Michael Jackson Dead At 50

MissChaotic
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 02:29 pm: [report]

Yahoo doesn’t have it posted, but the Los Angeles Times and Fox News has officially reported it.

MissChaotic
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 02:30 pm: [report]

I also came across this report: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/TMZ-Report-Michael-Jackson.html

Squidtermz
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 02:32 pm: [report]

its true my roomie works in celebrity services… said he died. : (

GreenAura
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 02:56 pm: [report]

Well, I don’t wanna sound heartless, but I think if any celebrity would fake their death, it would be Michael Jackson. That being said, if it is true then RIP.

andelizastrin
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 02:58 pm: [report]

I’m watching CNN right now and they’re saying he’s just in the hospital, but not dead.  They might not be letting it out yet though, I don’t know…

caroline.roberts
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:30 pm: [report]

CNN just changed to saying he was dead. What surprised me is how widespread his popularity was. I thought many people had forgotten about him after the pedophilia accusations and lackluster records, but even junior-high-school kids on my bus were absolutely despondent, texting with each other and talking about it.

rudyc
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:34 pm: [report]

Did anyone see Perez Hilton? I’m never visiting his site again after his headline that Michael Jackson got “cold feet” about his tour and faked sudden illness to get out of it. What scum. He’s since edited it, guess he realized he’d get flack for being such a sleazy person.
I’m so sad about Michael… he was such an amazing entertainer, so talented and a figure that crossed over generations. I’ll miss him.

Amelia McDonell-Parry
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:36 pm: [report]

@rudyc His site isn’t loading—probably too much traffic coming in.

I am really painfully sad about this. Michael Jackson is the first artist I remember really loving as a kid. For all his troubles, alleged bad behavior, and bizarro parenting, he was an amazing entertainer.

likeOMGkbye
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:43 pm: [report]

I honestly don’t think Perez was saying it to be intentionally offensive and rude to MJ, I think he had the same reaction as everyone else so far, which was “what? no way, that can’t be true…” because its so out of no where and shocking, and sad to see 2 icons die within hours of each other

rudyc
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:45 pm: [report]

@Amelia He took it down. I checked about 15 min after my first curious visit to his site today and it had been taken down, replaced by faux sympathy. Shocking how he asks for sympathy and help when he’s “victimized” (after harassing someone), and yet the only sympathy he offers is for page views.

This is just horrible. Death always comes, but Michael Jackson always seemed to transcend all the terrible things that happened to him with great music.

CthisSunshine
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:46 pm: [report]

THIS is very, very sad.

rudyc
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:47 pm: [report]

@likeOMGkbye But to say he was faking it? That’s the ultimate in disgraceful behavior. Tacky or not, Perez runs a “news” site, and should show some sort of restraint when death and families are concerned. Jackson was a human being, a real person.

Chico B
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 03:49 pm: [report]

Extremely sad, and we’ll be hearing about this for a long time yet, but I can’t say this was the biggest surprise in the world.

justme
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:01 pm: [report]

I’m not trying to be insensitive, I’m even tearing up over hear but one of the first thoughts that came to me is, Doesn’t MJ want to be cryogenically frozen?  Old reports were that he was sleeping in a chamber and I don’t know if my mind made a leap or if I’ve actually heard that he wanted to be preserved.

Sonic
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:03 pm: [report]

I feel sad because even though I obviously didn’t know him, like Amelia, I remember him very clearly when I was growing up (even though most of his popularity had waned by then).  I always feel this kind of nostalgic sadness after a celebrity I grew up with passes away (John Ritter is another example).

msu.umich
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:09 pm: [report]

@sonic - me too.  John Ritter made me so blue for days, even though i hadn’t seen him or three’s company since i was a kid. 

This news about MJ is still stunning, its like I can’t take it in.

fallenangel915
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:11 pm: [report]

I feel like a part of my childhood has died. When I think of MJ, I don’t think of the accusations or the weirdness, I think of all the great music and how he was a philanthropist and humanitarian throughout most of his life.

And I agree with Sonic…this is not the same as how one feels after losing a close friend of family member, but a “nostalgic sadness” that is felt when learning of the loss of someone we grew up with. People the world over idolized MJ. He was one of the greatest.

Lily Q
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:12 pm: [report]

“Michael is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince “Blanket” Michael Jackson II”

EarthGoddess
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:14 pm: [report]

Extremely sad ... RIP. My prayers are with his children.

bellarose
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:25 pm: [report]

My entire office stopped working for 30 minutes and we are blasting MJ!!! I’m in shock.

