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Dr. Murray, a Houston cardiologist, was paid $150,000 a month to work as Jackson's personal physician as he rehearsed in Los Angeles for "This Is It," a series of 50 sold-out concerts in London that he needed to pay off hundreds of millions of dollars in mounting debts.

Testimony showed that Dr. Murray had stayed with Jackson at least six nights a week and was regularly asked - and sometimes begged - by the insomniac singer to give him drugs powerful enough to put him to sleep. Jackson, Dr. Murray told the authorities, was especially eager to be administered propofol, a surgical anesthetic that put him to sleep when other powerful sedatives could not. Testimony indicated that propofol, in conjunction with other drugs in the singer's system, had played the key role in his death on June 25, 2009.

Prosecutors tried to paint Dr. Murray as a money-hungry physician who would do things no reputable doctor would do - including improperly and recklessly administering an anesthetic normally given only in a hospital. The full retinue of drugs given to Jackson while he was under Dr. Murray's care was so beyond normal practice, prosecutors said, that it amounted to a "pharmaceutical experiment."

For its part, the defense tried to portray Jackson as a man so desperate to make his comeback concerts a success that he was willing to take wild chances and grew terrified that he would not be able to perform to his own exacting standards without more rest and less stress.

The morning Jackson died, Dr. Murray told investigators during a recording played in State Superior Court here, the singer told him, "Just make me sleep; it doesn't matter what happens."

When Jackson died, he was more than $400 million in debt, but since his death, his estate has prospered, generating more than $310 million and paying off most of his debts.

The estate has struck several lucrative deals, including a movie, video games, a new recording contract and two productions by Cirque du Soleil.

Shortly after Jackson's death, Dr. Murray told investigators that the pop star would routinely plead with him to administer more propofol, calling it his "milk." The defense argued that Jackson gave himself the fatal dose of the drug. The Los Angeles County coroner ruled that Jackson's death was caused by "acute propofol intoxication," in combination with two other drugs in his system.

Two days after Jackson's death, Dr. Murray told investigators that he had been using propofol almost nightly for two months to help the singer sleep.

In their closing arguments, prosecutors repeatedly invoked Jackson's three children to a jury that included nine parents, saying that the singer wanted to perform, in part, so that they could see their father on stage. David Walgren, the deputy district attorney in charge of the case, described the frantic moments after Dr. Murray realized that Jackson was not responsive and as the pop star's children watched him lie lifeless on his bed.

Prosecutors sought to show that Dr. Murray veered significantly from acceptable medical practice at nearly every turn: by administering the propofol, not having proper monitoring equipment and failing to call 911 right away, among other things. They said Dr. Murray had not kept any records of administering propofol but had taken time to record Jackson's voice on his iPhone.

He did not tell the paramedics who arrived at Jackson's home about the propofol, which prosecutors said showed that he knew he was responsible for the singer's death. Just one day before the trial ended, Dr. Murray decided he would not testify.

Steve Cooley, the Los Angeles County district attorney, said that he hoped the trial would send a message to other "unscrupulous, corrupt" doctors who help fuel patients' reliance on powerful drugs.

"In Los Angeles we see many examples of high-profile people losing their lives because of their addiction to prescribed medication," Mr. Cooley said. "To the extent that someone dies as a result of their playing the role of Dr. Feelgood, they will be held accountable."

Mr. Cooley said that he doubted that Dr. Murray would serve a full four-year sentence because of the state's chronically overcrowded prisons.

In one of the most dramatic moments in the trial, prosecutors played the iPhone recording Dr. Murray made of Jackson toward the end of his life and the court heard the singer rambling about his dream of building the world's largest children's hospital.

"I'm going to do that for them," Jackson is heard saying in slurred speech. "That will be remembered more than my performances. My performances will be up there helping my children and always be my dream. I love them. I love them because I didn't have a childhood. I had no childhood. I feel their pain."

When his voice trailed off, Dr. Murray waited several seconds before asking, "You O.K.?"

After several more seconds, Jackson answered, "I am asleep."

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Doctor Is Guilty in Michael Jackson's Death

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Dr. Murray, a Houston cardiologist, was paid $150,000 a month to work as Jackson's personal physician as he rehearsed in Los Angeles for "This Is It," a series of 50 sold-out concerts in London that he needed to pay off hundreds of millions of dollars in mounting debts.

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Michael Jackson loved babies and children from the very bottom of his heart. He was not a paedophile or a child molester, he was a victim of extortion. It is heartbreaking how the media misreprested him as a child predator when he was in fact one of the purest and most compassionate souls to have ever lived.

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Michael Jackson loved babies and children from the very bottom of his heart. He was not a paedophile or a child molester, he was a victim of extortion. It is heartbreaking how the media misreprested him as a child predator when he was in fact one of the purest and most compassionate souls to have ever lived.

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Michael Jackson’s Irish American maid says he was a pedophile

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Michael Jackson’s Irish American maid says he was a pedophile

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Michael Jackson's former maid says star was a pedophile

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Adrian McManus was one of the few people to have firsthand experience of the pop star's private life. Michael Jackson was a pedophile, claims his former maid, Irish American Adrian McManus. McManus, 56, spoke exclusively with The Daily Mail, in February 2019, regarding her time...

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https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ESqjhAyGLYo/hqdefault.jpg

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Michael Jackson penned creepy love letters and lullaby for ‘rape victim’ Wade Robson, 8, calling him ‘my little one’

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Michael Jackson penned creepy love letters and lullaby for ‘rape victim’ Wade Robson, 8, calling him ‘my little one’

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Howard Weitzman, a lawyer for Jackson's estate, said: "The Court of Appeal's ruling merely revived lawsuits against Michael Jackson's companies, which absurdly claim that Michael's employees are somehow responsible for sexual abuse that never happened."

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Leaving Neverland: Court rules accusers can sue Michael Jackson companies

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Howard Weitzman, a lawyer for Jackson's estate, said: "The Court of Appeal's ruling merely revived lawsuits against Michael Jackson's companies, which absurdly claim that Michael's employees are somehow responsible for sexual abuse that never happened."

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MICHAEL JACKSON DAUGHTER PARIS OPENS UP HER MINDSET BUT IT SEEMS NO ONE COULD UNDERSTAND IT

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MICHAEL JACKSON DAUGHTER PARIS OPENS UP HER MINDSET BUT IT SEEMS NO ONE COULD UNDERSTAND IT

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Michael Jackson's daughter Paris Jackson posted a picture of a mysterious symbol with some Arabic writing in the middle and shared a quote about her current state of mind, yet it seemed like fans didn't quite grasp the point.

As you may recall, the King of the Pop, Michael Jackson has sadly passed away from a cardiac arrest on June 25, 2009, after a life full of musical success and personal dramas. Jackson had three kids from his second marriage with Deborah Jeanne Rowe.

Michael Jackson's only daughter Paris Jackson also became a musician and an activist just like her father. Paris has been quite active on her social media accounts with the main purpose of spreading peace and love.

Recently on Instagram, Paris Jackson posted a picture of an unknown symbol which had some mysterious Arabic writing in the middle. On the caption of her post, Jackson mentioned the importance of having the right attitude towards life to be able to ' thrive and flourish.'

Although Paris often receives many likes and comments from her fans related to her posts and quotes, this time, she received only three comments and fewer likes than usual and this was considered as an indication of her message might not be understood well by her followers.

Here's what Paris Jackson stated on the caption of her post:

"Attitude is the little thing that can make a huge impact in every single area in your life. When your attitude is right, you will thrive and flourish. The universe feels your attitude and you will manifest whatever your attitude reflects."

You can see the photo Paris Jackson posted on her Instagram account below.

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Michael Jackson Daughter Paris Opens Up Her Mindset But It Seems No One Could Understand It - Metalhead Zone

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Michael Jackson's daughter Paris Jackson posted a picture of a mysterious symbol with some Arabic writing in the middle and shared a quote about her current state of mind, yet it seemed like fans didn't quite grasp the point. As you may recall, the King of the Pop, Michael Jackson has sadly passed away from [...]

