Michael Jackson: Life, Death and Legacy (2012) - full transcript

Following the imprisonment of Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray for involuntary manslaughter, this documentary explores the life and legacy of Michael Jackson. His extraordinary journey, the highs and lows of his career, from his debut in Jackson 5 to his untimely death in 2009.

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Ever since I was born...

Daddy has been the best father...

...you can ever imagined.

And I just want to say I love him so much.

As Michael Jackson's daughter

broke down at his memorial service,

millions of fans around the world

shared her pain

and the pain continued

as debate raged over what was the cause

of the singer's premature death.

Two years on

and after a six-week trial in Los Angeles,

Michael Jackson's personal physician,

Conrad Murray,

was found guilty of the involuntary

manslaughter of the 50-year-old singer.

The court found Murray guilty

of giving Michael Jackson...

...a fatal dose of propofol.

A powerful anesthetic normally

only administered in hospitals.

No competent physician...

...would give these drugs without having

emergency airway equipment present.

Good morning again, thank you.

It broke off actually.

-Did you do that?

-No, I did not.

-No?

-No.

We, the jury in the above-entitled action,

find the defendant, Conrad Robert Murray,

guilty of the crime

of involuntary manslaughter.

Conrad Murray was jailed for four years

and labeled "dangerous" by the judge.

He will lose his medical license.

It brings to an end the final chapter

in the extraordinary saga

of Michael Jackson's life

and unexpected death.

This is a look at the true story

behind the singer,

who's been officially recognized

as the most successful

entertainer of all time.

Nobody demands the attention

that Michael Jackson does.

You're talking about someone

who's not just a great artist,

great writer, great performer,

but he was a visualist as well.

He was incredible.

There was something that

just radiated life in his work,

life in all of its extremes.

We'll be examining

Michael Jackson's extraordinary life,

and shockingly premature death.

And what made him the man he was.

Over the past 40 years,

no other celebrity has been as respected

or as reviled as Michael Jackson.

Probably the most famous pop star

of all time,

Michael Jackson had exceptional talent.

But he lived a controversial life

and died a controversial death.

During Dr Conrad Murray's trial,

an audiotape of Michael Jackson

sounding heavily sedated

a month before his death

was played in court.

It was discovered on Murray's cellphone,

and was used prosecution to prove

that Michael had put his life

in the hands of his doctor.

When people leave my show,

I want them to say,

"I've never seen nothing like this

in my life."

In his closing argument,

the prosecution said the doctor caused

the star's death on June 25th, 2009,

through negligence.

Depriving Jackson's children of their father

and the world of a genius.

The defense argument

that Jackson was a drug addict,

who caused his own death

by giving himself an extra dose of propofol

was overthrown.

Of course I think that his death

could be prevented

if he had a good physician.

I just believe he was in the wrong hands.

My friends in the medical profession

were shocked

when they heard that Michael

had been using this drug

because they told me

they never let it be used

outside of hospital conditions.

To take it in a domestic situation

is to invite a tragedy.

Dr Murray violated the most basic...

...aspects of the doctor-patient

relationship.

It was gross neglect.

Someone like Michael Jackson

should have had a proper doctor.

With Dr Murray behind bars,

for some, anger about what happened

in the star's final hours...

...was combined with a feeling of relief

that allegations that Michael

had taken his own life...

...had been thoroughly disproved.

He had so much going for him.

He wouldn't have done it,

A, for his children,

which meant everything to him.

There's no question that Michael

would ever have killed himself.

Of course, despite his tragic early death,

the legend of Michael Jackson,

the man who became

known as The King of Pop,

is destined to live on.

So what was it about Michael Jackson's

contribution to music,

dance and fashion,

and his much-publicized personal life

that caused him to be

such a global phenomenon?

Michael Joseph Jackson was born

in the industrial city of Gary, in Indiana,

on the 29th of August, 1958.

The seventh of nine children.

His father, Joseph Jackson,

a steel mill worker,

recognized his children's

musical talents,

and organized a family band

made up of Jackie,

Jermaine, Tito, and Marlon.

In 1963,

when Michael was just 5,

he also joined the group.

Joe was a firm disciplinarian

who scheduled a strict regime

for Michael and his brothers.

And their relentless hours of practice

left very little time

for normal childhood activities.

Did you meet Joe?

I've met Joe a few times.

And?

Well, he's the father of Michael,

but they are so totally different,

like chalk and cheese.

If you look at his background,

he's come from...

Basically, he was a welder

in a very poor town in mid-America,

and has been catapulted

through on the back of his children

into some huge stardom.

Michael is probably,

like, the complete opposite.

Michael described his relationship

with his father as turbulent.

Joe was so determined

his sons would be successful,

that in rehearsals,

a fumbled note or a misstep

could lead to harsh physical punishment.

Michael himself,

talked of the horror

of being beaten by his father.

"Whipped" was the word.

And how his father would sit there,

as they were rehearsing,

with a belt waiting to smack them

if they got it wrong.

But on the other hand,

he called his father a genius

for instilling in them the discipline

to present this slick stage act.

From my analysis, I believe that

Michael was a very sensitive...

Very, very sensitive kind of individual.

So even though you have really strict,

strict parents,

there are some children

that can handle that strictness.

But there are other children,

it really affects them.

People respond

to that kind of abuse differently,

and with some of the other brothers

I think that, you know,

it didn't impact them

the same way psychologically

that it did Michael.

It really hurt him, and he carried it

throughout the rest of his life,

you know, that his father drove him

and pushed him,

but never treated him like a son.

Every time he would speak about

his father, his face would contort.

You could see that

he was really, really stressed

about his experience with his father.

It definitely had a damaging effect on him.

It really did.

Michael later said he was made

to work too hard for a child.

But also recalled singing and dancing

with real joy as a youngster.

He did discuss his childhood with me.

And I think that he's been quite open

about his childhood.

In terms of his relationship with his father,

I think what the public doesn't know

is that he forgave his father

for some of the hurt that was caused.

And at the end of his life,

he was very much

on good terms with his father.

So I think that a lot of the things

that they happened a long time ago

and, you know, Michael forgave.

I think if Joe didn't do what he did,

there would have been no Michael Jackson.

I'm not one of these people that say,

you know, point the finger at the father.

He took a very poor family,

took a talent that he saw,

and he gave it to the world.

By the time he was 8,

Michael had emerged

as the group's lead vocalist.

The Jackson brothers changed

their name to The Jackson 5

and toured clubs

all over the American Midwest.

Joe Jackson was always very, very certain

that he was going to turn

his children into stars.

I think it was probably pretty disturbing

to him in many ways

that Michael was the brother

who very clearly was the most talented

because he was never

particularly close to Michael

and he always probably

gave Michael the harshest treatment.

