Profile
Name: Michael Jackson
Birth Name: Michael Joseph Jackson
Height: 5' 10
Sex: M
Nationality: American
Birth Date: August 29, 1958
Birth Place: Gary, Indiana, USA
Profession: musician, song writer, actor
Education: California Preparatory School, Encino, California
Husband/Wife: Debbie Rowe-Jackson (married on November 14, 1996 in Sydney, Australia; divorced on October 8, 1999), Lisa Marie Presley (married on May 26, 1994 in the Dominican Republic; divorced in January 1996)
Father: Joseph Walter Jackson
Mother: Katherine Esther Jackson
Sister: Janet Jackson (born on May 16, 1966), LaToya Jackson (born on May 29, 1956), Rebbie Jackson (musician; born on May 25, 1950)
Brother: Randy Jackson (born on October 29, 1961), Marlon David (March 12, 1957), Jermaine La Juane (December 11, 1954), Tito Jackson (October 15, 1953), Jackie Jackson (May 4, 1951)
Son: Prince Michael Jackson II (born in 2002), Prince Michael Jackson I (born on February 12, 1997; mother: Debbie Rowe)
Daughter: Paris Michael Katherine Jackson (born on April 3, 1998; mother: Debbie Rowe)
Claim to fame: album Thriller (1982)
Biography
Michael began his musical career at the age of 5 as the lead singer of the Jackson 5 who formed in 1964. In these early years the Jackson 5, Jackie, Jermaine,Tito,Marlon and lead singer Michael played local clubs and bars in Gary Indiana and moving further afield as there talents grew and they could compete in bigger competitions. From these early days Michael would be at the same clubs as big talented stars of there days, such as Jackie Wilson and would be learning from them even back then. In 1968 the Bobby Taylor and The Vancouvers discovered the Jackson five and from there they got an audition for Berry Gordy of Motown Records. The Jackson 5 signed for Motown and moved to California. Their first 4 singles, "I Want You Back", "ABC", "The Love You Save", and "I'll Be There" all made US No1 hits. The Jackson 5 recorded 14 albums and Michael recorded 4 solo albums with Motown.
The Jackson 5 stayed with Motown until 1976, wanting more artistic freedom they felt they had to move on and signed up with Epic. The group name Jackson 5 had to be changed as it was owned by Motown, so they reverted to The Jacksons as they had be known in the early days. Brother Jermaine married Berry Gordy's daughter and stayed with Motown. Youngest brother Randy joined in his place. The Jacksons had a number of hit recordsand in total made 6 albums between the years of 1976 and 1984.
In 1977 Michael made his first film debut when he starred in the musical 'The Wiz' playing Scarecrow with Diana Ross in the lead role of Dorothy. It was at this time Michael met Quincy Jones who was doing the score for the film.
Michael teamed up with Quincey Jones as his producer for his first solo album with Epic Records. The album titled "Off The Wall" was a big success around the world and the first ever album to release a record breaking 4 No1 singles in the US.
In 1982 Michael Jackson released the world's largest selling album of all time, 'Thriller'. This album produced 7 hit singles, breaking yet again more records, and went on to sell over 50 million copies worldwide. Michael was keen to use music video or short films as he called them to promote his singles from the album. He worked with the best directors and producers, using the latest technology and special effects.for the hit song 'Billie Jean' The short film 'Thriller' used the latest make-up artists technolgy combined with fantastic dancing and cherography, to produce a 14 minute video, with a start, a middle and an ending. So successful was this video that 'The Making Of Michael Jackson's Thriller' became the world's largest selling home video combined with soaring album sales. In 1983 Michael performed the now legendary moonwalk for the first time on the 'Motown 25 years' anniversary show. This performance alone set Michael undoubtable into the realm of a superstar.
In 1984 Michael won a record breaking 8 Grammy awards in one night. The awards were for his work on the 'Thriller' album and his work on the narrative for the 'ET Storybook'.
On December 9th 1984 at the last concert of the Jackson's Victory Tour, Michael announced he was splitting from the group and going solo.
In 1987 Michael released his much awaited third solo album, titled 'Bad', and lauched his record breaking first solo world tour. 1988, Michael wrote his first autobiography talking for the first time on his childhood and his career. At the end of the 1980s Michael was named 'Artist Of The Decade' for his success off of his 'Thriller' and 'Bad' albums.
