In Jackson finale, seeds of rehabilitation

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – The global send-off for Michael Jackson was not just a goodbye. The lavish tributes may have also planted the seeds for the next goal in the King of Pop's career: rehabilitating his image for posterity.

The Jackson family can find a model in Elvis Presley, who in his final years had turned into a media laughing stock, but is now fondly remembered worldwide as the King of Rock 'n' Roll.

Jackson's memorial service Tuesday, which brought some of the entertainment world's top names together before a television audience of hundreds of millions, won rave reviews for being moving yet tasteful.

Before Jackson's gold-plated, flower-covered coffin, the service culminated in a performance of "We Are The World," the 1985 song to support Ethiopian famine victims -- a reminder of the star's extensive humanitarian work which also included early activism on behalf of AIDS victims.

But Jackson later became better known for his eccentricities or worse -- his puzzling physical transformation, his close friendship with a chimpanzee, his private amusement park at his childhood-themed Neverland Ranch and, of course, allegations of child molestation.

Ian Condry, an expert on pop culture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said he was surprised at how much Jackson's public image had improved since his June 25 death.

He pointed to the huge imprint Jackson's music left on a generation worldwide -- and said that while the allegations against him were serious, it was also easy for the public to see the former child star as a tragic rather than sinister figure.

"Perhaps there's a sense that we all were a bit responsible for having so much fascination in the failings of the King of Pop," Condry said.

But in a sign of the enduring controversy over Jackson, much of the political world has shied away from identifying too closely with the pop star who for much of his career was arguably one of most visible faces of the United States abroad.

President Barack Obama, while praising his music and offering condolences to Jackson's family, has also been quick to stress his "tragic" side. Obama did not take part in the memorial service in Los Angeles.

Even some people who attended the tribute said a cloud would always hang over Jackson due to his lurid 2005 trial over pedophilia allegations, on which he was acquitted.

"I think there will still be a mixed legacy," said Jackie Davis, 45, who said she was not a huge Michael Jackson fan but was thrilled to win the lottery for free tickets. "There will always be some elements who push the negative side of him, but it's important to think about the positive," she said.

Focusing on the positive has worked wonders for Presley's legacy. According to music industry lore, one executive once quipped that Elvis's best career move was his 1977 death, which spawned legions of conspiracy theories.

Patrick Lacy, an expert on Presley and author of the book "Elvis Decoded," said the Jackson family could learn from Presley's Graceland mansion in Tennessee, a popular tourist site.
Lacy said Graceland stays carefully on-message, not showing any images of Presley in his last years of life when he was caricatured as a bloated has-been and -- like Jackson -- struggled with prescription drugs.

"You will never find unflattering images of Elvis -- it's almost as if the years 1974-1977 don't exist," Lacy said.

Jackson was undoubtedly familiar with Graceland -- he was briefly married to Elvis's daughter, Lisa-Marie Presley. Some fans want to turn Neverland into a Graceland-style shrine to the King of Pop, perhaps with Jackson buried there.

But Lacy doubted Jackson could be rehabilitated in the same way as Presley. Compared with the allegations against Jackson, Elvis's main transgressions, such as suggestive dancing, seem innocuous in 2009, Lacy said.

"I do not believe Jackson will have a successful posthumous career like Elvis's because there simply is no way to diminish or eliminate the effect his behavior and appearance had on the public," Lacy said.

"There are too many memories that leave us all with an uncomfortable feeling."

NY rep. stands by Michael Jackson 'pervert' video

NEW YORK – A New York congressman who posted a YouTube video blasting Michael Jackson as a "pervert" and child molester is standing by his words.

In an interview that aired Wednesday on Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor," Rep. Peter King denied that there was anything racist in his remarks.

The Long Island Republican told host Bill O'Reilly that he "was saying what millions of Americans really felt."

In a 2003 documentary, Jackson admitted to letting children sleep with him in his bed at his California home but said it wasn't sexual. In 2005, a jury acquitted Jackson of charges that he molested a 13-year-old cancer survivor.

King is among the possible Republican contenders for the seat held by Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

Nielsen: 31.1 million watched Jackson memorial

NEW YORK – Some 31.1 million people in the United States watched the Michael Jackson memorial on television, with millions more catching video streams on their computers.

The Nielsen Media Research estimate on Wednesday provided only a slice of the audience for the Los Angeles event. But it did offer insight on how the memorial compared to other events:
President Barack Obama's inauguration in January was seen by 38 million people on TV, and the "American Idol" finale in May had 28.9 million viewers.