Michael was already showing

a remarkable range and depth

for such a young performer.

Impressing audiences with his great dancing

and ability to convey complex emotions.

After winning a major local talent show

with renditions of Motown hits

and James Brown's "I Got You,"

The Jackson 5 were signed by Berry Gordy

to the legendary Motown record label.

When I first heard him sing

Smokey Robinson's "Who's Loving You,"

at 10 years old,

he sung it like he felt he had been here.

He'd known the song for 50 years.

The pain, the torture,

he could put that into music,

and lyrics, and feeling.

You know, Michael was just absolutely

brilliant, brilliant.

The group was an instant sensation.

Their debut single "I Want You Back"

rocketed immediately

to Number 1 in the States

and sold over a million copies.

When you put the needle down

on "I Want You Back"

you were floored.

First of all, the thrilling piano glissando,

and then that wailing melisma from Michael.

So charismatic.

And then he lands

on the first word, "when."

And he had us.

At the first word,

we already were owned

by this extraordinary young talent.

"I Want You Back" is just a classic pop song.

You know, just bursts

right out of the speakers,

and there's so much vibrancy to the record.

It was a little bit a little bit of soul,

but also what was referred to

as bubblegum pop.

When you heard that song

you completely started singing along.

You couldn't... It was infectious.

It wasn't just that

about it being catchy,

but it was also the vocal delivery

was fantastic by this little man.

With his brothers behind him,

it was just like,

"Wow, how did they do that?"

Everybody was just fanatical about them.

I mean, you wanted your hair like them,

you wanted to wear the same clothes.

I mean, you just didn't even want

to go to school anymore.

I mean, that's how it was for us.

We were obsessed.

He transcended color, all barriers.

Everybody just loved them.

Michael, the youngest and the lead,

was only 11 years old,

but the record label claimed

he was even younger.

Saying he was just 9

to make him appear even cuter.

The Jackson 5 demonstrated

the traditional paradox of child stars.

Kids' energy combined with unbelievably

professional dance moves.

It was obvious that Joe, the father,

had instilled in them the necessity to be

visually, as well as musically, appealing.

And, of course, those giant Afros helped.

And the colorful shirts,

and the bell-bottom trousers.

They were the real deal.

And they were instantly imitated,

across the culture.

Jackson-mania swept the nation.

And within a year of their debut,

The Jackson 5 were among

the biggest names in popular music.

All four of The Jackson 5's first singles

reached the Number 1 spot

in the United States.

And were also international hits.

Most agreed that it was Michael,

with his extraordinary, versatile voice

and smooth dance moves,

who was the principal reason

for the Jackson 5's

amazing international appeal.

Michael, even at that early age,

had emotional insight.

Whether this was because

he was the youngest brother

and had been subjected to...

...what we are told were brutalities

by the father,

whether he had this loneliness

that he said he did,

he was emotionally aware

before most young people.

And he could invest a lyric

with an emotional delivery.

As a kid,

Michael was always beyond his years.

He was an innovator.

He was a genius at what he did.

Having the experience

of being a child star,

led to his strong friendship

with Mark Lester,

who had made his name

as a child actor in the title role

of the 1968 film "Oliver."

Michael started at the age of 5.

I started at the age of 5.

So, you know,

we were always kind of comparing.

Obviously Michael's fame

was infinitely more than mine.

But, you know, having been in the

spotlight at such an early age,

and we used to share memories

about our early times.

He said, you know, when these

teeny bop magazines came out,

we were in the States.

There's one called "Tiger Beat,"

I think and "Seventeen."

There were four people

they used to feature.

And one of them was Michael6

who obviously dominated Donny Osmond,

David Cassidy,

myself, and Jack Wild.

So there was five who, not always,

but were kind of the ones that were shown

most in these magazines.

And Michael would pick up these magazines

and quite often there would be

a page of Michael,

and the next page would be me.

So he kind of thought there was some...

some sort of parallelism between us.

He did tell me that

he enjoyed the film "Oliver."

And it was his favorite musical.

And it remained his favorite musical

for all his life,

which was kind of odd coming from Michael

who has dominated the pop charts

for so long

and made so many wonderful records.

For him to tell me that this was his

favorite musical was something else.

It was quite an honor, really.

In 1972, Michael got his first taste

of solo success

with the title song to the film "Ben,"

which was a hit worldwide.

Throughout these early days,

it was clear Michael

was using every opportunity

to prepare for his future.

When he wasn't performing,

he was to the side of the stage,

in the Apollo, in the Regal.

And he was watching people

like James Brown,

and people like Smokey Robinson

and Jackie Wilson.

And he was watching and learning

and picking things up.

And so he was such a student of his craft

that when it was time for him

to branch out on his own,

he had a lot of ideas.

By 1975, after 13 albums

and countless top 10 hits,

Motown and The Jacksons

were to part company.

With a fresh start at Epic Records

and re-named simply The Jacksons,

the journey was far from over.

The hits just kept on coming.

In 1977, Michael Jackson

starred in a feature film "The Wiz."

A remake of "The Wizard of Oz,"

featuring an all-black cast.

Michael played The Scarecrow,

and Diana Ross played Dorothy.

It was on the set of "The Wiz"

that Michael was introduced

to Quincy Jones,

which led to Jones producing

Michael's first astonishing

and original solo album,

""Off The Wall"."

The first single released

was "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough."

"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"

went straight to Number 1.

There's just so much energy in it,

rhythmically it's so complex,

and it's just amazing

that kind of craftsmanship.

His mother actually was concerned

about the title of the song

because it could be interpreted sexually.

And Michael told her, you know,

"People will think what they

want to think," you know.

And so, he kind of wanted to leave it

open like that,

and just kind of be a bit coy with it.

"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" was a really

significant turning point for Michael Jackson

because it proved that

he was the solo Jackson now.

When that song came out

and he was just on his own,

and that, that video, you could never

forget that video.

Because there's nothing else in the video

except for him in a suit, dancing.

""Off The Wall"" established Michael

as an artist of undeniable talent.

And a star in his own right.

It went platinum,

selling over seven million copies.

The album's success led to Michael's

nine-year partnership with Quincy Jones.

Their next collaboration

was the album "Thriller" in 1982.

The first single released,

"The Girl is Mine,"

did not suggest great things.

It was a nice pop song.

A duet with Paul McCartney,

got to Number 2, I think, a million seller

but not a classic.

Then "Billie Jean."

And the ground moves beneath us.

"Billie Jean" is probably

Michael's most famous song.

It became this big hit

with a very unusual theme.

It's a darker song.

