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When Jermaine Jackson told NBC's Matt Lauer on Thursday that he wished he could have died in the place of his superstar brother, most people probably shrugged it off as an elder brother grieving. After the many years I spent as a friend of Jermaine's, I can tell you that he really would have given his life if it meant Michael Jackson could live. "I wish that it was me. I've always felt that I was his backbone, someone to be there for him," Jermaine told Mr. Lauer in an interview on NBC's "Today Show." "I was his Aaron and...

For a while, the weirdness exercised a global fascination. The prestigious Oxford Union invited him to address their members, and Michael Jackson flew in to Britain wearing his trademark surgical mask, a wise move considering the country was then in the grip of Mad Cow Disease. On an official tour of Blenheim Palace, which must have been a bit of a comedown after Neverland, they rolled out the red carpet, but he insisted it be heavily disinfected, and it squelched under his crutch. Crutch, not crotch. Due to some domestic mishap, he was grabbing the former rather than the latter....

EXCLUSIVE: $25 Charge To Attend Michael Jackson Memorial Posted on Jul 02, 2009 @ 03:15PM Fans who wish to attend Michael Jackson's star-studded memorial service at Staples Center will have to shell out $25 to sit in the stands, RadarOnline.com has learned exclusively. Family, friends and VIPS will have seats on the main floor for The Tuesday, July 7th Staples service, first reported by RadarOnline.com, while the general public will be plucking down $25 to sit in the stands. The memorial service will feel like a concert production featuring guest speakers, a lot of music and video screens inside and...

A $25,000, solid bronze, 14-karat gold plated, custom casket has been ordered for Michael Jackson. The casket -- ordered last night from Batesville Casket Company -- is called a Promethean and will feature a flame blue velvet interior and a hand-polished, mirror finish. This is the same casket used to bury James Brown... and is extremely rare.

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — The King of Pop had a fan in the White House.</p> <p>President Barack Obama described himself as a longtime follower of Michael Jackson, the legendary performer who died June 25 at age 50.</p> <p>"I grew up on his music — still have all his stuff on my iPod," Obama said in an AP interview Thursday, adding that Jackson "will go down in history as one of our greatest entertainers."</p>

Feeling a little overwhelmed by the amount of media attention the networks have given to Michael Jackson? You're not alone, according to a recent Pew Research Center poll, and that fact puzzles MSNBC contributor Touré. Touré and David Wilson of TheGrid.com appeared on the July 2 broadcast of Nancy Snyderman's MSNBC's show "Dr. Nancy" to examine the premise that Michael Jackson's death was getting too much attention. Snyderman cited statics from the Pew Research Center for People & Press July 1 poll about the Jackson coverage. ...more (w/video)...

<p>Harlem, especially the Apollo, is the media's unofficial spot to get Black America's reaction to Michael Jackson's death. Matt Harvey dropped by last Friday and listened in on a conversation that was full of adoration and, yes, angry conjecture.</p>

No, wait, don't start throwing white gloves at me in anger! I didn't say it--I just thought it. It's Steppin' Out magazine's Chaunce Hayden who actually put that idea on paper, and I'm merely here to share his fuming words with y'all as a public (or perhaps pubic) service. Check out Hayden's reasoning and see if you don't gag, spew, wince, and totally agree: It's time for the voice of reason. Michael Jackson was an a-hole. There, I said it, and I'll say it again. Michael "creepy, boy-loving" Jackson was an a-hole. Got a problem with that? Too bad. I...

Michael Jackson’s ex-bodyguard Matt Fiddes has claimed the star had a secret girlfriend. According to Digital Spy, Jackson’s former employer has claimed that the star demanded his lover be kept away from the public eye.

Toronto Argonauts coach Bart Andrus told wide receiver Arland Bruce's before the season that once he got into the end zone, he didn't care what the former Minnesota Gopher did. He's probably regretting that decision right about now.