Amelia McDonell-Parry
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:26 pm: [report]

I really do wonder what will happen with his children. Their “mothers” aren’t involved and that family certainly isn’t the healthiest crew…

Squidtermz
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:38 pm: [report]

So sad… I’m watching Al Sharpton talk about him in front of the Apollo theater. Very somber speach, probably the most in-animate that I have ever seen the reverend. “Micheal Jackson MADE culture accept a person of color” - Sharpton -  I can’t argue that. Even before his ‘transformation’ I never looked at him in any other way than an artist. R.I.P. MJ you deserve it. “We are the world”  He did a lot for the world and brought happiness to alot of peoples lives. The bad things that tattered his name and short-comings the good FARRR outweighed any of that.

bbpickles
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:42 pm: [report]

ET is still saying he is just in the hospital at this time…..
I remember begging my mom to buy me MJ shoes when I was a kid, they were my favorite! My condolences to his family.

Also Farrah past away today too. RIP.

Humble Bee
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:42 pm: [report]

I was just singing one of his songs to my brother this morning! I’m still in total, utter shock and disbelief. I feel sad too…

wonder_bread
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:43 pm: [report]

crazy enough i thought he was already dead..i don mean to offend i just was under the understanding he was already gone but i guess he is today. RIP Michael i hope ur afterlife whether that be with Jesus or u come back as a grasshopper is jsut as impacting during ur time here.

ThUnDaCaT...2009
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:47 pm: [report]

DEAD???? I’m with wonder_bread, i thought mike was already gone after he got off from touching that kid, no pun intended. well, another fallen soldier, i wonder how Ne-Yo feels. he idolized mike??????... i wonder!

Squidtermz
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 04:50 pm: [report]

@bbpickles… ET is pre-recorded. They all went home.

colbella
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 05:35 pm: [report]

I can remember dancing my heart out all throughout college to the beat of Thriller, Beat it,and Bad with my girlfriends. Can’t believe he’s gone. Too many nights of getting tipsy and having a blast to MJ to count. Left a remembrance on Tributes.com. http://www.tributes.com/Michael-Jackson

hellosunrise
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 06:03 pm: [report]

@thundercat 2009: ne-yo was on e! news talking about it. he said he had just talked to him recently and michael wanted to work with him, he saw something in ne-yo. and unfortunetly they wont be working together now. something like that he said. they’ll probably air the episode again later.

that being said, this really is quite a shock. he has impacted so many people all over the world with his music. so r.i.p. michael jackson, farrah fawcet, and ed machman. such a sad week in entertainment :[[

retro chic
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 06:15 pm: [report]

RIP MJ. No matter his mental/emotional/controversial travails, his raw and unique, innate talent will sustain his memory forever. How great a legacy is that? He was in a lot of emotional and mental pain his whole life (manifesting as physical), mostly thanks to papa Joe. But that pain is what probably informed his great art. And I’m grateful for that.

He belonged to the Jehovah Witness congregation of my aunts and uncles in Malibu and was a silent philanthropist (generous with his time, too) to the whole community, esp, of course, the kids, teaching them art, photography and music appreciation.

Not a great day to be a celeb here in LA—Farrah, Michael, ? Horrible traffic, ‘copters, the works. Somebody even wanted Jeff Goldblum dead, in the headlines anyway. Big day in entertainment news here. When you live large, you die large, too.

msu.umich
wrote on June 25 2009 @ 08:46 pm: [report]

Even before today I was sad whenever I thought of him.  I just don’t know what’s happened to today’s culture, but I don’t think any of us have a grasp on what that kind of fame can do to a person.

Today we have people that can get TV shows because they’ve had a million kids, or faked being a millionaire so they can get laid, or happen to work as a metermaid or a airport concierge…I mean fame is more fleeting now than it has ever been, will history take into account what it meant to be famous when Michael was growing up?

Here you have a kid - a KID - from nowhere Indiana (sorry to everyone from Gary but I’m from Nowhere, Michigan so I feel like I can speak on it) thrust into an incomprehensible magnitude of fame…yes, Elvis had it but he was grown, the Beatles had it but they were grown (and there were several of them)...can any o f us imagine what it would mean for a tween to have people the world over PASSING OUT because he was just in their city??

and I think that MJ’s adult life shows exactly what kind of trauma that kind of upbringing can have on a person - a KID, I must again say - would any person with a healthy sense of self do what MJ did to himself?  To me his transformations spoke to his twisted sense of self…but I wouldn’t expect anything else from someone who grew up the way he did.  i think of him as a victim of his own fame (and I’m not at all speaking about what did or didn’t happen with the children)...