In 1991 Michael signed with Sony Music the largest ever recording contract and released his fourth solo album, 'Dangerous'. He toured world again in 1992, taking his concerts to countries that had never before been visited by a pop/rock artist. Also Michael founded the 'Heal the World Foundation' to help improve the lives of children across the world.
In 1994 Michael married Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of rock legend Elvis Presley. The marriage only lasted for 19 months, as they divorced in 1996.
1995 saw Michael release a fifth solo album, 'HIStory', which was a double album, first half new material and second half half greatest hits. Michael toured again over a legs covering a 2 year period. In between legs of the tour on November 14th 1996, Michael married for his second time to Debbie Rowe who was a nurse that Michael had met in the treatment of his skin pigment disorder. Together they had their first child Prince Michael Joseph Jackson jr born on February 13 1997 and a daughter Paris Michael Katherine Jackson born on April 3rd 1998. In 1997 Michael released the remix album 'Blood On The Dance Floor' which also contained 5 new song linked with a 38min film "Ghosts". This film Michael played 5 roles using the latest special effects and make-up artistry, combined with his dance and music.
In September, 2001 Michael celebrated his 30th anniversary as a solo artist with two concerts to be held in New York, USA. Many artists such as Whitney Houston, Usher, Destinys Child, Shaggy and many more performed there own and Michael Jacksons past songs. Michael then reunited with all of his brothers performed there biggest hits. Michael then went onto perform solo some of his biggest hits. In October 2001 Michael released the album 'Invincible' so far releasing only 2 singles including the big hit "You Rock My World". Since the release of this first single the album has been surrounded by rumours of a rift with Sony Music and a clear lack of promotion of the album.
Achievements
Sales records
* Michael Jackson one of the best-selling male pop artist of all-time, with over 350 million albums and singles sold worldwide.
* Thriller is the best-selling album of all-time, with over fifty one million copies sold worldwide .
* HIStory: Past, Present, & Future is the best-selling multiple-disc album of all-time (7th best-selling album overall), with over eighteen million copies sold worldwide .
* Blood On The Dance Floor/HIStory In The Mix is the best-selling remix album of all-time, with over six million copies sold worldwide .
* Jackson has nine platinum singles, second only to Elvis Presley among male artists.
Chart records
* Jackson's Thriller remained at number one for thirty-seven weeks, the longest stay by a non-soundtrack album to date.
* Jackson was the first artist to have seven top-ten singles from one album (Thriller).
* Jackson was the first artist to simultaneously have the number-one album and number-one single on Billboard's Pop Charts and Black Charts.
* Jackson was the first artist in the 1980s to have two simultaneous top-five hits ("Beat It" and "Billie Jean" on April 16 1983).
* Jackson was the first and, to date, only artist to have five number-one hits from one LP, Bad ("Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror", "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", and "Dirty Diana").
* Jackson had nine number ones in the 1980s, more than any other artist during the decade.
* Jackson has the most Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles for a male recording artist.
* Jackson was the first artist to ever have a song debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 ("You Are Not Alone").
* Jackson's album Bad remained in the top five of the Billboard 200 for thirty-eight weeks, longer than any other album to date.
* Michael Jackson has had thirteen number-one singles on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Chart and behind only Elvis Presley's seventeen among male artists.
