Michael Jackson Obituary: The Man In The Mirror

However, the structure of his face begun to change too, and over time, several surgeons have speculated that Jackson had undergone multiple nasal surgeries, a forehead lift, thinned lips and a cheekbone surgery, although many people speculated that a lot of these changes were due to Michael contracting anorexia nervosa.

Keen to prove his worth as a musician however, Michael hit back with his first solo album in five years, Bad, in 1987, and although it had lower sales than Thriller per se, it was still a huge success, spawning hits such as, "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror" and "Dirty Diana" which all took the number one spot.

The following year, he bought land near Santa Ynez, California to build his famous Neverland Ranch at a cost of $17 million and housed  Ferris wheels, a menagerie, and a movie theatre, as well as 40 security guards patrolling the grounds

In 1991, it was time for Jacko to release another album, thing time it was Dangerous which graced the shelves, and as of last year, the album shifted 7 million copies in the US and 32 million copies worldwide. The album‘s first single, "Black or White" was the album's biggest hit, whist the second release "Remember the Time" spent eight weeks in the top five in the US, however, across most of the world, it was the single, “Heal the World" was the biggest hit from the album.

Heal The World

There’s no denying that Michael was big on charity, and in 1992 he founded the "Heal the World Foundation" which let underprivileged children to Jackson's ranch, to go on theme park rides that Jackson had built on the property after he purchased it. The foundation also sent millions of dollars around the globe to help children threatened by war and disease.

What’s more, all the profits from the Dangerous World Tour which began on June 27, 1992, went to the "Heal the World Foundation", raising millions of dollars in relief. He sold the broadcast rights to his Dangerous world tour to HBO for $20 million, a record-breaking deal that still stands. Following the illness and death of Ryan White, Jackson helped draw public attention to HIV/AIDS, something that was still controversial at the time. He publicly pleaded with the Clinton Administration at Bill Clinton's Inaugural Gala to give more money to HIV/AIDS charities and research.

However, we must address the fact that as a child, Michael was abused by his father, and in a very emotional interview with Oprah Winfrey in February 1993, his first television interview since 1979, Michal openly spoke about all the media rumours surrounding him.

However, Michael was soon in the media sights again after he was accused sexual abuse by a 13-year-old child named Jordan Chandler and his father Evan Chandler. Although Michael and Jordan were thought to have been friends, there a rumours that the child lied about the allegations, and he was recorded as saying; "If I go through with this, I win big-time. There's no way I lose. I will get everything I want and they will be destroyed forever...Michael's career will be over".

Little did Jordan know how supporting Michael’s fans were, and whilst multiple children and family members denied that he was a paedophile, yet, even so, Jackson began taking painkillers, Valium, Xanax and Ativan to deal with the stress of the allegations made against him and by late 1993, Jackson was addicted to the drugs.

Marriage, Children and Love Life.

In 1993, Jackson married singer-songwriter Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley, and although they had been friends for a long time, it was as the child molestation charges came public, Michael became dependent on Lisa Marie for emotional support. They married later that year, but it only lasted for two years.

In 1995, as he was promoting his latest album, HIStory, Jackson married dermatologist nurse Deborah Jeanne Rowe, with whom he fathered a son, Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr. (also known as "Prince"), and a daughter, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson. However, he divorced Rowe in 1999, with his ex-wife giving him full custody rights of the children.

Michael Jackson’s third child, Prince Michael Jackson II, or Blanket (don’t ask me why) was born in 2002, and the identity of the mother has not been revealed, and the general consensus is that he was born through artificial insemination from a surrogate mother and his own sperm cells. Michael famously brought his new born son onto the balcony of his hotel room in Berlin, and briefly held the baby over the railing of the balcony, four stories above ground level.

The Later Years

To celebrate Jackson's 50th birthday, Sony BMG released a compilation album called King of Pop and included tracks from Jackson's group and solo career, which were all chosen by fans, who were asked to choose their favourite songs… each national release had a different track listing, related to how fans in that particular country had voted.

It was around this time that Michael’s financial troubles began to come to light, as a foreclosure sale of Neverland Ranch was ordered to pay back a loan Jackson owed on the property. In November, he transferred the title of Neverland Ranch to Sycamore Valley Ranch Company LLC. He also held and online auction of famous memorabilia such as one of his white gloves and the gates to the ranch in the hope of raising money.

What’s more, Michael was due to play a 50 date, sold out residency at London’s O2 Arena, which he claimed would be his final ‘curtain call.’ These live shows would have earnt him £5 million per night, and would have hopefully resolved his financial worries. These dates were thought to be his last live performances, and would see Michael go out the way he would have wanted, it seems so cruel that he was robbed of these final shows.

Death

In the morning of June 25, 2009, Jackson collapsed at a rented home in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. After he collapsed, Jackson's personal physician, who was with him at the time, attempted to resuscitate him and LA Fire Department paramedics responded to a 911 call at 12:21 pm (PST) and arrived nine minutes later.

Jackson was reportedly not breathing and CPR was quickly performed and continued both en route to the UCLA Medical Center, and after arrival at approximately 1:14 pm (20:14 UTC), for a further hour. He fell into a coma and died shortly after arrival.

The cause of death is as yet unknown, but he was noted to be already in cardiac arrest by the paramedics who attended him. Jackson was pronounced dead at about 2:26 pm local time (21:26 UTC).

Please feel free to leave your tributes below, Music will never be the same without Michael Jackson.

FemaleFirst - Ruth Harrison

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