Eighteen different networks carried the memorial live, including all the big broadcasters and cable news stations, along with MTV, BET and the three largest Spanish-language stations. It had an audience share of 56, meaning that 56 percent of the televisions turned on during the memorial were tuned into Jackson.

Nielsen does not immediately have an estimate of Jackson's worldwide audience, a task that could take weeks.

Twelve years ago, 33.2 million people in the U.S. watched Princess Diana's funeral. That happened early on a Saturday morning, as opposed to the middle of a workday, and people then didn't have the option of watching it on their computers.

Complete estimates of the Internet audience were not immediately available, but individual Web sites reported some heavy traffic. MSNBC.com said it streamed nearly 19 million videos on Tuesday, a record for the site. Video streamers spent an average of 12 minutes on the site, MSNBC.com reported.

CNN.com said it had 10.5 million live streams, the second busiest day in its history. It streamed nearly 27 million videos on Obama's inauguration day. ABC News said its Web site had nearly 6 million video streams, with traffic up 70 percent over a typical day.

Nielsen said 3 percent of the online conversations on Tuesday were about the Jackson memorial, the third-highest percentage it has ever seen after the day Jackson died and Obama's inauguration. Early indications are that Wednesday's percentage was higher than Tuesday's, Nielsen said.

The event combined musical moments from the likes of Usher, Jennifer Hudson and Mariah Carey with remembrances from Brooke Shields, Magic Johnson and others. Brief heartfelt remarks by Jackson's 11-year-old daughter at the end stole the show.

Former President Reagan's funeral in 2004 was seen by 20.8 million viewers in the daytime hours, but his prime-time burial had an audience of 35.1 million people, Nielsen said. The opening ceremony of last year's Beijing Olympics had 34.2 million viewers.

Breaking down Tuesday's audience, CNN and ABC both had 5.3 million viewers for the memorial, Nielsen said. NBC had 5.1 million, CBS had 3.9 million, Fox News Channel had 2.2 million and MSNBC had 1.4 million.

Even for those viewers who watched Tuesday's Jackson memorial, there was still an appetite for more in prime time. ABC, CBS and NBC each had Jackson specials at 10 p.m. EDT and they had a combined audience of 20.5 million viewers. ABC won bragging rights for its Elizabeth Vargas-hosted hour focused on Jackson's children, with a leading 8.6 million viewers.

Jackson's dermatologist: I warned him about drug

LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson's dermatologist says he on occasion gave the pop star the painkiller Demerol but warned him about using the powerful sedative Diprivan.

Dr. Arnold Klein tells CNN's "Larry King Live" that Demerol was among the strongest drug he prescribed Jackson and doesn't know how he got Diprivan, usually administered by anesthesiologists in hospitals.

Investigators looking into the cause of Jackson's June 25 death have homed in on drugs given the insomniac musician. Diprivan was allegedly found in Jackson's home.

The dermatologist says: "If you took all the pills I had given him in the last year at once, it wouldn't do anything to you."

Klein said Wednesday he discovered that Jackson was using Diprivan while on tour in Germany.

Klein told Jackson the drug was dangerous: "I told him he was absolutely insane."

Drug czar says Jackson's death a wake-up call

WASHINGTON – The government's drug czar says that Michael Jackson's death is a wake-up call to the nation about prescription drug abuse.

Gil Kerlikowske, chief of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, says more people are dying in the United States from drug overdoses than from gunshot wounds.

Kerlikowske said Thursday on CBS' "The Early Show" that parents are the key to addressing the problem of misuse of prescription drugs.

Kerlikowske says he's unable to talk about Jackson's untimely death while an official inquiry is still under way. But the drug czar emphasized that Jackson's death should alert the country to the peril posed by powerful drugs that can save lives when they are used properly.

Investigators looking into the cause of Jackson's death have homed in on drugs that were administered to the musician to fight his insomnia.

Jackson 'This Is It' waxwork on show in London

LONDON (AFP) – A waxwork of Michael Jackson made to mark his planned "This Is It" London comeback concerts went on show in the British capital on Thursday.

The US singer, who died on June 25, had been due to play 50 gigs at London's O2 Arena from July 13.

The depiction of Jackson at Madame Tussaud's waxwork museum shows him in his prime in a classic performance pose, matching the "This Is It" concert posters.

Only Queen Elizabeth II, who has been replicated 20 times by Madame Tussaud's, has been depicted more than Jackson.