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Secrets will eat you up' – inside the shocking Michael Jackson 

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Secrets will eat you up' – inside the shocking Michael Jackson 

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In a disturbing new documentary, two accusers share their stories of what they say happened to them at the hands at the world’s most famous pop star

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f you keep wondering what to think about Michael Jackson's complicated legacy - is it OK to play Billie Jean at a party? Do you have to switch radio stations if Smooth Criminal comes on? - imagine how Jacques Peretti feels. He has made three films about the pop icon in the past 15 years and in this, his fourth, he aimed to build the fullest picture yet. But how many of us are brave enough to confront that picture?

The Real Michael Jackson (BBC Two) comes just over a year after the broadcast of HBO/Channel 4's Leaving Neverland, a gruelling, four-hour documentary built around the detailed accounts of two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who say they were sexually abused by Jackson as children. Peretti's film was initially billed as a rival Jackson film, but in the event, it's much more like an unofficial sequel; a film that could not exist if Leaving Neverland hadn't cleared the media's hagiographic haze, but which also provides necessary context on the huge fallout from Jackson's 2009 death.

The Real Michael Jackson has much more in common with Louis Theroux's 2016 Savile film, in which the newly sombre documentarian confronted his own journalistic failures and berated himself for not doing more to tackle a high-profile abuser who got away with it for so long. Didn't Jackson also "hide in plain sight"? Peretti makes a compelling case that the pop star deliberately cultivated that "wacko Jacko" persona of the late 80s - Bubbles the chimp, the oxygen chamber, the Elephant Man bones - to provide cover for a truth that was much darker.

Savile's crimes were not on the same global scale. Peretti details the "Jackson machine", that small army of private investigators, expensive lawyers and fixers, which swung into gear during his trials, or whenever his reputation was threatened. It is an MO reminiscent of Harvey Weinstein or Jeffrey Epstein. Yet none of these other men had anything like Jackson's huge international fanbase, which, until uncomfortably recently, included Peretti himself.

"Is he a paedophile? That's the question that should be asked," Peretti says ruefully as he (and we) rewatch footage of a younger Peretti interviewing Jackson's longtime manager Bob Jones (who testified against Jackson in 2005) for one of his earlier films. "And I don't ask the question. That is a failure ... that is a regret of mine."

In fairness, he is far from the only Jackson-adjacent journalist with regrets for not doing more to quiz Jackson on the rumours. Jackson's habit of occasionally emerging from his post-Thriller seclusion to attend an awards ceremony arm-in-arm with a 12-year-old, or grant exclusive access to a chosen interviewer, means there is a wealth of footage to scrutinise. Diane Sawyer in 1995 and Martin Bashir in 2003 made the most headlines - even asking him about the allegations - yet it's the softballs, including Oprah Winfrey's live 1993 interview at the Neverland ranch, which are retrospectively most creepy (although, to be fair, she did at least ask him about his sexuality). In Peretti's selected clip, Oprah approvingly notes one of several bedrooms on the property made up for young guests: "You have to be a person who really cares about children to build that into your architecture," she says.

Could anyone watch all this, especially after Leaving Neverland, and not have profound doubts about the professed innocence of Jackson's interest in young boys? Apparently so. J Randy Taraborrelli, the celebrity biographer and Jackson's loyal friend since childhood, continues to believe in Jackson's innocence and there were a couple of occasions in his interview where you might wish he had been pushed harder. Ultimately though, the non-confrontational strategy paid off in an exchange that is enormously revealing about the nature of denial.

Peretti may not always ask the right question, but he has certainly been asking them of the right people. And now, at long last, the time is also right for genuine reflection. There are astute insights here from a variety of tabloid journalists (admirably candid, to a man) as well as Jackson's fellow survivor of 70s child stardom Donny Osmond, and Mathew Knowles, talent manager and Beyoncé's dad. These guys weren't just there, in the distorting eye of the celebrity storm, they are all too aware of the types of games celebrities played to negotiate media scrutiny.

Is it possible to continue to admire, even enjoy, Jackson's genius in light of all that we now know? A lot of people remain very invested, both emotionally and financially, in believing that the answer to this question is yes. But the fact that this film touched only very briefly on the evidence of his musical genius is an answer in itself.

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The Real Michael Jackson review - how did he get away with it for so long?

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f you keep wondering what to think about Michael Jackson's complicated legacy - is it OK to play Billie Jean at a party? Do you have to switch radio stations if Smooth Criminal comes on? - imagine how Jacques Peretti feels.

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michael's friend admits that the singer's relationship with children was "weird".

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michael's friend admits that the singer's relationship with children was "weird".

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Michael Jackson doc director challenges 'cult of celebrity'

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Michael Jackson doc director challenges 'cult of celebrity'

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There isn't much meat to the case, but there was a few songs in Michael's albums in which people proclaimed to be about their cases. There was a woman named Annie who came forward proclaiming that she wan the Annie from Michael's song, "Annie are you okay?" as well, there was a song that came out closer to Michael's death with eerie singing and soft, distressed humming, talking about how a little girl fell down the stairs and cracked her head open, one big lyric being "oh the blood in her hair" nobody could find a case matching this description, but some suspect that this song was written while Michael was under the influence of many different drugs.

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Leaving Neverland: Court rules accusers can sue Michael Jackson companies

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Leaving Neverland: Court rules accusers can sue Michael Jackson companies

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https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/mar/01/leaving-neverland-is-it-still-ok-to-listen-to-michael-jackson

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Michael had multiple child sidekicks as such, it isn't confirmed whether he actually did anything to them or not, but he used to be very creepy toward them, and used to get them to dress in the same outfits he did, he would keep them almost like pets.

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Mike Tyson Hated Michael Jackson for Years Because of Their 1st Encounter — ‘Why’d He Play Me Like That?

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Mike Tyson Hated Michael Jackson for Years Because of Their 1st Encounter — ‘Why’d He Play Me Like That?

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Disturbing truth about Michael Jackson's 'high voice' as pals recall how he really spoke

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Disturbing truth about Michael Jackson's 'high voice' as pals recall how he really spoke

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Michael Jackson was as famed for his high-pitched voice as for his plastic surgery.

And as the story goes, his softly-spoken manner was a direct result of his father Joe allegedly forcing him to undergo 'chemical castration' when he was just 13 in a bid to delay puberty and keep his singing voice high.

Doctor Conrad Murray - who was convicted of the star's involuntary manslaughter - claimed Jackson told him he'd been given hormone injections as a teenager, but made him swear never to tell anyone.

Murray, 67, first made the claims in his 2016 self-published book This Is It! The Secret Lives of Dr Conrad Murray and Michael Jackson.

He wrote: "I often saw Jackson at his most exposed and confessional. He only agreed to share after making me swear, 'You will never breathe a word. Never.'

"I agreed. I was shocked when Jackson told me. It would explain all of Michael's unusual behaviour as well as his morphological changes."

Murray - who served four years for administering the fatal mix of propofol and other sedatives that killed Jackson in June 2009 but maintains his innocence - later branded Joe 'one of the worst fathers in history'.

However, Jackson's good friends Liza Minnelli and David Gest once contradicted his account, letting slip that the star had a second, secret voice.

"I think people don't know the real him. He doesn't talk like [that]," the David told US chat show host Larry King in 2002.

Like everyone else, Liza believed his high-pitched tone was real and said she got a shock when she picked up the phone one night and heard him talking to husband David in his real voice.

"I said, Michael, you're busted. I got you now. All these years you've been talking that voice," she recalled.

So what was his 'real voice' like? In 2005, Court TV's Diane Dimond said Jackson actually had a 'big, deep' sound.

"Somewhere in there, especially if you bring him bad news or if you make him mad, his voice gets very, very deep," she told Access Hollywood.

"I was there one day when someone asked him about Gloria Allred, the attorney that has sort of dogged him and turned around in one foul swoop and said 'She can go to hell' in this big, deep masculine voice."

And Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan corroborated her story, claiming the star once let his secret tones slip during a telephone interview.

He said: "The weirdest thing about Michael Jackson, which encouraged my suspicions about him as a human being, was that when he talked about charity and children he had this very soft, high-pitched voice.

"When I changed the subject to business his voice dropped several octaves and he became a completely different person to talk to.

"That was weird to me, that showed me that he was a different multi-faceted different character depending on the subject matter."

But why create a fake voice? David and Liza believed Jackson crafted a public persona to protect his inner self after years of 'hurt'.

"This is who you think I am. And I can be me within these walls. But you can't come in," Liza explained.