It's a song about distrust

and anxiety and paranoia.

Michael was beginning to write songs

that maybe got people to dance still,

but also that were exploring

some of the things that he was experiencing.

The "Billie Jean" story, from my memory,

was to do with all the fans

that used to come to see them,

especially The Jackson 5 time.

And I think Michael was really shocked

at the way people were so sycophantic

about them.

He had an amazing, amazing, creative mind

that he would take this fanaticism,

that was aimed at him

and turn it into this,

kind of, story in a song.

With "Billie Jean" you've just

got this classic bass line,

and then you just have

this amazing...the strings,

and the kind of atmosphere of it.

Sometimes Michael doesn't get the credit

that he deserves as a composer,

but this was a song that Michael had

very close to finished at his home studio.

But then they brought it in

and just polished that and perfected it.

The "Billie Jean" video was impressive

because you can see

it was an actual film set.

And every time he would walk on the steps,

the lights would come on.

He's practiced these dance steps

until he knows them in his sleep.

He mastered everything.

The timing was impeccable.

It was incredible how he

was able to take a set

and turn it into...

...something that you couldn't

get your eyes off of.

From the time he was walking

down the street,

past the buildings, you were captivated.

I mean, it's quite a simple idea

when you think about it,

but he executes it in a way

that had you mesmerized.

It's a historic hit for a variety of reasons.

It forced MTV to play videos

by black artists.

Walter Yetnikoff, who was

the head of CBS at the time, said,

"If you don't put 'Billie Jean' on,

you're not getting our videos."

Because "Billie Jean" was such a big hit.

And MTV had to recant

and ever since then, of course,

there have been black artists on MTV.

"Beat It," the third single from "Thriller,"

with its Van Halen guitar solo,

managed to broaden Michael Jackson's appeal,

bringing in rock fans.

The title track "Thriller" was released

as the fourth single.

Written by Rod Temperton,

the writing talent behind several

of Michael Jackson's songs,

it was in a class of its own.

It's an A-team. You've got Rod Temperton,

who's an amazing writer,

you've got Quincy Jones,

the most incredible producer of all time.

Then you've got this incredible artist,

Michael Jackson.

Three incredible musicians,

who are just at the top of what they do.

This is what created "Thriller."

You knew from the very first introduction,

the minute you hear that, you're hooked.

It's just incredible.

It's such a powerful intro.

The video was unprecedented for its time

with a duration of over 14 minutes.

John Landis,

who's this renowned director, comes in.

He's done horror but with kind of

a satiric edge to it.

And so, he comes in, combines

his talents with Michael Jackson,

and you get this video,

that becomes a phenomenon.

Prosthetics created

by visual effects artist Rick Baker,

and dazzling choreography

made for an impressive video.

It was so popular that a documentary,

"The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller,"

became the world's largest-selling

home video.

Everybody was obsessed.

When you're walking down the street,

everyone was dressing like Michael Jackson.

Everyone had the same clothes on.

I mean, we're talking...

Everyone was "Thriller."

Everyone became Michael Jackson.

That's how big of a phenomenon it was.

One memorable part of the single

is the distinctive, spooky voice

of horror movie actor, Vincent Price.

They had begun recording,

and Quincy Jones said,

you know, "what if we

brought in Vincent Price?"

And Michael didn't know

who he was at the time,

but once Quincy, kind

of, familiarized him,

Michael was all on board,

and they brought in Vincent Price,

and I think it took one or two takes.

The album "Thriller" became a huge hit,

reaching Number 1 in the United States

and the United Kingdom|at the same time.

It remained in the Top 10

in the US Billboard chart for an entire year.

An incredible seven of the nine songs

were Top 10 singles.

Michael's ability to fuse different

musical influences was unique.

He was drawing from such a rich,

diverse background.

So he was fusing things

that normally wouldn't be fused.

It's one thing for Michael

to be mimicking James Brown,

it's another thing for Michael

Jackson to be fusing James Brown

with, you know, Fred Astaire,

or Charlie Chaplin.

When you see it in his short films,

and when you hear it in his music,

you can kind of see how he's bringing

different elements together.

Today, "Thriller" retains its position

as the world's best-selling

record of all time,

with an estimated

110 million copies sold worldwide.

During the 1980s,

Michael Jackson was as

famous internationally

as many of the world's leading political

and religious figures.

By the age of only 25,

the New York Times summed him up

as a musical phenomenon,

stating that in the world of pop music,

there is Michael Jackson,

and then there's everybody else.

Michael Jackson is one of the few artists

who have been inducted

into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice.

His awards include,

eight Guinness World Records,

including one for "Thriller"

as the world's best-selling album,

13 Grammy awards,

and 13 Number 1 singles

in his solo career.

Michael was honored with a star

on Hollywood Boulevard

and received a further accolade

when he was presented with

a Greatest Artist of the Decade Award

by President Bush at the White House.

Those who performed

or recorded with Michael,

often spoke of how impressive

he was to work with.

Michael was looking for three males

and a female, and...

So four of us went in together and...

The four of us had worked together

in studio situations before.

We had auditioned for him,

and we were video-taped,

and he liked us, and he's completely

tuned in to what he's doing.

As well as being tuned in

to what you're doing behind him.

And that's nice for a singer because

he can appreciate what we do

because it's what he does.

And he has an ear for that.

And if you do something that he likes,

then he comments on it,

and you don't always get that

with really big people, you know.

He could be just tuned in what he's doing

and then split, but he's not, you know.

He knows exactly what's going on,

and he appreciates what's making his show

exactly what he saw in the very beginning.

It was at the 25th anniversary of Motown,

in 1982,

that Michael, singing "Billie Jean,"

unveiled his now famous moonwalk.

He was re-interpreting the song in new ways,

and allowing people to experience it

both sonically and visually.

It received worldwide media coverage.

By this time, MTV,

which had, in the past, been reluctant

to give airtime to black artists,

was scoring its top ratings

with Michael's videos.

A bizarre firework accident in 1984,

when Michael was performing "Billie Jean"

with his four brothers for

a Pepsi-Cola commercial,

resulted in Michael suffering

second-degree burns to his head.

Plastic surgery was required

to restore his appearance.

Brian Oxman, the Jackson family lawyer,

claims the medication prescribed

to Michael Jackson during this time

led to his long-term addiction

to painkillers.

When he burnt his hair

at the Pepsi commercial,

he started using painkillers then.

He then fell from a stage

and broke his leg,

he also cracked a vertebrae in his back,

and those things

have caused him terrible pain.

In 1987, the album ""Bad"" was released.

""Bad"" is the last of the trilogy

produced by Quincy Jones.