I am truly remorseful about the effect of his fame on his own sense of self, but I am forever grateful of the effect of his enormous talent on the entirety of the music industry.  Words just aren’t enough.  he’s a legend, and I truly hope he will be remembered as such.

LostInStars
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 12:56 am: [report]

The legendary Michael Jackson has been dad for a long time. :(

But this news makes me truly sad. I was never a huge fan, but I respect the dude and his ability to entertain. Today is a sad day for Hollywood.

retro chic
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 01:37 am: [report]

I think it’s the saddest thing in the world to watch Michael self-mutilate with plastic surgery before our eyes, and his soul crushed by his very unhappy homelife—I think due to his religious obligations to his family/father, never earning Joe’s approval for what most believe to be his closeted self.

People that aren’t allowed to truly be themselves with the support of their parents/family die a slow and certain death—out in the world equipped only with the arrested emotional development of Peter Pan. Add crazy-fame and money? Amazing he’s lasted this long.

I hope all parents take note of the long-term devastation of nonacceptance of their children. It would give his already exalted legacy and life more meaning. I hope he has found the Peace and Acceptance he was seeking. So very, very, sad. Sad, too for the FEW family and true friends that loved and supported him, but couldn’t keep the hangers-on away.

robertsmithshairspray
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 04:18 am: [report]

This may rattle a few people.. but.. I refuse to be upset about a paedophile’s death just because he could dance.
I do, however, feel like #&@$% over how my sister’s taking it, and poor LaToya Jackson, who’s devastated. I always loved her, she’s so well spoken and lovely.
On another note, all the coverage is really giving us writers a bad name.. I’ve actually had #&@$% for it, and I write about tattoo art, not celebrities! Kudos to you guys for initially admitting TMZ can be full of crap when you first heard the news, most people took their word as true before hearing anything real.

GreenAura
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 07:38 am: [report]

@ robertsmithshairspray: Yay, you rattled me a little bit because it was never proven that he was a pedophile.  He had been aquitted twice.  Both families settled out of court, so what does that tell you?? Can you please entertain the POSSIBILITY that they were out to get money from him?? I feel so awful because his life was a tragedy.  Yes he was the biggest entertainer in the world, yes me made millions…. but there was a huge price to his fame. His childhood was stripped from him, he was abused at the hands of his father, people mocked and belittled him for over a decade and he obviously had some psychological issues that plagued him. But through all of it, he was still the greatest entertainer ever.  No, people aren’t sad over losing a dancer.  They lost an industry ICON.  I almost feel like a piece of America died yesterday with him and Farrah Fawcett. RIP to both.  Oh and on a side note @ robertsmithshairspray BOO F*CKIN HOO that “all the coverage is really giving us writers a bad name” ALL THIS COVERAGE IS THE LEAST THE WORLD CAN DO FOR 2 PEOPLE THAT INFLUENCED THE WORLD AS MUCH AS MJ AND FARRAH. Quit being a dick.

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 08:29 am: [report]

@GreenAura: The fact he settled out of court says much about what happened. He had more to lose by going through the court process and have his dirty laundry aired so-to-speak.

I was never a fan, but I know some people who go all sparklely-eyed on the mention of MJ, so I can at least understand the attraction. Eh, sucks. That is my thought on this. In comparison,if J.R.R. Tolkien died today I would be devastated, but I was negative 12 when that happened so I can’t be.

GreenAura
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 08:46 am: [report]

@ Cheese: I think the settlement had more to do with the parents of the accusers not wanting the world to realize that it was a ploy to extract money from MJ.  And I say that because no amount of money would allow me to settle when I think someone touched my child.  If you touch my child, I want to see you rot in prison and I will do whatever it takes to see that through.  The fact that they settled tells me that even IF their child was molested, they were blinded by dollar signs and justice for their child took a back seat to greed.  I guess we will never TRULY know the real story.

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 08:52 am: [report]

@GreenAura: Perhaps you have a higher view of parenthood than these folks do. Even if it was about money, settling says something, if you think you are in the right why not let the courts decide. Makes sense to me.