"He's been hurt too much, Larry. I mean, things have said kind of rotten things about him. The person that we know is a rather regular guy, believe it or not."

In his lifetime, Jackson never weighed in on rumours about his voice, but he did repeatedly accuse his father of abuse, claiming the patriarch forced him to strip, covered him in oil and beating him with an iron cord.

"He would just whip you all over your face, your back, everywhere," he once said, revealing his mother Katherine would plead with him to stop.

He continued: "I would just give up, like there was nothing I could do, you know. And I hated him for it."

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Disturbing truth about Michael Jackson's high voice and how he really spoke

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Michael Jackson was as famed for his high-pitched voice as for his plastic surgery. And as the story goes, his softly-spoken manner was a direct result of his father Joe allegedly forcing him to undergo 'chemical castration' when he was just 13 in a bid to delay puberty and keep his singing voice high.

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'Secrets will eat you up' – inside the shocking Michael Jackson documentary

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'Secrets will eat you up' – inside the shocking Michael Jackson documentary

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In a disturbing new documentary, two accusers share their stories of what they say happened to them at the hands at the world’s most famous pop star

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t only takes about two minutes into the four-hour documentary Leaving Neverland to realise that Michael Jackson's legacy is never going to be the same again. After a brief introduction, praising him for his indisputable talent, one of his accusers looks into the camera and lists the ways in which the singer helped him. He then states: "And he sexually abused me for seven years."

Ever since it was announced as a late addition to this year's Sundance film festival, controversy hasn't been far behind. The singer's estate labelled it "an outrageous and pathetic attempt to exploit and cash in on Michael Jackson" while fans have reportedly levelled threats against the film's director, the Bafta winner Dan Reed. Protests had been teased online, leading to an increased police presence, but on a frosty morning here in Utah, only a small group of the late singer's die-hard obsessives showed up.

For those inside the Egyptian theatre on Main Street, resistance wasn't futile, it was utterly impossible. Over four hours, set to be shown in two portions on HBO and Channel 4, Reed shared the detailed testimonies of two men accusing Jackson of graphic and extensive sexual abuse when they were children. Before it started, we were informed that healthcare professionals were on hand for those who might need it, the explicit descriptions potentially causing difficulties for those who might feel triggered. While prior court cases might have buckled and previous accusers might have been labelled delusional opportunists, it's difficult to imagine this sensitively crafted and horrifically detailed film being quite so easily denied.

In a decision justified in a post-screening Q&A, Reed limits the focus to the two accusers and their families, insisting quite rightly that their stories remain powerful without any extraneous material. Their accounts contain many similarities: they were both younger than 10 when they got to know Jackson, they both possessed a keen interest in performing and they were both allegedly groomed then abused for an extended period of time.

The first accuser, whom we hear from at the outset, is Wade Robson, who at a young age developed an intense fandom for Jackson, his "walls plastered" with posters. Described as "a sensitive boy", he preferred dance over basketball and was soon emulating Jackson's moves at the age of five in a local contest. The prize was meeting the man himself and the pair developed a deep friendship, one that was encouraged by an over-eager, self-described stage mother, spellbound by Jackson's celebrity.

Wade Robson, Dan Reed and James Safechuck. Photograph: Taylor Jewell/Invision/AP

The second accuser, James Safechuck, encountered Jackson after nabbing a key role in a Pepsi ad. Similarly, the two developed a friendship at a young age and by 10 he was accompanying him on tour, followed by an equally starstruck mother, who saw Jackson as another son.

It's James who first describes his recollection of their friendship turning sexual with Jackson allegedly introducing him to masturbation. He saw it as a form of "bonding" and it kicked off what he describes as a "sexual couple relationship" when the two were left alone, allowed to share hotel rooms by James's unaware mother. The stories progress into even darker territory as she would find her hotel rooms being booked on different floors, Jackson making sure to prevent any potential discovery. James recalls that he woke on one occasion to find Jackson saying that while he was asleep, he had performed oral sex on him. He also told the boy that he was Jackson's first sexual experience and that this was just an "acceptable way of experiencing your love".

When Neverland Ranch was built, it became easier to ensure privacy. "It sounds sick but it's kind of like when you're first dating somebody," James explains, after listing the many, many spaces at the complex where Jackson would allegedly abuse him. He claims that Jackson would tell him that his mother was mean and that women were evil, pushing him away from his family and further into Jackson's life.

Wade claims that his abuse started at an even younger age, when he was just seven. The family stayed at Neverland and after Jackson convinced Wade's mother, he was allowed to be alone with the boy for five days. "You and I were brought together by God," Jackson said to Wade as he would allegedly engage in a number of anal and oral activities with him. He told Wade, too, that women weren't to be trusted and warned that if anyone were to find out, they would both face jail.

Michael Jackson with James Safechuck in 1988. Photograph: Eugene Adebari/REX FEATURES

In one of the most chilling scenes, James recalls the mock wedding the pair had, complete with a wedding ring which he still owns and shows to the camera. He claims Jackson would reward him with jewelry for engaging in sexual acts. "It's still hard for me to not blame myself," he says, with his hands shaking as he holds the many trinkets.

But the tenderness soon wore off as Wade, still just seven, was allegedly shown hardcore porn, while James was introduced to alcohol. The two were slowly phased out of Jackson's life as younger boys were introduced. "You're no longer special," James says. Macaulay Culkin replaced Wade in Jackson's music video for the song Black or White, and Wade and James dealt with feelings of jealousy and resentment. Before the documentary premiered, Culkin denied any impropriety. "For me, it's so normal and mundane," he said. "I know it's a big deal to everybody else, but it was a normal friendship."

In 1993, Jackson was publicly accused of sexual abuse by Jordan "Jordy" Chandler, which led to him reinserting himself into the lives of both boys, allegedly coaching them on how to respond to any questions. The case was ultimately settled out of court.

"Secrets will eat you up," James says while detailing the long term damage of the alleged abuse. Both he and Wade have suffered from depression, self-loathing, and anxiety and have struggled with familial relations. At one point, bleakly, James adds: "I don't think time heals this one. It just gets worse."

Michael Jackson at his 2005 trial. Photograph: Aaron Lambert/AP

The film also delves into the responsibility of the parents, with both mothers explaining their decision-making processes. Both were horrified when, as adults, their sons shared their stories and both sons have found forgiveness difficult. It also examines the complex reasoning for their decision to stay silent for all these years, including Wade's appearance at Jackson's 2004-5 trial, when the singer was accused of abusing Gavin Arvizo, as part of his defence.

"I want to speak the truth as loud as I spoke the lie," Wade says near the end of the film, determined to make up for the lost years spent grappling with the experience alone.

After the film ended, an ashen-faced crowd rose to their feet to applaud Wade and James, who arrived on stage, both visibly moved by the response. They had met briefly as kids but have recently found support from each other as a way of feeling less isolated. They pointed out, for those who might question their motivations, that there was no compensation for appearing in the documentary. "We can't change what happened to us," Wade, now 36, said. "The feeling is what can we do with that now."

They've both received death threats from Jackson fans, who today have flooded Twitter with attempts to discredit the pair. "I understand that it's really hard for them to believe because, in a way, not that long ago, I was in the same position they were in," Wade said. "Even though it happened to me, I still couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe that what Michael did was a bad thing up until six years ago. So I understand. We can only accept and understand something when we're ready, and maybe we'll never be ready. Maybe we will. So that's their journey."

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'Secrets will eat you up' - inside the shocking Michael Jackson documentary

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t only takes about two minutes into the four-hour documentary Leaving Neverland to realise that Michael Jackson's legacy is never going to be the same again. After a brief introduction, praising him for his indisputable talent, one of his accusers looks into the camera and lists the ways in which the singer helped him.

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News of a medical emergency involving Michael Jackson started filtering through at around 22:00 BST on Thursday 25 June 2009

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News of a medical emergency involving Michael Jackson started filtering through at around 22:00 BST on Thursday 25 June 2009

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Michael Jackson 'abused us hundreds of times'

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Michael Jackson 'abused us hundreds of times'

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https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-47403951

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Michael Jackson: sexual abuse lawsuits revived in appeals court

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Michael Jackson: sexual abuse lawsuits revived in appeals court

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https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/jan/03/michael-jackson-sexual-abuse-lawsuits-california

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'Too big to cancel': can we still listen to Michael Jackson?