By the time "Bad" comes around,

Michael's self-image has changed.

With "Off The Wall," he wanted to make

an important hit album.

After "Off The Wall,"

he felt the work under recognized,

and was hungry for mass acceptance

across the pop world.

He achieved that with "Thriller."

So now, he's beginning

to worry about his personal image.

And so he poses on the sleeve

of "Bad" looking like a tough guy.

In that respect,

"Bad" was the beginning of the

personality cult of Michael Jackson.

The title track "Bad" was actually intended

as a duet with Prince.

Michael had already written the song,

and Prince really liked it,

and Prince said that he'd, you know,

it'd be a number one hit.

But he felt like it was set up

for Michael to win.

You know, because they were going

to do this big music video

where they're, kind of, having a dance-off,

and, you know, all this kind of drama to it.

So Prince backed out,

and Michael ended up doing it as a solo,

and it was a Number 1 hit.

Michael's new, edgier look

took some admirers by surprise.

It was a huge change for everyone.

We couldn't believe his image

would change that much.

Gone were the suits

and his hair had, like, Jheri Curl,

you know, like, a wet look.

And he had on this leather jacket, you know

with, you know, very rock star.

We'd never seen Michael look

hard like that, you know.

It was, like he looked like

he was this rock man.

At the time, I have to be honest,

when I heard "Bad"

I was a little bit, like,

I don't know if I'm feeling him doing that.

But what made me change my mind

was the video.

Because when I saw the video I was

just, like, wow, this is great!

Because they were in the subway.

You can't help but watch that.

And that made the song better

for me visually.

By now, Michael Jackson

was at the peak of his fame,

with the Bad Tour attracting

huge media attention the world over.

Before taking to the stage in the UK,

Michael presented Prince Charles

and Princess Diana

with a 300,000-pound check,

from the proceeds

6of his Wembley concerts

for the Prince's Trust,

a charity supporting disadvantaged children.

Michael presented Princess Diana

with two custom-made

Bad World Tour jackets.

One each for her young sons

Prince William and Prince Harry.

In 1988,

Michael Jackson set up, built

and conceived, I guess, Neverland,

which is obviously the place

where he would go on to live

for most of the rest of his life.

Here was a grown man

at the peak of his success

who felt the need to live

in a huge amusement park.

Named after the mythical island

in JM Barrie's novel "Peter Pan,"

Neverland was Michael's fantasy theme park.

It had a zoo, Ferris wheel

and other over-the-top amusements.

Built on a 3,000-acre ranch

in Santa Barbara, California,

Neverland was maintained

by 54 full-time staff.

It was a child's dream world.

Michael even had a pet chimpanzee.

I was invited to Neverland.

The gates opened,

the wooden gates opened.

It's, like, this yellow, brick road,

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,

and Disney World all combined.

You know, it was just...

It was an escape.

There was a time we went over to Neverland

and my little girls

were about 6 and 7 then.

And we spent a week

with Michael in Neverland

and we went on all the rides,

we went around the zoo.

We had our own cinema.

We could see whatever film

we wanted to see.

And at the end of the week

that we were there,

I said to the girls, I said, "Okay,

we've been here for a week,"

"what's the best thing you like

about Neverland?"

And my two girls both at exactly

the same time said, "Michael."

This was a man who, having the money

to do anything with his property,

chose to make it look like a child's home.

Obviously, he had created

a paradise for children.

But not just other children,

him, the child, as well.

Michael would invite children,

especially sick children,

to spend the day there,

hoping to create warm childhood memories

for his many young visitors.

The thing that struck me about Neverland

is it was packed with under-privileged

children from around the world.

And there was coach-loads,

and it cost so much millions to run.

Throughout his life,

Michael Jackson was a passionate

supporter of charity.

In 1992,

he set up his own charity foundation

that he called Heal the World,

the name of a track from "Dangerous,"

the album he had just released.

Are we blind to the fact

that our children are raging

against the indifference,

crying out against the abandonment,

of thundering against the neglect.

Heal the Kids is about doing something

about making a difference

in trying to help adults

and parents realize

that it is our power to change

to the world that our children live in.

He did so much for charity.

I mean, this was a tireless giver.

He was a total absolute giver.

What they would try to do

in the media would try...

They would try to say that,

you know, his charity ran out of money,

and you'd hear stories like that.

It's not being run properly.

They haven't really gone

into how much he has done

regarding terminally ill children,

cancer-stricken kids.

I mean, this is someone

who's done so much.

You don't see that side

of him very often.

They don't say much

about it in the media,

and I think that's sad.

Michael gave so much.

I think he's the most generous entertainer

that's ever lived.

I think that's in the Guinness

Book of Records.

He's second to Bill Gates as a person,

for all that he's given.

Michael, it's now my great pleasure

to present you with a check

for one million dollars.

This represents the money Pepsi-Cola pledges

to raise in Europe this summer.

With our best wishes for Heal the World.

In America, the song "Black or White"

was the most successful track

from "Dangerous."

What people often forget

with the "Black or White" video

is that it was Michael's

most controversial video,

and it was censored.

You have this main part of it

that most people are familiar with,

you know, where it's kind of

a celebration of diversity.

What happens after the end

of the main music video

is a black panther sneaks off of the stage,

and then Michael's conveying,

kind of, the darker side

of the song and of racism.

And Michael Jackson just unleashes

this raw expression of indignation

and, you know, conveys violence.

He's breaking in windows, you know.

There's this, like, sexuality to it,

but it's an aggressive sexuality.

And so people didn't know

what to make of it.

When we first saw Dangerous

and saw Michael's image

completely change again,

and he had become even whiter,

I think everyone was very, very concerned.

And everyone was starting to think

he didn't like being black anymore.

Then he comes out with the song

from "Dangerous" called "Black or White,

and we suddenly went,

"Oh, for goodness sake."

"You've gone whiter, and then you put

out a song called 'Black or White.'"

"What's going on here?"

Many people thought that Michael Jackson,

over a period of time,

had been bleaching his skin.

So this was a real statement for him

because he was essentially responding

to those criticisms through song

and saying,

"Why does it matter if I'm black or white?"

It's only later on obviously,

way down the road,

like, what, 15 years later

you find out that he had vitiligo,

which is a serious skin condition

where you completely lose pigment.

He definitely had vitiligo,

which, you know, the interesting thing

about that is that

a lot of people didn't believe him.

And, you know,

it took really until he died

and the autopsy report actually

indicated that he had vitiligo.

Stars were all about mystery then.

It's not like now where you know

everything about an artist.

The artist was supposed to be an enigma.

And I don't feel that they thought

it was the right thing to tell the public

what was really going on with Michael.