"As the response to his tragic death has shown, Michael Jackson was one of the most powerful forces in contemporary music and culture and he has remained one of the most popular personalities at Madame Tussauds throughout his career," said spokeswoman Liz Edwards.

"We enjoyed a very special relationship with Michael and this is the 13th time we have portrayed him, a reflection of that popularity.

"It was always our intention to make this figure a celebratory one, signalling his much-anticipated return to the stage but also acknowledging all of his incredible achievements.
"We hope it will still be a celebration."

Jackson's new figure was created using information gathered at a sitting the singer gave in 1989, together with extensive photography and research to reflect the "This is It" image.

The star is dressed in a black Fedora hat, white v-neck T-shirt, sparkly black jacket, white glove, black ankle-length trousers, white socks and black loafers.

"I have produced 100 waxworks but they don't come any tougher than Jackson's," said the sculptor Stephen Mansfield.

One of the first fans in, Mark Crew, 29, from Yeovil in southwest England, wore a Jackson-style outfit in tribute.

"I am absolutely thrilled by this new version... there is something timeless about this waxwork," he said.

"I was concerned about which version of Jackson they would choose to imitate -- I don't think fans would have wanted him symbolised in his latter years."

Matt Blank, spokesman for the World Michael Jackson Network, said: "The new waxwork will undoubtedly be very popular. It is in this sad time that people need to share their grief, not just through tears but also through celebrating the life and legacy of the 'King of Pop'."

Pelosi shuts down resolution on Michael Jackson

WASHINGTON – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi shut the door Thursday to a resolution honoring Michael Jackson because debate on the symbolic measure could raise "contrary views" about the pop star's life.

Lawmakers are free to use House speeches "to express their sympathy or their praise any time that they wish," said Pelosi, D-Calif. "I don't think it's necessary for us to have a resolution."

A resolution sponsored by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, cites some of the singer's charitable acts and proclaims him an American legend, musical icon and world humanitarian.
Even before Pelosi's comments, some Democrats said privately they did not support the resolution and a divisive debate would hurt House efforts to muster the votes for priorities such as health care and climate change.

Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., who posted a video on YouTube calling Michael Jackson a "pervert" and a "pedophile," has pledged to do all he could to block the resolution.

Michael Jackson was acquitted in 2005 of charges that he molested a 13-year-old boy. Those allegations, and his admission that children slept in his bed at his home but nothing sexual occurred, have led some members of Congress to put distance between themselves and any formal honor for the entertainer.

"A resolution, I think, would open up to contrary views to — that are not necessary at this time to be expressed in association with a resolution whose purpose is quite different," Pelosi said at a Capitol Hill news conference where she discussed various legislative matters.

Unbowed, Jackson Lee said she will seek support from colleagues who thanked her when she introduced the measure June 26, one day after Michael Jackson died. She said honorary resolutions don't often "pass the next day."

"On this floor we elevate people and doing that we have to work to tell your story," she said after a House vote. But she would need support from Democratic leadership for the resolution to advance to the full House from the committee where it is now.

When members of the Congressional Black Caucus held a moment of silence in the House after Jackson died June 25, some lawmakers walked out of the chamber.

Jackson Lee has pledged that the resolution, now before the House Foreign Affairs Committee where she is a member, would come to the full House for debate. Such honorary measures normally move quickly from committee to the full House and pass on a voice vote.

But Jackson Lee's resolution was in trouble early. It drew only one co-sponsor, Rep. Diane Watson, D-Calif., and was not endorsed by other black caucus members.

From the stage at Jackson's memorial Tuesday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Jackson Lee hoisted a framed copy of the resolution.
___
Associated Press writer Jim Abrams contributed to this report.

Jackson children were well prepared for spotlight

LOS ANGELES – Even Michael Jackson knew the masks and veils would have to come off one day.

After a lifetime of hiding from the media glare at the insistence of their impossibly famous father, Jackson's children are front and center. Though their inevitable debut came a way no one could have predicted, those close to Jackson and the family say his three kids may be better prepared for the onslaught of attention than anyone could expect.

"They are going to grow up in the limelight," said Al Malnik, a former Jackson financial adviser and friend, "but I think because they way that Michael has brought them up and that they have the capacity to deal with it."

They are also — for now at least — being cared for by Katherine Jackson, who has raised a whole family in the public eye.

"If anyone knew how to deal with the scrutiny and the whole culture of paparazzi, it was the Jacksons," said Rev. Al Sharpton, a confidant of the Jackson family. "It is not new to them."
The lives of Michael Jackson's children never qualified as normal. They had no mother, wore masks to conceal their faces and traveled the world while being raised by one of the planet's most famous figures.