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'Too big to cancel': can we still listen to Michael Jackson?

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His records were woven into the lives of millions – but Leaving Neverland appears to make clear the King of Pop was a paedophile. So can we divorce the music from his alleged crimes?

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Michael Jackson 'abused us hundreds of times'

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Michael Jackson 'abused us hundreds of times'

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Michael Jackson denied allegations that he sexually abused children until his death in 2009. "Leaving Neverland," a new documentary, has revived the conversation about the accusations. Credit... Jim Ruyman-Pool/Getty Images

During the later part of his career, Michael Jackson faced several allegations that he molested young boys.

The police investigated him in 1993. Another accusation led to a trial in 2005 that became a pop culture spectacle, complete with crowds of supporters waiting outside the courthouse. Jackson was acquitted and died four years later while preparing for a string of concert dates he hoped would revive his career.

A new documentary, "Leaving Neverland," has rekindled interest in the accusations. The film had its debut at the Sundance Film Festival and airs on HBO March 3 and 4.
[Never miss a pop music story: Get our weekly newsletter, Louder.]
In August 1993, when Jackson was still a major star on the pop charts and touring to support his album "Dangerous," the Los Angeles Police Department began investigating claims that Jackson had molested a 13-year-old boy. Executing search warrants for a condominium in Los Angeles and Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Santa Barbara County, Calif., the police seized videotapes but found no incriminating evidence.

On Sept. 14, while Jackson was on tour in Moscow, the boy's parents sued the star, saying that Jackson had "repeatedly committed sexual battery" on their son. Among the accusations were that Jackson had performed oral sex on the boy and masturbated him.

Anthony Pellicano, a private investigator working for Jackson, called the suit part of an extortion attempt. "A demand for $20 million was made and presented," he said. "It was flatly and consistently refused." (Years later, Pellicano, known as a top Hollywood "fixer," was accused of making death threats against journalists, and in 2008 was sentenced to 15 years in prison for illegal wiretapping.)

As the case drew headlines, the Jackson camp introduced the news media to children who gave interviews supporting the star. One, a 10-year-old boy named Wade Robson, told CNN about harmless " slumber parties " in Jackson's bedroom. As prosecutors continued to pursue a criminal case, another boy, James Safechuck, who had appeared with Jackson in a Pepsi commercial, gave sworn testimony on Jackson's behalf.

On Dec. 20, 1993, Jackson was strip-searched by police at Neverland, and photographs were taken of his genitals to compare to a description given by the boy. Two days later, Jackson spoke on live television, denying the accusations and excoriating the news media.

"I am not guilty of these allegations," Jackson said. "But if I am guilty of anything, it is of giving all that I have to give to help children all over the world."

In January 1994, Jackson settled the case for $23 million, with $5 million going to the family's lawyers. Prosecutors dropped the criminal case after the boy declined to cooperate.
[Michael Jackson cast a spell. "Leaving Neverland" breaks it, our critic writes.]
In February 2003, with Jackson's music career in decline, the documentary "Living With Michael Jackson," based on interviews by the journalist Martin Bashir, was broadcast in Britain and the United States. In it, Jackson openly discussed sharing his bedroom with a young cancer survivor, and called people who object to such behavior "ignorant."

The documentary sparked a criminal investigation, and in December, Jackson was charged with child molesting, serving alcohol to a minor, conspiracy and kidnapping. He faced up to 20 years in prison.

Jackson's trial began on Feb. 28, 2005. Throughout, the global news media paid close attention to Jackson's erratic behavior, like arriving in floral pajamas.

The boy from the documentary, who was 14 at the time of the trial, testified that Jackson had masturbated him. His brother said he had witnessed the abuse, and that Jackson had showed them both pornography and served them wine, calling it " Jesus juice." A former housekeeper, Blanca Francia, said she had seen Jackson taking a shower with Wade Robson, the young man who had spoken to the media in support of Jackson in 1993.

Jackson's lawyers portrayed the boy at the center of the case and his family as practiced grifters, and several witnesses who had been close with Jackson as children - like the actor Macaulay Culkin, then 24 years old - took the stand to deny any abuse. Robson, by this point a choreographer for stars like Britney Spears, testified that he had spent the night at Neverland more than 20 times but that Jackson had never molested him or taken a shower with him.

Safechuck, who had defended Jackson earlier, did not testify.

Jackson was found not guilty of all charges on June 13, 2005; outside the courthouse, a fan released 10 white doves, one for each count that was acquitted. Jackson died four years later, at age 50, on the eve of a comeback attempt.
[Will "Leaving Neverland" imperil the thriving Michael Jackson estate?]
In 2013, four years after Jackson's death, Robson sued the star's estate, saying that Jackson had molested him for seven years, beginning when he was age 7. In an interview on the "Today" show, he said that "brainwashing" by Jackson had led him to testify on the star's behalf. Lawyers for Jackson's estate blasted Robson's credibility, saying that in the past he had repeatedly denied abuse. Robson's case was later thrown out by a judge for being filed too late.

Safechuck filed his own suit in 2014, saying that Jackson had abused him "hundreds" of times from 1988 to 1992, beginning when a 10-year-old Safechuck - and his mother - accompanied Jackson on his "Bad" concert tour. According to his complaint, Jackson kissed Safechuck's genitals and gave him jewelry as rewards for performing sexual acts. His case was also dismissed. Both men's suits are under appeal.

On Jan. 25, "Leaving Neverland," a two-part, four-hour film by Dan Reed, with Robson and Safechuck describing accusations of abuse in great detail, opened at the Sundance Film Festival. Before the screening, the festival director told the audience that health care providers were available to help anyone disturbed by the film.

The Jackson estate condemned the film as "yet another lurid production in an outrageous and pathetic attempt to exploit and cash in on Michael Jackson." In a statement, the Jackson family called it "a public lynching" and added: "We are furious that the media, who without a shred of proof or single piece of physical evidence, chose to believe the word of two admitted liars over the word of hundreds of families and friends around the world who spent time with Michael, many at Neverland, and experienced his legendary kindness and global generosity."

The estate also filed a petition in Los Angeles Superior Court for arbitration against HBO, saying that with "Leaving Neverland" the channel was in breach of a nondisparagement clause in a 1992 contract for a Jackson concert film. The estate said it was seeking damages that "could exceed $100 million."

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What We Know About Michael Jackson's History of Sexual Abuse Accusations (Published 2019)

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During the later part of his career, Michael Jackson faced several allegations that he molested young boys. The police investigated him in 1993. Another accusation led to a trial in 2005 that became a pop culture spectacle, complete with crowds of supporters waiting outside the courthouse.

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Updated on March 15 at 1 p.m. ET
The two-part documentary Leaving Neverland, which began airing on HBO on Sunday night, tells the story of two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who accuse Michael Jackson of having sexually abused them for years, beginning when they were respectively about seven and 10 years old.

Michael Jackson's estate continues to deny all allegations, as the entertainer did in his lifetime. His estate has sued HBO for distributing the Dan Reed-directed documentary, which debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January; in its filings, the estate called Leaving Neverland a "posthumous character assassination."

It's no secret that, before and even after his death in 2009, Jackson was the subject of multiple sexual abuse accusations and police investigations as well as civil and criminal lawsuits. This timeline lays out key dates, known allegations and the main accusations the artist and his estate have faced, going back more than a quarter century.

December 1986: James Safechuck meets Michael Jackson on a Pepsi ad set

A 10-year-old California boy, James (Jimmy) Safechuck, is hired to appear in a Pepsi commercial alongside Michael Jackson. In Leaving Neverland, Safechuck says that Jackson befriended him and his family after the ad began airing, that the singer was immediately generous to him and allegedly began lavishing him with gifts - including, Safechuck says, his jacket from the "Thriller" video. Safechuck and his family also say that Jackson began flying them for visits and on vacations.

On one such trip to Hawaii, Safechuck alleges, Michael Jackson first asked the boy to sleep with him in his bed.

August 1993: Los Angeles police begin investigating Jackson

The Los Angeles Times reports that the LAPD has begun investigating Jackson based on allegations that he possibly molested four children, including a 13-year-old boy. (The boy is mentioned by name and in photos in Leaving Neverland.)