Now that M.J. is dead, who has the rights to the Beatles songs—and will we be able to buy them on iTunes? The publishing rights to most of the Beatles' biggest hits are owned by one entity, a joint venture between the late Michael Jackson and the music arm of Sony Corp. It's called Sony/ATV, and it also owns the rights to songs written by Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, Taylor Swift and, oh yes, the Jonas Brothers. But Sony/ATV does not handle the recordings of Beatles songs. Two other companies do that, so whether you'll ever download "Come Together" off...

Michael Jackson's passing appears to even be attracting the attention of extraterrestrials. Last week our resident ufologist Michael Cohen received an email from a man claiming to have seen a luminous green UFO hovering over Neverland Ranch the morning after the day Jackson died. Since putting out this story we have received about a dozen other emails claiming to have seen UFOs over Neverland in the last week. Some witnesses describe glowing lights while others claim to have seen out and out flying saucers. One grieving Michael Jackson fan claims to have seen the same glowing green light we originally...

YOU'D have thought by the media lovefest that the pope had died a tragic death after a lifetime of caring for lepers. But, no, it was the death of Michael Jackson, a drug-addled, creepy-beyond-words, accused pedophile who literally bought his children with the help of two brood mares and, apparently, his dermatologist -- a group of amoral savages who had no problem giving their kids to a man who looked like the Phantom of the Opera and who behaved like a depraved worm. You can call it "adoption," but I call it child-trafficking. OK, I said it -- and it's...

MICHAEL Jackson's 500 million-dollar will names Supremes singing legend Diana Ross as his children's potential guardian, it was revealed yesterday. The will leaves his ex-wife Debbie Rowe - mother of two of the children - NOTHING. During a day of bizarre developments, it also emerged that the superstar will probably be buried near his grandmother in LA - after the expected funeral at his former Neverland home in California hit problems. Family ... Jacko and his kids Jacko, 50, chose his beloved idol Diana, 65, as carer in the event that his mother Katherine died before him, or was unable...

Now we see what is important to ABC

Controversial Indian filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma says he hates pop legend Michael Jackson for dying and making him realise that he was only a human being. "I hate Michael Jackson. I hate him for dying and making me realise that he is just a human being. I hate that he too has to breathe to live. I hate that he too has a heart which can stop like anybody else's," Varma posted on his new blog www.rgvzoomin.com. Check out the Michael Jackson tribute page "I truly truly hate Michael Jackson for becoming a grim reality from a fantastic fantasy," he...

Source says Jackson wanted shorter tour Claims he tried to make himself sick Says Jackson wanted 'note from the doctor' MICHAEL Jackson accidentally killed himself while trying to become sick enough to cancel upcoming concerts, a prominent author claims. Author Gerald Posner, claims that a top member of the pop singer’s entourage told him that Jackson wanted to cancel several shows without having to pay out his touring company. According to the advisor, who was not named in the report, Jackson intentionally took a large amount of prescription drugs to induce a trip to hospital. "Like a child who doesn’t...

So Michael Jackson's body was going to be returned to his ranch at Neverland, where it would lie in state in a glass coffin for his helplessly grieving fans to say their goodbyes. It would be borne there in a white 'fairyland' horse-drawn coach as sobbing crowds line the route. Then would come the bad-taste funeral to end all bad-taste funerals, an orgy of saccharine camp with yet more artificially whipped-up sentiment.

Who could forget Bubbles? Since the death of the pop icon, many have wondered what happened to Jackson's primate companion. It turns out the monkey is alive and healthy in a Florida animal sanctuary, People.com reports. Jacko's treasured pet chimp was a source of joy to the singer and drew a lot of mockery from the media. The chimpanzee lived with Jackson through the 80's and accompanied the singer to movie premieres, parties, and recording sessions. The pair often dressed in similar outfits. He may not be getting dressed up these days but Bubbles, age 26, is now at the...