CraftLass
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:01 am: [report]

MJ was more than an icon, he actually changed much of the industry he was in, for better or worse.  He pioneered the blending of music and film (for those of us who were alive and viewing, the debut of the full-length “Thriller” video set a whole new standard for the medium), he wrote songs that broke through some of the most jaded listeners, and he always worked hard to get his own voice out in an industry that constantly tries to squash creativity even though it is the lifeblood of said industry.  Creative people should be judged seperately for their work and private lives, especially since we will never know the truth about the latter.  Many a brilliant artist has been proven to have done despicable things but it should never take away from the art itself, because art inspires us and makes us look at new perspectives, regardless of who creates it.

MJ made me a writer, his commentary on the creative process was just as inspiring as his art and ambrosia to my young self.  For that, I can be nothing but grateful.  When I get blocked, all I need to do is put on “Thriller” and I remember why I write.  He’s not my favorite artist by a long shot but no one has brought the whole world together more, even if it was just for a blip in history.  That is his real legacy, and the one that will be remembered long after we are all gone.

AnonyMISS
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:02 am: [report]

@ cheese

actually the fact that he settled out of civil court doesn’t say a lot about what happened.  it says very little.  people choose to settle out of court for a myriad of reasons and often those reasons don’t involve guilt or liability. 

what does say a lot about what happened is the fact that he was acquitted of all criminal charges on two separate occasions. 

i also agree with greenaura. the world didn’t lose an entertainer.  we lost an icon.  from bobby brown to justin timberlake to usher to neyo to chris brown—what pop or r&b;star can say that they haven’t emulated michael jackson?  he set the standard and no one has surpassed him yet.  over 750 MILLION records sold worldwide. he has been famous for about 43 years of his 50 year life.  his upcoming concerts in london were sold out completely in 10 minutes.  he remained relevant for FOUR generations.  i’m sure he is the most famous person in the entire world.  he deserves not to be dismissed as just another “dancer.”  he was much more than that.

joyy
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:03 am: [report]

Uh, plenty of people don’t take it to court when they’re supremely wronged because of the emotional toll it takes dragging a personal horror through courts in the public eye.  I can imagine that the only thing worse than knowing your child was molested would be continuing to rob them of their childhood by forcing them to relive it for years to come in the public eye.

I for one have never understood the vapid obsession with celebrity here.  The world is filled with people whose lives are tortured with abuse and tragedy who never get to take comfort in what luxuries wealth can afford (not that it makes problems go away).  Good for him to be able to capitalize on an amazing talent and live a life most people could only dream about, but we all die.  Death is always sad and causes pain for the families, but it doesn’t really make a difference.

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:03 am: [report]

@CraftLass: He grabbed his junk too much.

AnonyMISS
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:12 am: [report]

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 12:52 pm:
[ignore]
[report]

@GreenAura: Perhaps you have a higher view of parenthood than these folks do. Even if it was about money, settling says something, if you think you are in the right why not let the courts decide. Makes sense to me.

^^^@ cheese
i’m an attorney and i know first hand that civil cases are not that simple.  its not so black and white.  often, even when clients are in the right its better to settle out of court to get the entire process and situation behind them.  michael jackson is a celebrity.  even if he would have won the case, the details of the claim, any lies or misrepresentations that would have been used by the plaintiffs and etc would have caused much more damage to his career than settling out of court.  additionally, he seemed like such a fragile person.  i doubt it would have been good for his mental health to have to go through both a criminal and civil trial.  last but not least, the burden of proof for civil and criminal trials are different.  the burden of proof for a civil trial is more relaxed than a criminal trial.  its much easier for a person to be wrongly held liable in a civil trial than it is for a criminal trial.  there have been so many criminal convictions over turned due to dna evidence and other issues.  if thats the case with the criminal system, which has a tougher burden, imagine the number of civil cases that produced a wrong outcome.  i’m sure settling the case, regardless of innoncence, was MJ’s best bet.  its not as always as simple as i know i didn’t do it and therefore i’m taking this thing all of the way.  be realistic.

GreenAura
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:14 am: [report]

@ cheese & joyy: I understand where you are both coming from.  I just feel that I couldn’t in good conscience allow a person to walk free and possibly commit the same atrocities again.  I would HAVE to at least do my best to keep that from happening. And if he still walked free, then at least I know I did all I could.  Thank God this situation has never arisen in my own life.  My heart truly goes out to all parties involved.  And @ Cheese, I think you just like getting reactions from people (referring to your junk grabbing comment) lmao!!