The police find no incriminating evidence at Jackson's Neverland ranch, nor at his Los Angeles condominium.

In a lengthy report published the following January, Vanity Fair - calling the boy "Jamie" - publishes the 13-year-old and his family's allegations. The boy's lawyer tells the magazine, "Michael was in love with the boy."

The family says that Jackson argued with Jamie's mother about sleeping in the same bed with him, saying, according to Vanity Fair, "Why don't you trust me? If we're a family, you've got to think of me as a brother. Why make me feel so bad? This is a bond. It's not about sex. This is something special." From that point onwards, the family claims, Jamie slept with Jackson nearly every night for the next several months.

September 1993: One family files suit against Jackson

In the filing, a family - whose child is ostensibly the 13-year-old boy referred to as "Jamie" by Vanity Fair - alleges that Jackson had "repeatedly committed sexual battery" on their son.

Jackson's team maintains that the suit is part of an attempt to extort the star for $20 million. More than a decade later, however, Court TV reveals in a 2004 report that Jackson settled the suit for even more than that. As part of the settlement, the singer denied any "wrongful acts."

In September 1994, prosecutors announce that they are not filing criminal charges against Jackson involving three boys - because the "primary alleged victim" declined to testify.

In the course of the investigation and ensuing civil case, Jackson and his team put various young boys on the witness stand and in front of cameras.

One is 10-year-old Wade Robson, an Australian boy who first met the megastar five years earlier, when he won a Michael Jackson dance contest in Brisbane. Within a few years, Robson had moved with his mother to Los Angeles with Jackson's encouragement.

In 1993, Robson's mother talked to CNN about her child's "slumber parties" with the singer.

"They play so hard, they fall asleep, they're exhausted," she tells the interviewer. "There's nothing more to it than that."

In Leaving Neverland, Robson says: "I was excited by the idea of being able to defend him. And being able to save him."

December 1993: La Toya Jackson says that abuse allegations are true

On Dec. 8, at a press conference held while on tour in Tel Aviv, Jackson's estranged sister La Toya alleges that the abuse accusations against Michael are true.

"This is very difficult for me," she says. "Michael is my brother. ... But I cannot, and I will not, be a silent collaborator of his crimes against small, innocent children." She claims that their mother, Katherine Jackson, has shown her checks that Michael allegedly made out to the families of some very young boys, at least one allegedly as young as nine years old. She says that the amounts paid out were substantial, though she doesn't specify any sums.

LaToya Jackson also repeats her claim that she and her siblings were abused, including sexually abused, by their parents. It's an assertion she first made at least two years earlier in her 1991 autobiography La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family.

Other members of the family, including Katherine Jackson, rally to Michael's defense. The Washington Post quotes Katherine as saying, "La Toya is lying and I'll tell her to her face she's lying," adding that her daughter was "trying to make money off of [Michael's] downfall."

In a follow-up interview with the Today show's Katie Couric, La Toya Jackson claims that their mother had shown her such checks as early as "around '84." However, she tells Couric she can't prove that the alleged checks were meant as hush money, nor has she ever seen him in bed with a boy herself.

In 2011, in a second autobiography called Starting Over, La Toya Jackson retracted her allegations against both her brother Michael and her father Joe, saying that she was forced to make them by her husband at the time, whom she accused of being abusive.

"My family and Michael knew that wasn't really me talking," the Daily Beast quotes her as saying in an interview. "I never believed for a minute my brother was guilty of anything like that."

February 2003: Living with Michael Jackson documentary airs in the U.K. and U.S.

The documentary, reported by journalist Martin Bashir, includes footage of Jackson holding hands with and cradling a young teenager, then identified as a cancer survivor, and says that they share a bed. Both Jackson and the boy deny that anything untoward is going on. "My greatest inspiration comes from kids," Jackson says to Bashir indignantly, while holding onto the child. "It's all inspired from that level of innocence, that consciousness of purity."

After the documentary airs, Jackson issues a statement denying any wrongdoing, and says that he is "devastated" by Bashir's portrayal of him. Nevertheless, Living with Michael Jackson sparks a criminal investigation.

November 20, 2003: Police book Jackson on child molestation charges

Two days after raiding Neverland, Jackson's famous ranch in Santa Barbara County, Calif., the sheriff's office arrests Jackson on charges of child molestation, but does not immediately disclose details of the charges or identify the victim.

Jackson's lawyer, Mark Geragos, calls the charges "a big lie." After posting $3 million in bail the same day and surrendering his passport, Jackson is allowed to go free as he awaits trial.

Jackson is eventually indicted on 10 criminal counts, including child molestation, abduction, false imprisonment and extortion.

February 28, 2005: Jackson's criminal case goes to trial

After being charged in late 2003 and then given additional charges the following April, Jackson is put on trial. The victim is identified as Gavin Arvizo, the young man who appeared in the Bashir documentary; he is among those who testify at the trial.

Among those testifying in Jackson's defense are actor Macaulay Culkin and Wade Robson. (By 2005, Robson is a noted choreographer and songwriter, who has created dance routines for the likes of Britney Spears and 'NSYNC, and who has already had his own show on MTV.)

They are described as "special friends" of Jackson who have slept with the singer in his bed. The men deny that Jackson has touched them or otherwise acted inappropriately. According to The Washington Post, Robson's mother, Joy, says of the singer: "Unless you know him, it's hard to understand him. ... He's not the boy next door."

Gavin Arvizo is now aged 14, and says on the stand that Jackson masturbated him; Gavin's brother corroborates his claim, and says that Jackson gave them alcohol and showed them pornography. Gavin's mother, Janet Arvizo, also appears as a witness; the BBC describes her testimony as " combative and rambling." A former member of Jackson's household staff, Blanca Francia, testifies that she saw the singer taking a shower with Robson. Francia's son also alleges that Jackson has molested him.

Years later, Robson claims he lied at the 2005 trial. According to a 2014 Daily Beast article, prosecutors wanted to name Safechuck - who had provided a witness statement defending Jackson in the 1993 suit - as one of the singer's alleged victims. However, Safechuck declined to participate in the 2005 trial, and the prosecution excluded him as a potential victim. Safechuck claims later that he had lied in the statement he gave to prosecutors in the 1993 investigation.

June 13, 2005: Jackson is acquitted of all criminal charges

After a trial that had a circus-like atmosphere and whose proceedings seemed to sometimes be upstaged by Jackson's antics (including showing up late in pajamas on one occasion), the singer is acquitted of all charges. At least some of the jurors seem to place the onus on the alleged victim's mother, Janet Arvizo. according to NPR. Allowing a child to sleep with any non-family member, one of the female jurors asks, according to NPR, "What mother in her right mind would allow that to happen?"

Within months, prosecutors charge Janet Arvizo with fraud and perjury related to statements made at the Jackson trial; she accepts a plea agreement the following year.

June 25, 2009: Michael Jackson dies, age 50

The singer is found unresponsive at his home in Holmby Hills, Calif. At the time of his death, his family releases a statement saying that it is believed that he died of cardiac arrest.

On Nov. 11, 2011, a doctor, Conrad Murray, is found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death for having administered a deadly dose of the anesthetic propofol.

During the trial, the New York Times reports that Murray, who had been hired as Jackson's personal physician, "had stayed with Jackson at least six nights a week and was regularly asked - and sometimes begged - by the insomniac singer to give him drugs powerful enough to put him to sleep."

2013-2014: Wade Robson and James Safechuck file suits against the Jackson estate and his companies

The Daily Beast reports in 2013 that after very publicly and repeatedly defending Jackson, Robson now says that Jackson sexually molested him for seven years.

Two years later, in May 2015, a judge in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Mitchell L. Beckloff, dismisses Robson's suit against the estate, saying that he waited too long to file his claim. In December 2017, the same judge dismisses the rest of Robson's suit, filed against Jackson's two companies, MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures, because the two corporations could not be found liable for Jackson's alleged behavior. Notably, neither of these judgments address the credibility of Robson's accusations.

James Safechuck files a similar suit against MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures in 2014, alleging that Jackson abused him on "hundreds" of occasions between 1988 and 1992. Beckloff, who is also the presiding judge in this suit, rejects Safechuck's suit in June 2017 on the same grounds he gave Robson.