Imagine being somebody that grows up

in front of the world,

and you have this pretty unusual

skin condition

and people are saying things like,

"You are ashamed of your race,"

you know, and "You don't want to be black.

You're trying to be white."

Michael's appearance had altered so much,

it was clear the changes weren't all to do

with his skin condition.

If you're going to understand

why Michael Jackson

would have plastic surgery,

you've got to understand

that he was a human being.

And he was subject to the insecurities

that we all have.

And when, at an early age,

he was frequently criticized

by his father, it hurt him.

And having been told numerous times

his nose was too big,

when he could afford to not have it so big,

he made it smaller.

All of those experiences when he was young

contributed to this kind of desire

to change his physical appearance.

And he was also an artist.

And he kind of began to treat

his face as a work of art.

You know, he had this kind of

various ideals of perfection

that he was trying to achieve physically.

Michael Jackson's dramatic

change in appearance

prompted all sorts of media speculation.

There were rumors that he and his sister

Latoya, were the same person.

And that he was trying

to make himself look like Diana Ross.

It's been said that Michael

Jackson underwent plastic surgery

to make himself look more like you.

I don't think so.

-Is that true?

-Well, I don't think he has.

No one's ever told me.

He's never told me that. I don't think so.

But is it unnerving for you

to have a young man

that's undergone plastic surgery

to make himself look like you?

Well, I don't think he's trying to look

like me. I really don't.

I think he wants to look like

what he perceives is makes him

feel happy about himself, you know.

I don't think he's

trying to look like me.

I do think he's quite

beautiful though, by the way.

So many people really don't know him,

and they don't give him a chance,

and they're so ready to criticize.

And I think what happens

is when you see genius,

and when you see a talent that is

just unstoppable and untouchable,

the first reaction people have

is to criticize it

because it scares them, it

threatens them, and it, sort of...

In order to augment

their own self-worth,

they feel that they have to belittle him.

Just back up. You get all you want.

In the summer of 1993,

Michael Jackson's life

was turned upside down

when he was accused of sexually abusing

a 13-year-old boy.

The accusations of child abuse

at his Neverland Ranch,

were immediately denied.

The case was settled out of court

for a reputed 20 million dollars,

and no formal charges were brought.

Now, if this really went on,

do you think a father would accept money?

That that would make it okay?

That that would make

everything all right?

It doesn't make any sense.

I know that if that

were my son, I'm sorry,

I don't care if you gave me

a billion dollars.

I want to see you either behind bars or dead

for doing that to my son or my daughter.

It's crazy.

The guy was after money.

That's what he wanted.

It was just after this, in May 1994,

that he married Lisa Marie Presley.

Whose father was one of the few men

who could rival Michael's worldwide fame.

The marriage to Lisa Marie Presley

was completely fascinating.

I mean, it dominated the tabloid agenda

both in the UK and in the US.

Here was the biggest music star,

of the last decade, undisputedly,

marrying the daughter of the biggest

music star of all time, Elvis Presley.

At the time, he was in the midst

of these allegations,

all of a sudden, people were very,

very concerned about the way that he looked.

He was incredibly gaunt.

Incredibly white, looked surgically enhanced,

and not in a good way.

So, why would this young, beautiful,

up-and-coming daughter

of a famous celebrity

decide to enter into this marriage.

Someone who's Michael Jackson,

the biggest star in the world,

he can't really just walk down the road

and go out with anyone, can he?

I mean, think about it.

His demographic would have to be

someone like, you know, Lisa.

I think that's probably why,

in his mind, it would have been okay

because she would get his level of fame

and notoriety and everything else.

I mean, it was completely fascinating.

And I think to this day,

no one really knows

what the situation was

between Michael Jackson

and Lisa Marie Presley.

She hasn't spoken about it much

and it was a very bizarre chapter

in both of their lives.

Despite media speculation about

the credibility of the relationship,

Lisa Marie and Michael

publicly denounced rumors

and declared their love was genuine.

The marriage was short-lived and ended

on amicable terms in 1996.

Within a year of the separation,

Michael's association with his

dermatologist's assistant, Deborah Rowe,

led to an announcement that

she was pregnant with his first child.

Michael had wanted kids for a long time.

In fact, he had wanted kids

with Lisa Marie Presley,

which is one of the reasons

why they got a divorce.

And with Debbie Rowe

she came to Michael and said

that she would give him a child.

And that she would essentially

be a surrogate mother

and provide Michael what he always wanted,

which was to have children.

Soon after this,

the couple were married in Australia.

Deborah gave birth to a son,

Prince Michael Jackson Jr.,

followed by a daughter,

Paris Michael Katherine.

But the relationship was not to last.

By autumn 1999,

the couple announced

their intention to divorce

with full custody of the children

going to Michael.

In 2002, Michael announced

the birth of another son,

Prince Michael II, also known as Blanket.

And to this day, the mother's name

remains a mystery.

The single, "You Are Not Alone,”

from Michael's album "History,"

released in 1995,

remains, commercially,

one of Michael Jackson's

most successful songs.

The lyrics to "You Are Not Alone,"

from his first album

since the child sex abuse allegations,

managed to link the incidents of Michael's

recent past and media obsession with him

with a feeling of isolation.

"You Are Not Alone" is one of those songs

that can be interpreted

in a variety of ways.

I think a lot of people, when they heard it,

interpreted it as a love song.

But it was also a song where it conveyed

a certain degree of isolation.

The toll of a life in the spotlight.

It was a real Michael Jackson ballad

in the true sense of the word.

And it did become a huge hit for him,

I guess, really against all odds

because the music video

was incredibly strange.

I mean, it featured Michael Jackson

almost naked

under the sheets with his wife,

Lisa Marie Presley.

And it was a very odd music video.

But the song has been one

of Michael's most enduring yet.

Michael's music was increasingly dealing

with the world issues he saw as important.

You start to see it

with the "Dangerous" album,

with the "History" album,

a lot of the songs, you know,

it's no longer about relationships

or dancing, you know.

Michael's tackling big, social themes.

It was very interesting actually

because the release of "History"

did not go down well.

It was a greatest hits package

combined with a new album,

and there were a whole load of stunts

which were really derided.

For example, Michael Jackson

deciding to send

a massive statue of himself

down the River Thames in London

despite him being still caught up in

all these allegations of child abuse.

But actually, I always felt like "History"6

was probably his most

underrated album ever.

I mean, some of the songs to come

from "History" are completely iconic.

"They Don't Really Care About Us,"

"Earth Song,"

"Scream,"

"You Are Not Alone."

It was a huge album.

But by that point it almost didn't matter

what Michael Jackson released.

