CNN 30 June 2009

Michael Jackson was one of the most successful recording artists of all time.

He was twice inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,

13 of his songs hit No. 1 and he won 13 Grammy Awards.

He was lauded and ridiculed. He broke down barriers and built them around himself. He soared to heights unimaginable with his music, and he made the ignominious front page of gutter tabloids worldwide. For Michael Jackson, the spotlight was always present, and the rest of the world followed. From the time he was a child, it was obvious Michael Jackson was something special. He and his brothers shot to stardom as the Jackson 5 in the 1970s. But it was in the 1980s, when Jackson became a worldwide phenomenon, that his impact really began to be felt. Pop music went into a Jackson era. From the elegant ballads to the down-and-dirty grooves and ecstatic dance hits, he dominated the music world. "Billie Jean," "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin,'" "Bad," "Man in the Mirror," "Beat It," "P.Y.T." His album "Thriller" had nine songs; seven of them became hit singles. He became much imitated, from his hair to his clothes to his dance moves. Jackson was also a fashion icon, his heavily zippered leather jackets a de rigueur 1980s fashion accessory, his single, spangled glove beyond compare. Then rumors began, from his pets to his sleeping habits to his cosmetic surgery. Add to that child-abuse allegations and financial troubles, all fodder for the press. He was treated as a traveling circus. But he kept many fans. His death at age 50 prompted many of them to pour out their grief through music and dance, impromptu shrines at symbolic locations and heartfelt remembrances. "This is a very sad day," sobbed CNN iReporter Melissa Fazli. A fan outside Grauman's Chinese Theater in California called Jackson an innovator. "He's basically an icon in his own time -- legendary ... I'm still mourning, and at the same time missing him. It's a little bit much to bear."

Michael Jackson dead at 50 after cardiac arrest (CNN)

25 June 2009

(CNN) -- Entertainer Michael Jackson died after being taken to a hospital on Thursday having suffered cardiac arrest, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner's office.

Paramedics took Jackson, 50, from his west Los Angeles home Thursday afternoon to UCLA Medical Center, where a team of physicians attempted to resuscitate him for more than an hour, said brother Jermaine Jackson. He said the famed singer was pronounced dead at 2:26 p.m. PT.

An autopsy is scheduled Friday, he said. Results are expected Friday afternoon, according to Lt. Fred Corral of the Los Angeles coroner's office, who also said Jackson was unresponsive when he arrived at the hospital.

Fire Capt. Steve Ruda told CNN paramedics were sent to a west Los Angeles, California, residence after a 911 call came in at 12:21 p.m.

Law enforcement officials said the Los Angeles Police Department Robbery-Homicide Division opened an investigation into Jackson's death. They stressed there is no evidence of criminal wrongdoing but that they would conduct interviews with family members and friends.
CNN Analyst Roland S. Martin spoke on Thursday with Marlon Jackson, brother of Michael Jackson.

"I talked to Frank Dileo, Michael's manager. Frank told me that Michael last night was complaining about not feeling well. He called to tell him he wasn't feeling well.
"Michael's doctor went over to see him, and Frank said, 'Marlon, from last night to this morning, I don't know what happened.' When they got to him this morning, he wasn't breathing. They rushed him to the hospital and couldn't bring him around."

"Janet Jackson is grief-stricken and devastated at the sudden loss of her brother," Kenneth Crear, her manager said. "She is ... flying immediately to California to be with her family."

Michael Jackson, the music icon from Gary, Indiana, was known as the "King of Pop." Jackson had many No. 1 hits, and his "Thriller" is the best-selling album of all time.

Jackson was the seventh of nine children from a well-known musical family. He is survived by three children, Prince Michael I, Paris and Prince Michael II.

Jackson's former wife, Lisa Marie Presley, said she was "shocked and saddened" by Jackson's death. "My heart goes out to his children and his family," she said.
At the medical center, every entrance to the emergency room was blocked by security guards. Even hospital staffers were not permitted to enter. A few people stood inside the waiting area, some of them crying.

Video footage shows a large crowd gathering outside the hospital.
Some of Jackson's music was being played outside. The sounds of "Thriller" and "Beat It" bounced off the walls.

Outside Jackson's Bel Air home, police arrived on motorcycles. The road in front of the home was closed in an attempt to hold traffic back, but several people were gathered outside the home.

Along with his success Jackson had some legal troubles later in his career. He was acquitted of child molestation charges after a well-publicized trial in Santa Maria, California, in March 2006. Prosecutors charged the singer with four counts of lewd conduct with a child younger than 14; one count of attempted lewd conduct; four counts of administering alcohol to facilitate child molestation; and one count of conspiracy to commit child abduction, false imprisonment or extortion.