March 3, 2019: Leaving Neverland begins airing on HBO

After debuting at Sundance in late January, the two-part, four-hour documentary begins airing. Jackson's estate has already filed suit against the network, claiming that damages could exceed $100 million. Its petition begins: "Michael Jackson is innocent. Period."

The estate also argues that HBO has violated a non-disparagement agreement that it made with the singer in order to air a concert special, Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour, back in 1992. (That program was a megahit when it aired, scoring HBO its highest-rated special ever at that time.) In a bid for positive counter-programming, Jackson's estate releases the 1992 film on YouTube at the same time as Leaving Neverland's broadcast premiere.

"In producing this fictional work," the suit continues, "HBO ignored its contractual obligations to Michael and his companies by disparaging both him and the Dangerous World Tour that HBO had previously profited from immensely." The estate also calls Robson and Safechuck "two admitted perjurers," and accuses them of "practicing their stories and rehearsing their lines ... for years now."

In an interview on All Things Considered, filmmaker Dan Reed says that two different threads drew him to telling the two men's stories.

"It's the complexity that drew me into wanting to really tell the story," Reed says, "which is that in an abusive pedophile relationship there is both love, affection, mentoring, friendship, caring - and there is sexual abuse. Those two things coexist."

March 14, 2019: Louis Vuitton backs off its Michael Jackson-inspired designs

Less than two weeks after Leaving Neverland airs on HBO, the luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton seeks distance from the late pop icon, whose signature looks had helped inspire much of its fall 2019 menswear collection.

The company had showcased the collection at a show on Jan. 17, or just over a week before the documentary was screened publicly for the first time at the Sundance Film Festival. In a statement shared exclusively with WWD, the company's top executives said they were unaware of the documentary - and its "deeply troubling and disturbing" allegations - at the time of their own show.

"I am aware that in light of this documentary the show has caused emotional reactions," Virgil Abloh, the artistic director of menswear at the company, said in the statement. "I strictly condemn any form of child abuse, violence or infringement against any human rights."

The company also told WWD that it would not produce anything that "directly features Michael Jackson elements," and that its final collection will "purely reflect the true values of the brand and of our artistic director."

Additional reporting by NPR's Elizabeth Blair and Colin Dwyer.

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Michael Jackson: A Quarter-Century Of Sexual Abuse Allegations

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The documentary Leaving Neverland has revived allegations of sexual abuse against Michael Jackson. As early as 1993, young boys and their families were accusing the megastar.

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 The drugs found in Michael Jackson's body after he died 

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 The drugs found in Michael Jackson's body after he died 

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-Profopol
-Lorazepam.
-Midazolam.
-Diazepam.

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's former doctor faces a tough challenge clearing himself of involuntary manslaughter charges in the pop star's death as his trial, which promises to avoid many dark aspects of Jackson's life, begins with jury selection this week.

While it is Dr. Conrad Murray, who will be on trial when attorneys begin selecting a panel on Thursday, the "Thriller" singer's infamy will loom large over the proceedings.

Jackson was one of the world's most recognizable singers, dubbed the King of Pop, when he died in June 2009, at age 50. He also was known to have battled an addiction to painkillers, and Murray's attorneys had hoped to present evidence of his past drug use at the trial.

But in an obstacle for the defence, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor barred testimony from a half-dozen doctors whom Murray's attorneys had indicated in court papers would portray Jackson as drug-dependent.

"The deck is, for various reasons, stacked against the defence here," said Stan Goldman, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.

Jackson stopped breathing at his Los Angeles mansion on June 25, 2009, in what authorities say was an overdose of the powerful anaesthetic propofol and various sedatives.

Murray, who pleaded not guilty to the charge of involuntary manslaughter, has admitted giving Jackson propofol, a drug normally used for surgery, as a sleep aid.

During a series of court hearings earlier this year defence attorneys suggested that when Murray was out of the room, Jackson could have given himself a large, fatal dose of the drug, possibly by swallowing it.

Murray faces up to four years in prison if convicted.

FINDING A JURY

As for choosing an impartial jury, legal experts say it will be impossible to find anyone who knows nothing of Jackson. Some will adore him, while others will abhor him. So attorneys will have to work to find the most unbiased jury possible under the circumstances.

"It's going to be like a Ouija board, it's going to be guess work," Goldman said.

After a jury panel is selected, the trial will be recessed until opening arguments begin the last week of September.

Jackson's family has faithfully attended all the court hearings in the case, with his mother, Katherine, 81, often sitting with his father, Joseph, 83.

The King of Pop's supporters also will be on hand, and if earlier hearings are any indication they will wear black as a sign of mourning over their fallen idol. At earlier court hearings, some fans hired a plane to fly a banner over the courthouse that read "Change charges to murder."

"If the jurors walk through, on the way to the courthouse, a massive amount of fans who are declaring the guilt of the defendant in the case, I find it hard to believe it won't have some impact," Goldman said.

But some trial watchers say the circus atmosphere that is expected outside the courthouse may, in fact, never materialise. Indeed, Jackson's fans failed to jam the streets of downtown Los Angeles during his 2009 memorial, as had been widely expected.

Laurie Levenson, a colleague of Goldman's at Loyola Law School, said she does not believe the proceedings will become anywhere near the public and media frenzy that accompanied the 1995 murder trial and acquittal of O.J. Simpson.

For one, the Grenada-born Murray is not a celebrity, just a doctor with patients in Nevada and Texas.

"We have a 'trial of the century' about every six months here in Los Angeles," Levenson said wryly.

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Doctor's trial may avoid Michael Jackson's past

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's former doctor faces a tough challenge clearing himself of involuntary manslaughter charges in the pop star's death as his trial, which promises to avoid many dark aspects of Jackson's life, begins with jury selection this week.

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News of a medical emergency involving Michael Jackson started filtering through at around 22:00 BST on Thursday 25 June 2009.

I know because I was on my way to watch cheesy 90s boy band East 17 in the Dance Tent at the Glastonbury Festival. They were a warm-up act the day before the event properly began.

My editor called. Michael Jackson might have been rushed to hospital. He might be in a coma. That was according to TMZ, which was gaining a reputation for celebrity scoops.

But no-one knew if it was true. Strange stories about the King of Pop often bubbled up. A few weeks earlier, it had been reported that he had skin cancer, which was later denied.

Even so, I turned around and headed back to the dusty backstage cabin I had just been working in and searched for an update. In London, Los Angeles and around the world, newsrooms swung into action to try to find out what had happened. The BBC's LA bureau phoned spokespeople, associates and business managers. None would confirm anything. Some just hung up.

A short time later, my editor called again. "Er, TMZ are saying he's dead." A deep breath. Michael Jackson was arguably the biggest pop star of the previous 30 years, and the greatness of his music is undeniable. But there was a more troubling side - accused (and acquitted) of child molestation, and with a downright strange persona and personal life.

At that stage, the world had no information about what had happened in the preceding hours. But in the months and years that followed, details of his final day became clear.

Jackson was just weeks away from a series of lucrative comeback concerts at the O2 Arena in London, and was under pressure to make them a success.

He had left rehearsals in Los Angeles shortly after midnight the night before his death, according to the book 83 Minutes: The Doctor, The Damage and the Shocking Death of Michael Jackson. But for years, the superstar had been unable to sleep without the help of sedatives.

Dr Conrad Murray, who had been employed as his $150,000-a-month personal physician for the shows, was waiting when the star arrived home at his mansion. In Jackson's bedroom, pill bottles, vials, syringes and oxygen tanks littered tables, shelves and the floor.

Dr Murray told police he had given the singer propofol - a powerful drug usually given before and during surgery in hospitals - for 60 nights in a row until 22 June 2009, when he tried to wean him off.

In the early hours of 25 June, the physician gave Jackson a series of different sedatives in an attempt to help him sleep. But they didn't have the desired effect, and Dr Murray said Jackson was getting increasingly agitated about the forthcoming day's rehearsals. "I must be ready for the show in England," he said, according to the physician.

It reached 10:00 local time and the singer was still awake. Dr Murray told police Jackson had begged him: "Please, please, give me some milk so that I can sleep." He was referring to the milk-like propofol. The physician consented, and said he administered the drug via an intravenous drip around 10:40 PST.