There were enough questions

about him as a person

that actually his music

was again overshadowed.

All through his life,

the more Michael tried

to protect his privacy,

the more fascinated

the press became with him.

And the more absurd the stories became.

99.9% of what's written

about him is, was false.

I read that his nose went missing.

I think it was in the Daily Mail.

That's, I mean, that's absolutely crazy.

But I think what it is that

perhaps there's an ounce of truth

in what's written,

but it's totally embellished.

You know what the media's like.

It's called propaganda.

They take anything and they blow it out.

We're family.

You saw the way we grew up

in the two-bedroom house.

Family is more important

than all the success in anything,

and we're always going to hold on to that.

Their whole thing is to divide

and conquer and to separate us.

We're family.

We're family. We have children.

We hurt just like everyone else.

He was very hurt

by the misreportings in the press.

But I think he, his defense mechanism

was actually was not to read them.

Don't let it, you know.

They're going to say whatever

they're going to say anyways,

so just don't read,

don't get involved with that.

And I said to him one day I said,

"Why don't you just sue them?"

And he said,

"Mark, if I was to sue everyone..."

"...that wrote something about me

that was untrue,"

"I'd be in court every single day."

So it just wasn't worth it for him.

So he just decided to let it go.

In 2001,

"Invincible" became the last album

of new material

that Michael Jackson released

during his lifetime.

Though it received mixed reviews

and suffered from the fallout

of a dispute with Sony,

it still managed to make it to Number 1

in 11 countries, including the US.

But as time went on,

Michael's life as a musician

was almost eclipsed

by the endless gossip

surrounding his lifestyle.

Curiosity and controversy

were his constant companions.

An incident in 2002,

which was circulated around the world,

showed Michael holding his baby

out of a Berlin hotel window

for his chanting fans to see.

It created uproar.

I was in the room when it happened.

When I saw it on the camera, I thought,

"Oh God, that looks really awful."

But actually below the window

of the hotel is a ledge

that comes out quite a way.

And if Michael had held

the baby quite firmly anyway

and it was just a gesture to say

"This is my new child," you know.

And then it got...

He got absolutely slammed for it.

But that baby was in no danger at all, ever.

And in fact, when we didn't

think anything of it

until after he'd done it.

And the fans were all clapping

and cheering.

Until the next day,

when it came out in the papers

and we were...

And then I saw the news clip, and I thought,

"Well, yeah, that does look

a bit scary."

It was foolhardy.

Therefore we must ask ourselves,

"Why did he do it?"

And the answer is that...

...the feelings he had,

which motivated him to do it,

were greater than even

his concern for the child.

And that is,

"I want to present to you my new cub,"

as in "The Lion King," at the beginning,

the circle of life,

when the new cub is held up.

Of course, in this case it happened to be

over the balcony, which was really dumb.

But he didn't think about that.

I'm sure he didn't look down and think,

"Oh, is there a balcony or not?"

He was just holding the kid up.

The incident naturally led to all sorts

of speculation in the press

about Michael's abilities as a father.

Much worse was to come.

In 2003,

he was accused of sexually

abusing another boy.

And this time he was charged

and taken to court.

As Michael professed his innocence,

on the surface, he appeared to

be handling the situation well.

But the lengthy trial took its toll.

I would like to thank

the fans around the world.

Could you speak up, please?

I would like to thank

the fans around the world,

for your love and your support

from every corner of the Earth.

My family, who's been very supportive.

My brother, Randy, who's been incredible.

I want to thank the community

of Santa Maria.

I want you to know that

I love the community

of Santa Maria very much.

It's my community. I love the people.

I will always love the people.

My children were born in this community.

My home is in this community.

I will always love this community

from the bottom of my heart.

That's why I moved here.

Thank you very much.

When I first met Michael,

he had control in his life.

And I think the control started

slipping away 2003 onwards

when he sank deeper into despair

over the false accusations.

In the last few weeks,

a large amount of ugly, malicious

information has been released

into the media about me.

The information is disgusting and false.

It took a lot out of him.

I mean, he didn't eat very well,

sleeping very badly.

And that probably took 10 years off him,

I should think.

Please keep an open mind

and let me have my day in court.

I deserve a fair trial

like every other American citizen.

I will be acquitted and vindicated

when the truth is told.

When the trial began,

hordes of Michael supporters held vigil

for him outside the courthouse.

When Michael arrived at court,

he jumped on the top of his car

and started dancing.

And the pressure was enormous for him.

I mean, of course we knew that

he was innocent of all charges,

but you know, a lot of innocent men

have been found guilty,

and evidence can fall

one way or the other.

So the stress of three months of

going to court every single day.

He looked thin.

He looked anemic, almost.

I mean, he was it was just...

I think that really was probably

the worst thing in his life

as far as his health goes

and his mental state.

The child sex abuse trial was something

that Michael Jackson had always

wanted to avoid.

This was his worst nightmare.

He was pretty clear to those around him

that he thought a trial of this kind

would kill him.

And the effect on his health

was really significant.

I think we all remember those pictures

of Michael Jackson

turning up in court in his pajamas

or just not turning up at all.

He was in terrible discomfort

during the entire trial proceedings.

He's going to go home, recuperate,

rest and relax,

and he'll be back on Monday,

and he's looking forward to being here.

And he went to the emergency

room this morning,

and he was given medications.

So he'll be back on Monday

and we all thank you so very much.

You take care.

There was very limited sympathy for him.

I mean, the tabloid headlines

the day he did turn up to court in

his pajamas was "Banana in Pajamas."

I think the world felt, for the first time,

at least the world of the media,

that actually, maybe,

these years and years and years

of managing to get around the law,

however he'd done that,

had finally caught up with Michael.

I'd like to let the world know

that I'm behind my son.

I don't believe any of this stuff

that's being written about him

because I raised him, and I know I mean,

that's just a statement people are making.

We support our brother

whole heartedly, and...

...we stand by his side, and there is

we're in the process of planning a trip

with the whole family to visit him.

On June the 13th, 2005,

Michael Jackson was found not guilty.

And completely cleared of all charges.

There was no African-American on the jury.

With so many search warrants,

so many months of investigation

so many million dollars,

and they didn't even

get an alcohol charge.

They put it in to get something,

they didn't even get that.

It didn't go to show how guilty he was.

It went to show how innocent he is,

how clean he is.

They went through his house

with a fine comb.

And the lady that brought the charges

later went and ended up in jail for fraud.

So, you know, I mean, Michael was a victim.

It's thought that the anxiety

caused by the trial

had a serious, detrimental effect

on Michael's health.

And this stress,

along with the constant pain he felt

with his back and other ailments,

led to a dependency on prescription drugs.