Michael's US Number Ones (13) 1-Ben (1 week) 2-Rock with You (4 weeks) 3-Don't Stop Till you get enough (1 week) 4-Billie Jean (7 weeks) 5-Beat It (3 weeks) 6-Say Say Say (6 weeks) 7-I Just Can't Stop Loving You (with Siedah Garrett)(1 week) 8-Bad (2 weeks) 9-The Way You Make Me Feel (1 week) 10-Man In The Mirror (2 weeks) 11-Dirty Diana (1 week) 12-Black Or White (7 weeks) 13-You Are Not Alone (1 week)
* Michael has had seven number-one singles on the U.K. singles chart,
Michael's UK Number Ones (7) 1-One Day In Your Life 2-Billie Jean (1 week) 3-I Just Can't Stop Loving You (with Siedah Garrett)(2 weeks) 4-Black or White (2 weeks) 5-You Are Not Alone (2 weeks) 6-Earth Song (6 weeks) 7-Blood on the Dance Floor (1 week)
* Michael Jackson has had thirteen number-one singles on US R&B Singles Chart
Michael's R&B Number Ones (13) 1-Don't Stop Till You Get Enough (5 weeks) 2-Rock With You 3-The Girl Is Mine (3 weeks) 4-Billie Jean (9 weeks) 5-Beat It 6-I Just Can't Stop Loving You 7-Bad 8-The Way You Make Me Feel 9-Man In The Mirror 10-Another Part Of Me 11-Remember The Time 12-In The Closet 13-You Are Not Alone (4 weeks)
Trivia
* Michael Jackson has supported more charities than any other pop singer - 39 charitable organizations either with monetary donations through sponsorships of their projects or the participation in their activities. The charities involved include AIDS Project L.A., American Cancer Society, BMI Foundation, Inc., Childhelp USA, United Negro College Fund, YMCA - 28th Street/Crenshaw, The Sickle Cell Research Fund and Volunteers of America.
* David O Selznick's 1940 Best Film Oscar for Gone With The Wind (USA, 1939) was bought by the singer, Michael Jackson, for $1,542,000 on June 12, 1999, at Sotheby's, New York. The pop star made his bid by phone. It is the most expensive Oscar.
* Michael Jackson and Bubbles, a porcelain sculpture created by the artist Jeff Koons in 1988 sold for $5,616,750 at Sotheby's in New York on May 15, 2001. The piece measures 106.7 x 179.1 x 82.6 cm (42 x 70.5 x 32.5 in) and is described as a mix of pop culture and high art. The sculpture shows Michael Jackson reclining with his arm around his pet monkey. It is the most valuable sculpture by a living artist.
* Michael Jackson's part feature film, part music video, Ghosts (USA, 1996), is 35 min long and was based on an original concept by horror writer Stephen King. Jackson plays five different roles in the video, directed by Stan Winston. It is the longest ever Music Video.
* Jackson holds the record for most expensive music video ("Scream" in 1995 with sister Janet Jackson ) cost reportedly over seven million U.S. dollars.
* On November 14, 1991, Michael Jackson’s music video to his son Black or White was broadcast simultaneously in 27 countries with an estimated audience of 500 million people. It is the largest audience ever to view a music video.
* In March 1991, Jackson was awarded a new record-breaking US$890 million contract by Sony. It is still the largest recording contract of all time.
* In 1986 Michael Jackson signed a $15 million deal with Pepsi - it was the largest ever endorsement for product promotion.
* Jackson has the record for the two best-selling VHS music videos ever released("Moonwalker" in first place, and "The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller" in second place).
* Jackson jointly holds the record for most Grammy Awards won in a single year; he won eight awards at the 1984 ceremony. This has been equaled by Carlos Santana at the 2001 ,and Norah Jones at the 2003 ceremony.
* Jackson jointly holds the record for most American Music Awards won in a single year,winning eight awards at the 1984 ceremony. This has only been equaled by Whitney Houston
at the 1994 ceremony.
* Jackson jointly holds the record for the most World Music Awards won in a single year, with five awards at the 1996 ceremony (tied with Whitney Houston from the 1994 ceremony).
* Michael Jackson had more music awards than any other artist in the history of music.
* honored as Artist of the decade from George Bush in 1989 and another seven awards from
others.
* Named Artist Of The Century in American Music Awards ceremony in 2002.
* Named Artist Of The Millennium in MTV Video Music ceremony in 2002.
* Jackson's "Bad World Tour" (1987–1988) was the highest-grossing tour ever at the time, with over $125 million earned. This record was later broken by the "Dangerous World Tour"
(1992-1993) and later broken again by the "HIStory World Tour" (1996-1997).
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During a search for evidence at the Neverland Valley Ranch, investigators discovered a corpse that has been identified as that of Michael Jackson, Santa Barbara police officials announced Tuesday.
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"Coroners have officially pronounced Michael Jackson dead. From what we can tell, he died between 18 and 20 years ago," forensic investigator Tim Holbrooke said. "We are not certain, at this time, who—or what—has been standing trial in that Santa Maria courthouse."