Dr Murray told detectives he had the necessary equipment to monitor heart rate and oxygen levels in the blood, and that he stayed at Jackson's bedside before leaving for two minutes to go to the bathroom. When he returned, he found his patient wasn't breathing.

But Dr Murray's timeline was called into question by phone records, which suggested it was just before noon that he noticed something was wrong.

He said he then found a pulse and a frantic attempt at resuscitation followed. He claimed he couldn't call 911 straight away because he was doing CPR, but he eventually called for one of Jackson's security guards. Alberto Alvarez said Dr Murray ordered him to clear away vials, bottles and an IV bag first before calling the emergency services. That call was not made until 12:21 PST.

Jackson's children Prince and Paris were distraught as panic engulfed the household. The paramedics didn't recognise the star when they arrived. He appeared pale and underweight. Seeing his condition and the IV drip stand, paramedic Richard Senneff assumed he was a terminally ill patient.

Jackson was taken the short journey to UCLA medical centre, where resuscitation attempts continued. He was declared dead one hour and 13 minutes later.

By then, fans and media were gathering outside the hospital, and TMZ broke the news of his death to the world around 14:44 PST - which was 22:44 in the UK.

TMZ, the dogged upstart website, had scooped the established media. And with smartphone use taking off, it became one of the first major stories to spread via social media.

Word magazine editor Andrew Harrison was among those at Glastonbury and told BBC Radio 5 Live that night: "What you're seeing here is a lot of people crouched over these little glowing screens trying to find out if it's true or not, because people really can't believe it. People are searching every website they can think of to try to find more information."

The demand for information overwhelmed the internet. Some Google users couldn't access results when searching for Michael Jackson's name because its software mistook the volume of requests for a malware attack. Twitter, the LA Times, TMZ, Wikipedia and AOL Instant Messenger all suffered crashes.

It was not until 23:45 BST that 5 Live presenter Richard Bacon told listeners the BBC felt confident enough to confirm the news, after the Los Angeles Times and Associated Press had also done so.

Two years later, Conrad Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served less than two years of a four-year sentence.

In the Glastonbury cabin, I was bashing out an appreciation of Jackson's career. By the time I staggered out in the early hours (UK time), everybody had heard the news, either via Twitter, old fashioned word of mouth, or because his music was being pumped out from scattered sound systems and stalls around the site.

"They started playing loads of his music and we thought, 'Oh, that's really strange'," one fan said. "And then someone said, 'Michael Jackson's dead' and we were like, 'No way'."

If anyone still hadn't heard, some people wore T-shirts bearing the words "Michael Jackson is dead" and "I was at Glasto when Jacko died", which had been printed by enterprising T-shirt stalls within hours of the news breaking.

That weekend, a few festival performers referenced Jackson on stage or played cover versions, but few were willing to give interviews about him. Perhaps their PR people feared they might come to regret any gushing tributes if more scandals emerged after Jackson's death. This came to pass earlier this year, when two men gave persuasive testimony in a documentary, saying Jackson had repeatedly abused them when they were children.

In the past decade, we have learned details about the sorry circumstances in which Michael Jackson died. While his music will always remain, we have also had some more troubling insights into his life.

Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.

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Michael Jackson: The story of the troubled star's final day, 10 years on

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News of a medical emergency involving Michael Jackson started filtering through at around 22:00 BST on Thursday 25 June 2009. I know because I was on my way to watch cheesy 90s boy band East 17 in the Dance Tent at the Glastonbury Festival. They were a warm-up act the day before the event properly began.

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Michael Jackson: A Quarter-Century Of Sexual Abuse Allegations

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Michael Jackson: A Quarter-Century Of Sexual Abuse Allegations

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What We Know About Michael Jackson’s History of Sexual Abuse Accusations

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What We Know About Michael Jackson’s History of Sexual Abuse Accusations

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Michael Jackson denied allegations that he sexually abused children until his death in 2009. "Leaving Neverland," a new documentary, has revived the conversation about the accusations. Credit... Jim Ruyman-Pool/Getty Images

During the later part of his career, Michael Jackson faced several allegations that he molested young boys.

The police investigated him in 1993. Another accusation led to a trial in 2005 that became a pop culture spectacle, complete with crowds of supporters waiting outside the courthouse. Jackson was acquitted and died four years later while preparing for a string of concert dates he hoped would revive his career.

A new documentary, "Leaving Neverland," has rekindled interest in the accusations. The film had its debut at the Sundance Film Festival and airs on HBO March 3 and 4.
[Never miss a pop music story: Get our weekly newsletter, Louder.]
In August 1993, when Jackson was still a major star on the pop charts and touring to support his album "Dangerous," the Los Angeles Police Department began investigating claims that Jackson had molested a 13-year-old boy. Executing search warrants for a condominium in Los Angeles and Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Santa Barbara County, Calif., the police seized videotapes but found no incriminating evidence.

On Sept. 14, while Jackson was on tour in Moscow, the boy's parents sued the star, saying that Jackson had "repeatedly committed sexual battery" on their son. Among the accusations were that Jackson had performed oral sex on the boy and masturbated him.

Anthony Pellicano, a private investigator working for Jackson, called the suit part of an extortion attempt. "A demand for $20 million was made and presented," he said. "It was flatly and consistently refused." (Years later, Pellicano, known as a top Hollywood "fixer," was accused of making death threats against journalists, and in 2008 was sentenced to 15 years in prison for illegal wiretapping.)

As the case drew headlines, the Jackson camp introduced the news media to children who gave interviews supporting the star. One, a 10-year-old boy named Wade Robson, told CNN about harmless " slumber parties " in Jackson's bedroom. As prosecutors continued to pursue a criminal case, another boy, James Safechuck, who had appeared with Jackson in a Pepsi commercial, gave sworn testimony on Jackson's behalf.

On Dec. 20, 1993, Jackson was strip-searched by police at Neverland, and photographs were taken of his genitals to compare to a description given by the boy. Two days later, Jackson spoke on live television, denying the accusations and excoriating the news media.

"I am not guilty of these allegations," Jackson said. "But if I am guilty of anything, it is of giving all that I have to give to help children all over the world."

In January 1994, Jackson settled the case for $23 million, with $5 million going to the family's lawyers. Prosecutors dropped the criminal case after the boy declined to cooperate.
[Michael Jackson cast a spell. "Leaving Neverland" breaks it, our critic writes.]
In February 2003, with Jackson's music career in decline, the documentary "Living With Michael Jackson," based on interviews by the journalist Martin Bashir, was broadcast in Britain and the United States. In it, Jackson openly discussed sharing his bedroom with a young cancer survivor, and called people who object to such behavior "ignorant."

The documentary sparked a criminal investigation, and in December, Jackson was charged with child molesting, serving alcohol to a minor, conspiracy and kidnapping. He faced up to 20 years in prison.

Jackson's trial began on Feb. 28, 2005. Throughout, the global news media paid close attention to Jackson's erratic behavior, like arriving in floral pajamas.

The boy from the documentary, who was 14 at the time of the trial, testified that Jackson had masturbated him. His brother said he had witnessed the abuse, and that Jackson had showed them both pornography and served them wine, calling it " Jesus juice." A former housekeeper, Blanca Francia, said she had seen Jackson taking a shower with Wade Robson, the young man who had spoken to the media in support of Jackson in 1993.

Jackson's lawyers portrayed the boy at the center of the case and his family as practiced grifters, and several witnesses who had been close with Jackson as children - like the actor Macaulay Culkin, then 24 years old - took the stand to deny any abuse. Robson, by this point a choreographer for stars like Britney Spears, testified that he had spent the night at Neverland more than 20 times but that Jackson had never molested him or taken a shower with him.

Safechuck, who had defended Jackson earlier, did not testify.

Jackson was found not guilty of all charges on June 13, 2005; outside the courthouse, a fan released 10 white doves, one for each count that was acquitted. Jackson died four years later, at age 50, on the eve of a comeback attempt.
[Will "Leaving Neverland" imperil the thriving Michael Jackson estate?]
In 2013, four years after Jackson's death, Robson sued the star's estate, saying that Jackson had molested him for seven years, beginning when he was age 7. In an interview on the "Today" show, he said that "brainwashing" by Jackson had led him to testify on the star's behalf. Lawyers for Jackson's estate blasted Robson's credibility, saying that in the past he had repeatedly denied abuse. Robson's case was later thrown out by a judge for being filed too late.