The man was in pain, and there

was no question about it.

He needed to have certain medications,

but the problem becomes

the overuse of medications.

And that's something which people,

I think all people find

very difficult to control.

He simply wasn't able to control it.

Over the years, Michael's friends

claimed they did their best

to help him overcome his dependency.

I warned him many times.

I shouted at him on several occasions.

And I actually told him verbally,

"Michael, this will kill you."

"Michael, you will die."

When I went into his bathroom,

I saw lots and lots of pillboxes

and various different medication.

And in there, there was Demerol,

there was Paxil, Zoloft.

Demerol is a painkiller.

And Paxil and Zoloft,

they're antidepressants.

When I saw these things in the bathroom,

I wasn't thinking,

"Oh, you know, he's he's a drug addict,"

or anything like that.

I was thinking, "Maybe he's sick,"

and I wanted to know.

And I kept on asking him,

"What's happening?"

And he was like, "No, everything's routine.

It's all okay."

In the years following

the sexual abuse trial,

despite being cleared of the charges,

Michael, in many ways,

appeared a broken man.

There were then numerous reports

that Michael Jackson

was having financial problems.

And he was no longer enjoying

the same level of success with his music.

The world wasn't prepared

to see beyond Michael's eccentricities.

And the scandals that had

overshadowed his life.

Michael Jackson is an incredible artist,

you know.

And artists aren't

always normal, you know.

In fact, some of the greatest artists

are very eccentric

and very unique, very different.

And Michael was a great artist.

He lived his life in a different way,

in an unusual way.

But when we go back to those songs,

when we go back to those videos,

when we go back to those albums,

we find just an incredibly rich,

diverse array of art

that deserves attention.

Michael's enduring appeal

was proved in March 2009

when he announced a number

of comeback concerts

at the O2 arena in London.

London welcomes The King of Pop!

Mr Michael Jackson!

These will be...

...my final show performances in London.

This is it and see you in July.

Michael Jackson's announcement

of 10 concerts here

is certainly a coup for the O2 arena.

And if those concerts go well,

the expectation is that

he'll add many more dates.

But questions still remain about whether

the Michael Jackson of today

can still cut it live on such a big stage.

It's a staggering show.

That's what Michael Jackson does.

And so therefore, you're talking about

absolute the the top of all of energy.

I mean, he has to be, you know,

almost plugged into glucose

because that's the only way

he's going to get through it.

Well, money was a huge factor

for Michael Jackson over his final years.

He was broke.

He had lived well beyond his means.

So the idea behind these farewell concerts

that he was very passionate about

was not only that he could go out

in the way he wanted to onstage,

but also that'd he'd make

the millions and millions of dollars

which he desperately needed.

Thousands of fans from all over the world

converged on the O2 arena to buy tickets.

Proving that the megastar's appeal

was as strong as it had ever been.

We came from the west of Ireland yesterday,

or on Wednesday morning

and we've been queuing since.

It was so hard to get the tickets,

so I just well, I'll just take the risk

and just come down here and spend the night.

I just don't care.

When you're looking forward to something,

you don't really suffer.

That we had rain or our tent got flooded.

But just 'cause we knew that

we were going to see Michael,

none of that stuff matters

because we're here for Michael.

We'll do anything.

Let me state this.

The man came back,

sold out a bigger tour than

he's ever done in his heyday.

It sold out 50 dates,

I think something

like a million tickets in four hours.

So he was very loved

and he was very supported.

I don't think he has to prove

anything to pull it off.

I mean, he's a legend. He is.

I mean, Michael Jackson's going

to turn up and do his shows,

and everybody will see that,

you know, the next chapter.

There were conflicting reports

on the state of Michael Jackson's health

in the lead-up to the concerts.

Last time I saw Michael was

at the conference at the O2.

You know, they say he looked high.

They say he looked sedated.

I would say...

...he looked that he was focused.

The last time I saw Michael

was in March 2009.

And to me, he did look underweight.

He did, he looked a lot thinner

than I'd ever seen him before.

And I don't think

he looked particularly healthy.

He just seemed frail to me.

Michael Jackson weighed correct

for his height.

He had the best dietician

that you can get.

The initial announcement was of 10 concerts,

which were going to held at the O2 arena,

a massive venue in East London,

and after they sold out,

they just kept adding dates.

I don't think it was reasonable

to expect somebody of 50

to do 50 concerts in six months.

I just think that's too hard.

He just didn't have enough time

to prepare for it, you know.

And so much was riding on that,

and it put an enormous strain on him,

enormous strain.

And I just don't think

it was very fair on him.

And I think, in some respects,

it was quite irresponsible,

very irresponsible.

After Michael announced the concerts,

he stayed in London,

and my family came up,

and we spent the weekend with Michael

before he flew back to the States.

He was in a really good, positive mood.

I mean, he was in such

a positive frame of mind.

Best I've seen him for a long time.

He told me his children

had never seen him perform.

They'd seen, obviously, video

and DVD footage of him on stage,

but they'd never actually seen him live.

So this was something he not

only was doing for his fans,

but mainly for his children.

I pulled him aside and said,

"Mikey, why now?"

Okay, and he said to me, he said,

"Because you know what?"

"My kids are old enough, and I'm still

young enough to do what I do,"

"and I wanted them to see me, you know,

in my prime in what I do."

But the children never would see him perform.

The world would never see the comeback

Michael Jackson had promised.

Fire Paramedic 33, what is the emergency?

Yes, sir, I need to... I need an ambulance

as soon as possible, sir.

Okay, sir. What's your address?

It's 100 North Carolwood Drive,

Los Angeles, California. 90077.

You said "Carolwood"?

Carolwood Drive, yes.

On June 25th, 2009,

the Los Angeles Fire Department responded

to the 100 block of Carolwood

at 12:21 and 18 seconds.

Unfortunately at the time,

the dispatcher answered the phone call,

and never once did the caller ever identify

to the Los Angeles Fire Department

that the person that needed

our help was Michael Jackson.

And what's the problem?

Exactly what happened?

Sir, I have a…we have a gentleman here

that needs help, and he's not breathing.

He's not breathing, and we need...

we're trying to pump him, but he's not...

Okay. How old is he?

-He's 50 years old, sir.

-50? Okay.

He's unconscious. He's not breathing?

-Yes, he's not breathing, sir.

-Okay. And he's not conscious either?

-He's not breathing? Okay.

-No, he's not conscious, sir.

All right. Do you have...is he on the floor?

Where is he at right now?

-He's on the bed, sir. He's on the bed.

-Okay, let's get him on the floor.

Okay, let's get him down to the floor.

I'm going to help you

with CPR right now, okay?