According to Holbrooke, Jackson's corpse was buried just inches below a stretch of the miniature-train tracks that run throughout Neverland. The largely desiccated corpse wore the remains of a red, zipper-covered leather jacket and a single glove.
"We positively identified the body as Jackson by his dental records and DNA," Holbrooke said. "But even before we conducted a single forensic test, we began to suspect that that we'd uncovered the real Michael, and that the disturbing figure claiming to be Jackson was a fake."
Holbrooke said that, although the corpse was in an advanced stage of decomposition, when investigators compared the body to early-career publicity photos of Jackson, they saw a striking resemblance in bone structure and facial features. But when they compared the body to photos taken after 1987, the resemblance was negligible.
"This discovery raises a lot of questions, but it also sheds light on a number of disturbing incidents," Holbrooke said. "Frankly, Jackson had been acting pretty strange."
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Investigators move Jackson's body, found buried at Neverland Ranch (above).
Forensic experts and music critics are postulating that Jackson was dead before the release of the multi-platinum album Bad. Detectives are currently analyzing the lyrics to "Man In The Mirror" for any clues relating to a look-alike entity that many suspect murdered the youngest member of the Jackson 5 and assumed his identity.
"We believe that Neverland served as some sort of freakishly whimsical tomb constructed by Jackson's killer," Holbrooke said. "We also suspect that all of the iniquities that occurred on that ranch were the work of the imposter. I wouldn't have ever thought it possible, but we are looking at a situation where the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old cancer patient is the tip of the iceberg."
Holbrooke said that, while the living Jackson is the leading suspect in the murder investigation, he "could be another victim of some sort."
"Basically, we have no idea what type of creature we are dealing with," Holbrooke said.
A member of the investigative team that discovered Jackson's body described the experience as "otherworldly."
"As we neared the perimeter of Neverland, the dogs started whining and howling like crazy," Santa Barbara County detective Frank Poeller said. "We had to pull them into the house. When we got to Jackson's bedroom, one of them almost choked himself to death on his leash trying to get out through the window. Minutes later, the same dog led us to the corpse."
A representative from Jackson's self-created label, MJJ Productions, said he was not surprised to find out that the current Jackson is an imposter.
"When we were recording 'Heal The World' for Dangerous, I could tell something was terribly, terribly wrong," MJJ manager Luke Allard said. "Michael didn't seem like himself anymore. He'd demand bizarre food and sit for hours in a hyperbaric chamber. His appearance began to become more and more peculiar. Soon afterwards, he started wearing a mask and confiding in a chimpanzee."
"I remember thinking, 'This man has become a monster,'" Allard said. "If only I'd known how right I was."
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The creature that claims to be Michael Jackson.
Allard said he thinks that the imposter broke ties with Jackson's former friends and surrounded himself with children who were too young to notice the radical change.
Vanity Fair reporter Beth Pither visited Neverland in 1994.
"A strangely fearful staff member led me to Jackson, but ran off before I opened the door," Pither said. "Standing there with my hand on an ice-cold doorknob, I heard strange, unnatural sounds—leathery wings flapping, a sorrowful wail, and loud hissing. A wave of dread passed through me as I opened the door, but all I found was Michael and some kids in pajamas eating ice cream and watching 101 Dalmatians."
While their claims have not been corroborated, other Neverland visitors have reported that when when Jackson entered a room, lights flickered, faucets ran blood-red, and screams escaped from the walls.
To aid in the investigation, the FBI enlisted Dr. Richard Weingarden, a noted expert on the paranormal from UC Santa Barbara. After only two hours, Weingarden abandoned the project.
"The smell of sulfur, the decaying facial features, the bizarrely high-pitched voice—it sounds exactly like..." Weingarden said, trailing off. "I'm sure it's nothing. Not a big deal. Nothing to be terrified about, certainly. I have to go. I've got a family."
Thomas Sneddon, the prosecutor in Jackson's child-molestation lawsuit, said it remains to be seen how the shocking discovery will affect the trial.
Megan Gustafson, who left her post as president of the Akron, OH Michael Jackson Fan Club after the singer was accused of molestation, offered a positive view of the grisly revelation.
"This is very disturbing news," Gustafson said. "But to be honest, it's kind of a relief too. Thriller and Off The Wall are really amazing records. Now I can pull them out of my 'ruined by child abuse' storage bin and start listening to them again."
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