Safechuck filed his own suit in 2014, saying that Jackson had abused him "hundreds" of times from 1988 to 1992, beginning when a 10-year-old Safechuck - and his mother - accompanied Jackson on his "Bad" concert tour. According to his complaint, Jackson kissed Safechuck's genitals and gave him jewelry as rewards for performing sexual acts. His case was also dismissed. Both men's suits are under appeal.

On Jan. 25, "Leaving Neverland," a two-part, four-hour film by Dan Reed, with Robson and Safechuck describing accusations of abuse in great detail, opened at the Sundance Film Festival. Before the screening, the festival director told the audience that health care providers were available to help anyone disturbed by the film.

The Jackson estate condemned the film as "yet another lurid production in an outrageous and pathetic attempt to exploit and cash in on Michael Jackson." In a statement, the Jackson family called it "a public lynching" and added: "We are furious that the media, who without a shred of proof or single piece of physical evidence, chose to believe the word of two admitted liars over the word of hundreds of families and friends around the world who spent time with Michael, many at Neverland, and experienced his legendary kindness and global generosity."

The estate also filed a petition in Los Angeles Superior Court for arbitration against HBO, saying that with "Leaving Neverland" the channel was in breach of a nondisparagement clause in a 1992 contract for a Jackson concert film. The estate said it was seeking damages that "could exceed $100 million."

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What We Know About Michael Jackson's History of Sexual Abuse Accusations (Published 2019)

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During the later part of his career, Michael Jackson faced several allegations that he molested young boys. The police investigated him in 1993. Another accusation led to a trial in 2005 that became a pop culture spectacle, complete with crowds of supporters waiting outside the courthouse.

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Australian choreographer tells of sexual abuse in Michael Jackson documentary

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Australian choreographer tells of sexual abuse in Michael Jackson documentary

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The Australian dance choreographer Wade Robson has alleged in a US TV interview how a "magical" first visit to Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch as a seven-year-old boy led to the pop star sexually abusing him.

Robson, now 36, and another alleged Jackson victim, American James Safechuck, 40, feature in the two-part documentary, Leaving Neverland, that premiered at the Sundance film festival.

Jackson was touring Australia when he first met five-year-old dance prodigy Robson. A friendship grew and Robson and his family were invited to stay at the Neverland Ranch in California.
Michael Jackson estate suing HBO for $100m over tell-all documentary
"This was just the most magical thing I'd ever seen," Robson, describing visiting Neverland for the first time, told CBS This Morning on Thursday.

On a tour of the property, Robson alleged, Jackson gave him and his sister the option of staying the night in a guest room or with him.

"And my reaction was, 'of course, I want stay with you'," Robson said.

When it was time for Robson's family to leave the ranch and visit the Grand Canyon, Robson said he and Jackson were so upset they cried.

Robson said he was allowed to stay the week with Jackson alone, but the first or second night Jackson allegedly started "to touch my legs and touch my crotch over my pants".

"It progressed to him performing oral sex on me, him showing me how to perform oral sex on him," Robson alleged.

Robson said Jackson told him: "God brought us together. We love each other ... and this is how we show each other our love."

Timeline
Michael Jackson child sexual abuse claims

LAPD investigation

After Jordan Chandler makes allegations during a police interview that Jackson has abused him, an investigation begins. Jackson had met the 12-year-old boy the previous year.

Barnes and Robson press conference

Teenagers Brett Barnes and Wade Robson hold a press conference stating that they had shared a bed with Jackson on multiple occasions, but that nothing sexual had happened.

Chandlers sue Jackson

A lawsuit from the Chandler family alleges sexual abuse by Jackson and seeks $30m.

Jackson video statement

Jackson describes being strip-searched and photographed by the LAPD two days earlier as "the most humiliating ordeal of my life". He states: "I am not guilty of these allegations, but if I am guilty of anything it is of giving all that I have to give to help children all over the world."

Jackson settles lawsuit

Jackson settles out of court with the Chandlers for $22m - $15m goes to Jordan Chandler to be held in a trust fund until he turns 18.

LAPD investigation fails

After two grand juries fail to indict, and Jordan Chandler tells authorities he will not testify in court, the Los Angeles and Santa Barbara district attorneys end their investigation.

Scream released

The lead single from Jackson's album HIStory is released. A duet with his sister Janet, the song angrily addresses media coverage of the child sexual abuse allegations against him.

Bashir documentary

Jackson discusses regularly having sleepovers with children, including a young cancer patient named Gavin Arvizo, in Living with Michael Jackson - a documentary fronted by the British journalist Martin Bashir. "It's not sexual," said Jackson on-screen. "We're going to sleep. I tuck them in. It's very charming." The film rekindles police investigations.

Police raid and arrest

Jackson's Neverland estate is again searched by police, and a week later Jackson is arrested.

Jackson charged

Michael Jackson is formally charged with committing lewd and lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14.

Trial begins

During Jackson's trial, Arvizo and his younger brother testify that the singer showed them pornography and made them drink "Jesus juice" - wine. Both say Jackson masturbated in front of them and molested Arvizo on multiple occasions. Blanca Francia, one of Jackson's former housekeepers, testifies she saw Jackson showering with Wade Robson. Witnesses for the defence, including Macaulay Culkin and Robson, say that Jackson never molested them.

Not guilty verdict

The jury finds Jackson not guilty on all 14 charges brought against him.

Jackson dies

In the run-up to This Is It, a planned residency at London's O2 Arena, Jackson dies age 50 of a cardiac arrest.

Wade Robson sues

Wade Robson takes legal action against the Jackson estate, alleging that Michael Jackson molested him over a seven-year period between the ages of seven and 14.

James Safechuck sues

Safechuck alleges Jackson abused him on more than 100 occasions after the pair met when Safechuck appeared in a Pepsi commercial alongside the singer.

Leaving Neverland

Dan Reed's four-hour documentary Leaving Neverland opens at the Sundance film festival. In it Wade Robson and James Safechuck discuss at length the abuse they claim they suffered at Jackson's hands. It is described as "a public lynching" by Jackson's surviving family.

Television screenings

Leaving Neverland is shown on the HBO network in the US, with a UK screening on Channel 4 on 6 and 7 March. The Jackson estate sue HBO for $100m, claiming the network is in breach of a non-disparagement clause in a 1992 contract.

Radio ban

Radio stations around the world, including in New Zealand and Canada, begin to pull Jackson's music from the airwaves.

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Safechuck, who was nine when he first met Jackson when he was cast in a Pepsi commercial, said the pop star groomed him in a similar way.

Jackson's brothers Jackie, Marlon and Tito and nephew Taj have rejected the allegations, and accused Robson and Safechuck of being motivated by money.

Robson and Safechuck said they were not compensated for participating in the documentary and have no stake in it.

Robson, who went on to work with Britney Spears and boy band NSYNC, previously was a staunch supporter of Jackson, with the Australian testifying at Jackson's 2005 criminal trial in California involving another alleged child victim.

Jackson was acquitted after Robson testified Jackson never sexually abused him.

Jackson died in 2009 and in a surprise move, Robson went public with his abuse claims and filed a civil lawsuit against the Jackson estate alleging he had been molested by the pop star from the age of seven to 14.

'We won't shy away from controversies': BBC announce rival Michael Jackson film

A Los Angeles judge tossed out the case in 2015, ruling Robson waited too long to file and missed the 12-month statutory deadline after Jackson's death.

The judge did not rule on the credibility of Robson's allegations.

Robson and Safechuck said it was not until they had their own children that they came to terms with what they claim Jackson did to them.
Topics

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Australian choreographer tells of sexual abuse in Michael Jackson documentary

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Australian dance choreographer Wade Robson has alleged in a US TV interview how a "magical" first visit to Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch as a seven-year-old boy led to the pop star sexually abusing him. Robson, now 36, and another alleged Jackson victim, American James Safechuck, 40, feature in the two-part documentary, Leaving Neverland, that premiered at the Sundance film festival.

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"Michael Jackson, who said in a television interview with Oprah Winfrey on Wednesday that his light skin was the result of a disorder, not intentional bleaching, is suffering from vitiligo, a rare disease that discolors the face and body."