When our paramedic heard that it was being

CPR was being conducted on the bed,

gave explicit, direct, emphatic direction

for that patient to be moved from the bed

and CPR to be done on the ground.

Okay, let's get him down to the floor.

I'm going to help you

with CPR right now, okay?

-We need him to get...

-We're already on our way there.

I'm going to do as much as I can

to help you over the phone.

We're already on our way.

Did anybody see him?

Yes, we have a personal doctor here

with him, sir, but...

Oh, you have a doctor there?

Dr Murray said that he would take

full responsibility for the patient.

What that does for us is that

now the doctor becomes the highest

level of a medical authority.

If he would have denied, we would have

asked him to step aside,

and the paramedics would have been

the highest medical authority

to give care to Michael Jackson.

He's not responding to anything.

No he's not responding

to CPR or anything, sir.

Oh, okay.

Well, we're on our way there.

If you guys are doing CPR and

you're instructed by a doctor,

he has a higher authority than me.

-I think they're on scene.

-Okay.

Did anybody witness what happened?

No, just the doctor, sir.

The doctor has been the only one here.

Okay, so did the doctor see what happened?

Doctor, did you see what happened, sir?

Sir, if you just if you can please...

We're on our way. We're on our way.

The question is why did it take

Dr Murray so long to dial 911?

Only Dr Murray can answer that question.

Obviously, fast response save lives.

Why Dr Murray took so long

and whoever long,

he noticed that Michael Jackson was down,

it's unexplainable to us.

I'm just passing these questions

on to my paramedics

while they're on the way there, sir.

Thank you, sir.

He's pumping the chest.

But he's not responding

to anything, sir, please.

Okay, okay. We're on our way.

We work 45 minutes because, as paramedics,

we call it the golden hour.

Obviously, we try to tell the community

when someone is pulseless and non-breathing,

you call 911 immediately wherever you live.

We're less than a mile away.

We'll be there shortly.

Thank you, sir. Thank you.

Call us back if you need anything else.

The singer, Michael Jackson,

is reported to have died

about three hours ago.

He was not breathing

when paramedics arrived.

They performed heart massage,

and then they took him

to the UCLA Medical Center in the city,

where he's said to have gone

into a deep coma.

He was pronounced dead a short time ago.

The singer had been due in London

for a series of concerts during the summer.

I am somewhat numb.

I am shocked at the passing

of Michael Jackson, you know.

It's like a dream, a bad dream.

He was so much like a son to me.

It's just hard to realize

that Michael Jackson is not here.

Unless you are a fan of Michael Jackson

in a way that so many millions of people are,

and the way that I am, you can't begin to

understand the loss that we're feeling.

I don't know. I can't stop crying.

He meant so much to me.

It's hard to deal with it,

and it's still hard to believe.

I think you saw

when Michael Jackson died,

something that maybe

certain people didn't expect,

which is that there was this huge

outpouring across the world.

There were just generations

of Michael Jackson fans

that were celebrating his life because

his work resonated for them.

And it resonated across cultures,

it resonated across age groups,

across generations.

Michael's work was able to cross divisions,

and reach people.

After a small, private funeral,

Jackson's death triggered

a global outpouring of grief,

and it was reported that as many as

one billion people around the world

watched his public memorial service.

The star-studded, emotional ceremony

took place

at the Los Angeles Staples Center.

It saddens me that there are

so many people in Los Angeles

who, when he died,

claimed to be his friend,

and yet, where were they?

Why didn't they help him?

I think we drove him to a lot of things.

The world could have done more

to appreciate him, to let him know,

"Enjoy yourself. We love you.

You're good. You're very good."

It's sad that we wanted

so much from the man

that we kept saying, "more, more, more,"

rather than saying,

"Hey, no more from you."

"Rest up. Enjoy your life."

Michael had been rehearsing in LA

right up to the night before he died.

Getting set for his upcoming London shows.

So there were serious questions

about what had caused him,

a man who appeared so fit,

to die so unexpectedly

at the age of just 50.

Just the night before he died,

Jackson was here at the Staples Center in LA

rehearsing for his upcoming London shows.

And by all accounts,

it was a pretty energetic performance,

running through 10 or 11 songs and dances.

After which, Jackson's manager,

says the singer came up and put his arm

around him and told him,

"I am so happy. This is really our time."

At these rather less-glamorous studios,

Jackson had a tough schedule

for the last few months.

The people here who watched him rehearse

said he was thin and frail,

but he seemed fit.

He was, you know, up to par.

He was at his best and he was ready to...

to come back and just wow us all away.

A documentary featuring Michael

preparing for the This Is It Tour,

the comeback that was never to be,

shows an energetic performer.

He wanted to come back badly in a great way.

He was a perfectionist,

so he wanted these concerts

to be close to perfection,

and that creates stress.

That creates anxiety.

He reportedly had once said

to Lisa Marie Presley,

"I have this terrible feeling I'm going

to go the way your old man did,"

meaning die young.

But actually, he really

did go the way of Elvis,

which is that they both had an incredible

number of drugs in their body.

I thought that for the past 15 years,

Michael had obviously been

on a downward trajectory

in terms of his relationship with reality,

and his perception of himself.

What really was the shocker

was the revelation of the extent

of the drug use,

which no responsible physician

would have allowed.

Within hours of his death

from cardiac arrest,

police became suspicious about the doctors

who provided Jackson with

a steady supply of prescription drugs,

though it was over seven months

before Dr Conrad Murray was arrested,

and another 18 months

before he was brought to trial.

Within six weeks,

Murray had been found guilty

of involuntary manslaughter.

He was sentenced

to the maximum jail term of four years,

bringing some kind of closure

for Michael Jackson's family

and many fans the world over.

The court has determined

that the appropriate term

is the high term of four years.

Of course, Michael's musical legacy

will live on.

Just as Dr Murray began his jail sentence,

Cirque De Soleil embarked on a 47-city

Immortal World Tour

celebrating Michael Jackson.

The most elaborate of many tributes

that have followed the singer's death.

Another sign that, despite his troubled life,

Michael Jackson will always be remembered

for his extraordinary musical genius.

You're talking about someone

who's not just a great artist,

great writer, great performer,

but he was a visualist as well,

he was incredible.

Nobody creates the attention,

demands the attention

that Michael Jackson does.

A Michael Jackson doesn't just come along

once in a century or a life time.

He only comes along once.

We had the benefit of enjoying him

while he was here,

and we will enjoy him forever

through his music.

There was something genuine.

There was something exuberant.

There was something that

just radiated life in his work,

life in all of its extremes.

Even when Michael Jackson sang a cliche,

he could inject it with life.

And that was his gift.