidays, headlines screamed of a memorial service being planned within the
Staples Center in Los Angeles, where the star had conducted his last
rehearsals. A Web site was created to dispense tickets for the free event.
The moment it went online, the site was swamped with 500 million hits within 90 minutes. That translated into 120,000 hits per second. But because there
was only a total of 17,500 available seats, it meant that getting a ticket was
akin to hitting the Jacko-Pot. Many so-called fans who were actually awarded tickets tried to hawk them on eBay, offering them online for as much as
$25,000.

In Los Angeles, the memorial service at Staples Center was conducted on
July 7. The day began with a private ceremony under tight security at Forest
Lawn Cemetery. After the service, family and friends filed into a 32-car
motorcade heading for the Staples Center. In the cavalcade was a hearse bearing Michael's body. The star-studded memorial service went smoothly, despite
the fears of the Los Angeles Police that pandemonium might break out, and
that hordes of fans--none of them with tickets--might mob the arena.

The huge crowds the police feared never showed up. But 2,500 journalists and the flotsam and jetsam of the world's paparazzi turned out en masse.

To fill in the tedious hours before the memorial service began, television
commentators had to speculate on almost anything as a means of filling the
time, including the cost of the memorial service to the virtually bankrupt Los
Angeles. One Fox commentator wondered about the suitability of having
named Katharine Jackson guardian of Michael's three children, fretting aloud
about how "Grandma Jackson watched her own children being abused at the
hand of her husband." The inference was that she wasn't qualified as a
guardian in light of the the fact that in the past she'd done little to protect her
own brood, especially Michael.

Nancy Giles of CBS News asserted that Michael was "a trailblazer in the
same way President Obama is." Nearly all media people agreed that
Michael's death was a milestone in African-American history.

There were many attempts to wipe away the unpleasantness associated
with the previous ten to fifteen years of Michael's troubled life. All the scandals. All the plastic surgeries. All the conflicting beliefs and appearances of little boys. Diplomatically, ABC news anchor Charles Gibson said, "People have
gone back to the music."

The titans of the music industry gathered to pay tribute to the fallen star.
But despite of the array of talent, including the Jackson family siblings, the arrival on stage of the rose-draped coffin was "the ultimate rubberneck
moment," in the opinion of The New York Times.

Michael's body presumably was in that casket, but not his brain. While
Mariah Carey was blowing the high notes in the hit song, "I'll Be There,"
coroners were examining that brain. "As soon as we are done with the brain,
we will return it," said Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter. "There is a whole
series of tests that will be done."

Each of the Jackson brothers wore a single, jewel-encrusted glove as a tribute to their fallen comrade. They also wore matching yellow ties and red roses.
It was Marlon who gave the longest speech. Brother Jermaine presented a simple rendition of his brother's favorite song, "Smile, Though Your Heart Is
Breaking." Motown legend Smokey Robinson read notes from well-wishers
who, for various reasons, could not attend. These included Elizabeth Taylor,
Diana Ross, and Nelson Mandela.

Stevie Wonder delivered a moving rendition of "Never Dreamed You
Would Leave This Summer." At the end of his song, Wonder walked over to
the coffin. "Michael, why didn't you stay?" he asked.

An obviously pregnant Jennifer Hudson came out onto center stage to sing
her rendition of "Will You Be There?"

The glittering event also featured presentations by Lionel Richie and
Usher, among others.

Wanting to milk the event for whatever personal publicity he could glean,
the Rev. Al Sharpton gave a speech dripping with racial overtones. There was
a poignant moment, though, when he turned to Michael's children and insisted, "There wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your
daddy had to deal with." His aside was met with thunderous applause.

Not everybody looking in on the services agreed with the controversial
minister. It was claimed that millions of Americans were outraged by the
media blitz associated with Michael's death. Some wrote columns, especially Andrea Peyser in The New York Post.

She referred to the theatrics at Staples Center as a "dog- and pony show-a memorial as dignified as a Vegas lounge-lizard act combined with the entertainment value of a carnival freak show. From the accolades, prayers, and
cries of grief, you'd think you were witnessing the death of a saint, not an
accused serial pedophile who hated the skin in which he lived. He was an
amoral walking skeleton."

Conservative columnist Bill O'Reilly came down heavily on Michael,
likening his demise to that of his late father-in-law, Elvis Presley. "While
Presley was mourned primarily as a great entertainer, Jackson is being sold as
much more. In fact, if you listen to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, the troubled singer was the second coming of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At the
memorial service, Sharpton put forth that Michael Jackson brought blacks and
whites together, teaching us all how to love. Wow, who knew? A black icon?
Jackson bleached his skin to make it lighter, and presumably paid white men
to donate sperm for his three in-vitro children, at least two of whom were car ried to term by a white woman. Does that sound like a black icon to you?
What is really going on here?"

Despite the many glittering stars in attendance, an eleven-year-old girl
stole the show. It was Michael's daughter, Paris, whose voice had never been
heard before in public, and whose face had been concealed from public view
throughout most of her young life.

With great hesitancy, she said, "I just wanted to say..." Then she teared up.
Aunt Janet, standing nearby, swept up the girl's hair and said, "Speak up,
sweetheart, and get close."

Paris began again. "Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father
you could ever imagine." Her voice cracked, her mouth quivering with emotion. "And I just wanted to say I love him so much." Tears streamed down her
face as she fell into the arms of Janet.

Paris then joined with her older brother, Prince Michael I, aged 12, and
Prince Michael II (Blanket) in a family embrace. Then an usher gently directed Michael's children off the stage. At that point, Blanket stole the spotlight
as he clutched a white-gloved plastic doll-effigy of his father.

At the finale, each of the performers, along with the Jackson family, gathered to sing, "We Are the World" and "Heal the World."

Soul crooner Pharrell had made a prediction in a video teaser touting the
25th anniversary re-release of Thriller "Whether he's 90 years old and moonwalking at lmph, the world will be right there to watch."

In 2048, on the upcoming anniversary of Michael's 90th birthday, new
generations of fans will no doubt be watching Michael moonwalk. But it
won't be happening at 1 mile per hour. His delivery will be widely available
on whatever electronic medium is in vogue at the time, and he'll be electrifying.

Wearing black loafers and white socks, he'll tilt his black hat, punctuate
his gazelle-like moves by balancing on his toes like a ballet dancer, thrust his
crotch forward, and moonwalk across the floor in a way that appears effortless.

In a red leather jacket, Michael Jackson will be boogeying backward at the
same time he's fast-footing it forward into the 22nd Century.

"My heart, my mind, are broken. I loved Michael with all my soul."

Elizabeth Taylor

"I feel privileged to have hung out and worked with Michael.
He was a massively talented boy-man with a gentleman's soul.
His music will be remembered forever."

Sir Paul McCartney

"I can't stop crying. This is too sudden and shocking.
I am unable to imagine this."

Diana Ross

"Michael was and will remain one of the greatest entertainers who ever
lived. He was exceptional, artistic, and original. He gave the world his
heart and soul through his music."

Berry Gordy, Jr.

Compiling the history of Michael Jackson's life and death with any degree
of fairness and accuracy is a daunting task. During the past thirty years, he's
been the most written about and talked about celebrity in the entertainment
industry. A comprehensive bibliography listing everything ever written about
him would require a massive encyclopedia of its own.

In my assessment of the source material associated with the life of the
entertainer, I depended on what I hoped were reliable witnesses. Regrettably,
some of the sources closest to Michael Jackson, for reasons of loyalty or selfinterest, were sometimes deliberately misleading, often uttering statements
that shed favorable light on situations that by anyone's estimate were either
embarrassing or legally compromising.