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:22 am: [report]

@GreenAura: I do indeed like getting reactions. *Junk Grab*+*Crotch Flex* “Uhh!”

He is held to his own standard. Everyone was all pissed at that guy last week because he raped that 4 year old and got 1 year in prison. We don’t know what transpired with MJ, and we give him the benefit of the doubt because everyone loves him regardless of his baby-out-the -window antics.

CraftLass
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:24 am: [report]

@Cheeeese: LOL!  Still, he did that about as much as the average baseball player, if not less.

@joyy: I have never been into the celebrity thing, I’m with you on that.  That’s why I judge entertainers purely on their art, and he was an incredibly gifted artist who actually affected people across almost all cultures, socieconomic groups, races, etc.  There are very few people who pull that off and it’s unlikely anyone will do it again now that media is so fractured.  The death of one of them, even though he hadn’t done much in the way of his art for some time, is a loss that people around the world are sharing right now.  Once again, MJ is bringing people together.  He made a difference in life and he’s making a difference in death.  It’s not about vapid celebrity gossip, it’s about mourning someone who mattered, a lot, to those of us who loved his work.

robertsmithshairspray
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:27 am: [report]

GreenAura.. I just think he did it, that’s all. Yeah, he was aquitted, but OJ’s walked free and the WM3 are looking at death row- sometimes, things #&@$% up, that’s all.
There’s no need to call me a dick because I commented about the shoddy coverage of what happened. Name calling’s gonna get you nowhere when you’re trying to argue a point. Yeah, cover the deaths as much as you like, but at least get it all right- I was actually pointing out that it was cool The Frisky said initially that TMZ aren’t too reliable.

AnonyMISS
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:30 am: [report]

@ greenaura

i was starting to get confused about the cases so ofcourse i wiki’ed them.  with the first case the parents never pressed criminal charges, they only wanted the civil suit satisfaction—i.e. money.  obviously they could take their child through the emotions of a civil suit in order to get the money but not the emotions of a criminal suit were the alleged “pedophile” could be prosecuted, imprisoned and off the streets safe from other children. that honestly doesn’t make sense to me—why not do both? smh.  additionally there were so many conflicting issues with that case.  the mother said the sexual abuse never happened.  the father was recorded saying he wanted to get money from michael jackson and ruin his career etc.

GreenAura
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 09:40 am: [report]

@ robertsmithshairspray: Sorry about the dick comment (I’m a scorpio, I speak before I think haha), I just felt that you dismissed MJ as nothing more than a dancing pedophile and I don’t think comments like that are warranted. Big difference between him and OJ… there were over 500 pieces of evidence against OJ (who knows the ‘real’ reason why he was aquitted) and everything against MJ was hearsay.  I just don’t think its fair to even mention the 2 together in the same context. You have a right to your opinion though, so I’ll just leave it at that.  Gosh, here I am sounding like a huge MJ fan and I’m not, can you believe that?? lol!

robertsmithshairspray
wrote on June 26 2009 @ 04:37 pm: [report]

GreenAura.. it’s okay about the dick comment.. I’m a Scorpio too, haha! Yeah, let’s just agree to disagree.. there’s so much out there, it’s enough for everyone to have their own beliefs about it all, so it’s good we can all respect that.

moonblossom
wrote on June 27 2009 @ 02:11 pm: [report]

I can’t really say I find his passing all that sad. There was substantial evidence that he molested those kids. Why else would he pay $25M? You don’t pay that much if you’re innocent. And then he even admitted in that weird interview that he liked to sleep with children who need love. WTF?

I can pretty much forgive the weirdness, the drug abuse, and the self-mutilation as his own way of dealing with whatever demons he had. I cannot forgive his abuse of children. That’s where I draw the line. I find it odd that there hasn’t been more coverage in the media about the charges that had been brought against him and substantial amounts of money he paid out to avoid jail time. It makes me question our society’s values and it makes me slightly sick.

PinkRanger
wrote on June 27 2009 @ 03:13 pm: [report]

@moonblossom: He was acquitted by a jury of his peers twice. We have no right to hold him guilty for charges he was found innocent of. There is a list 30 feet long for reasons why cases are settled out of court. Innocent until proven guilty?
To be honest I would be pissed if the media focused on those cases right now. I would be completely tactless of them to do so considering he was never found guilty of any of the charges, we can’t just assume he did it.

Even though OJ did it lol. But MJ never wrote a book entitled “If I Did It” detailing how he would have gone about his crimes “if” he committed them. I’m still not over that one Juice….........