But by all accounts from those who have watched and been close to the children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris-Michael Katherine, 11, and Blanket (Prince Michael II), 7, are not only normal, but model children: unaffected by fame, sweet, polite and very smart.

"Those kids are exceptionally bright. They really have the capacity and understanding," said Malnik of Jackson's kids, who were home-schooled.

Whether they will retain those qualities following the death of their father, a potential custody fight and the enormous media scrutiny that they have been placed remains to be seen. Already, they have been on the covers of magazines and tabloids, their images endlessly replayed on television — ABC this week devoted an entire hour in prime-time to an expose on their lives.
"Michael just having passed away, it's difficult enough to deal with privately, much less publicly and making statements about it," said Malnik.

But Sharpton says that Katherine Jackson, 79, and the rest of the Jackson clan are working hard to provide some semblance of normalcy as they grieve.

"The kids are at the compound," said Sharpton of the Jacksons' Encino, Calif., home. "The days that I was there, they would play with their cousins and were very familiar with them and their aunts and uncles. ... That's the only family they knew."

Katherine Jackson, who Michael named as his choice of caretaker in case of his death, was named by a judge as the temporary guardian of Jackson's children, and they have been with her and the entire Jackson clan ever since his June 25 death. Their longtime nanny, Grace Rwaramba, has also been with the children, according to a source close to the family who is not authorized to speak for the family and requested anonymity.

While the Jackson family has long been perceived as dysfunctional — their battles have played out famously on the public stage — what struck many people at Jackson's memorial service on Tuesday was their display of unity.

Paris-Michael clutched grandmother Katherine during the service, while Prince Michael held onto his Aunt Janet as his sister made her tear-jerking testament of love about her father. Blanket hid behind a phalanx of Jacksons siblings onstage, and when Michael's brother Marlon broke down while addressing the Staples Center crowd, the entire Jackson family, including the children, embraced in one powerful group hug.

"The family is much closer than one wanted to perceive," said Sharpton, who acknowledged that Paris' speech was spontaneous. "People far overestimate and embellish any perceived differences in that family."

The public images of a Jackson family united in grief may help Katherine Jackson as she heads into Monday custodial hearing involving Mrs. Jackson and the biological mother of Jackson's two oldest children, Deborah Rowe. Rowe, who was previously married to Jackson, has not had a relationship with Prince or Paris-Michael, but since Jackson's death has expressed interest in raising not only her two biological children, but Blanket as well, to whom she has no relation (the mother of Blanket, born to a surrogate, has never been revealed).

It is unclear if a custody battle will develop. Rowe's attorney said she has not decided it she plans to seek custody, and people close to interactions with both camps, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, said both sides have been gracious and cordial, not contentious.

Sharpton said the Jacksons haven't been anticipating a battle, but when asked about the best interests of the kids, said: "They ought to be around the people they are most familiar with. This is not the beginning of their relationship (with the Jacksons)."

Still, some have expressed concern that the Jackson's kids may suffer by being placed with their extended family. Michael's father Joe has been roundly criticized for promoting a record label on television in the days after his death, and Michael had long described him as physically and emotionally abusive. Katherine's age has led to questions about her ability to look after adolescent children.

Dr. Arnold Klein, Jackson's longtime dermatologist and friend, told "Larry King Live" on Wednesday night he feared that the performing family might turn Jacksons' kids into "The Jackson 3, their intelligence dancing away — because these children are bright."

But Sharpton dismissed the idea that the Jacksons would seek to exploit the children or take them on a path other than the one Michael Jackson had intended for them.

"For the life of me I don't now why people would assume based on no evidence at all why the Jacksons wouldn't have their own grandchildren and niece and nephews at heart," he said. "It is the most ridiculous notion I've heard."

LA official: Promoter should pay Jackson memorial

LOS ANGELES – A city council member on Thursday called on AEG Live to pay some of the estimated $1.4 million cost for policing Michael Jackson's memorial service at the Staples Center.

Dennis Zine told Fox 11 that the city's taxpayers "are getting ripped off" because the owner-operator of the Staples Center profited by charging media up to $50,000 to use risers outside the venue.

AEG President Tim Leiweke had said Zine was out of line for asking AEG to pay for policing because it helped solicit donors for the Los Angeles Lakers' NBA victory parade last month.
Jackson's concert promoter, AEG Live, said that it paid for the memorial itself along with the Jackson estate, but did not mention the cost of crowd control.

The parade and memorial both resulted in extraordinary costs to Los Angeles at a time when it is in debt for half of a billion dollars and facing employee layoffs.

The cost of city services for the Lakers' parade was about $1 million. Donors covered about $850,000 of that sum. The Lakers and AEG spent another $1 million to produce the parade and rally at Memorial Coliseum.

Michael Jackson's final resting place a mystery

LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson's glimmering casket took center stage at the Staples Center, sitting for more than two hours as celebrities memorialized the King of Pop under the watchful eyes of millions. And when the ceremony was over, it was gone.

By law, the golden casket that presumably held Jackson's body should be exactly where his death certificate says it is: back at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Hollywood Hills cemetery, the site of a private family memorial service held before the Staples ceremony. Los Angeles County records show the cemetery as the temporary location, where it must stay until those records are officially updated.

But where Jackson's body will eventually be laid to rest remained a mystery, fed by the same level of rumor and speculation that surrounded much of his life. Will he be interred at Forest Lawn? Is Neverland Ranch still a possibility?

What if he's not buried at all, but cremated? The family isn't talking — and may not even have decided yet.

The casket was first seen leaving the mortuary at Forest Lawn, where it got into a hearse for the 10-mile trip to the Staples Center. But before the service even started, the hearse was seen leaving the facility — empty — and wasn't spotted again.

But to keep in good standing with the law, the casket would have needed to return to Forest Lawn at some point, presumably after the crowds went home and the television cameras were long gone.

Robert J. Biggins, a former president of the National Funeral Directors Association, said Jackson's body is likely in his casket which he identified it as a custom-made, top-of-the-line coffin made by the Indiana-based Batesville Casket Company that is called a "Promethean." The casket is probably in a temporary holding area — perhaps a mausoleum — pending a final location, he said.

"This happened so quickly that it's something that has to have an awful lot of thoughtful consideration," said Biggins, who is the owner of Magoun-Biggins Funeral home in Rockland, Mass. "This is bigger than your average burial."

Conjecture about Jackson's final resting place has been as fraught as the rumors about where his memorial service would be held in the days before the Staples Center was announced. His 5-page will, signed in 2002, does not include final wishes for his body.

Forest Lawn is one likely possibility. If Jackson is buried there, he would join other celebrities such as Liberace, Gene Autry, Bette Davis and Andy Gibb. Recently deceased actor David Carradine and "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon also are buried there.

The Jackson family seems divided over whether the body should go to Neverland, which would surely turn the Santa Barbara County ranch into a West-coast Graceland. But Jackson abandoned the 2,500-acre estate after going into seclusion following his acquittal on child molestation charges in 2005, and many of the things that made it unique — the merry-go-round, Ferris wheel and zoo — are gone.

Billionaire Thomas Barrack, who owns Neverland in a joint venture with Jackson, has expressed an openness to the idea of having the singer's body buried at the ranch. The family would need to get permission from local land-use officials to bury Jackson on private property, then submit an application and paperwork with the state Cemetery and Funeral Bureau.
The state application would then need to be approved by the funeral board, a process that could take anywhere from seven to 30 days.

Beyond that, accessibility remains an issue at Neverland. A single two-lane highway leads to the property about 130 miles north of Los Angeles, and infrastructure changes would likely be necessary to accommodate the additional traffic.

Another possibility is cremation. State law requires that the person who has control of the cremated remains obtain written permission of the property owner or governing agency to scatter on the property.

Funeral experts said the delay in Jackson's funeral may be due to the fact that such celebrity deaths create logistical, security and legal headaches.

"One of the issues you're going to run into with any high-profile name, whether it be a former president of the United States or somebody of Michael Jackson's stature, is what does the cemetery — if it's to be a burial — do to establish security, to protect the remains, to protect the privacy of the family during the service, to protect remains afterward and what kind of built-in overhead comes with it," said Paul Elvig, former president of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association.

Experts said even a two-week delay between death and funeral is not unusual. The body of singer James Brown was kept in a sealed gold casket inside his South Carolina home for more than two months before being interred in 2007 at the home of one of his daughters.

"You're probably talking more about an impatient public and an impatient press wanting to know what's going to happen and that impatience needs to be understood," Elvig said. "If a body's been properly prepared by an embalmer, it can be held for a considerable period of time with minor touchups to it."

Biggins said he is even encouraged by the delay.

"I think the fact that there's this pause is a wonderful thing because it's being given thoughtful consideration," he said, "to make sure this is done right and this is done in a way that honors his legacy."