CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images Even after his death five years ago, Michael Jackson continues to leave an impact on fans’ lives.
Five years ago today, the world seemed to stop its rotation at the news the King of Pop had died.
Thousands flocked to UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles to bid farewell to the haunted genius, watching in disbelief as a helicopter transported his lifeless body to the coroner.
Fans across the globe held vigils and tributes as Jackson’s unmistakable singing voice flooded the airwaves.
Older brother Jermaine confirmed the sad truth in a packed hospital press conference as the doctor who treated Michael that morning disappeared down a hospital hallway.
Dr. Conrad Murray would eventually admit he gave the music icon nightly infusions of the surgery-strength anesthetic propofol to help him sleep – but deny he gave Jackson the dose that killed him.
GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images (From left) Michael Jackson’s sister Janet Jackson, daughter Paris, sister LaToya Jackson, brother Jermaine Jackson and oldest son Prince Michael attend a memorial service for the King of Pop at the Staples Center on July 7, 2009.
Murray claimed he was weaning the “Thriller” singer off the drug and was surprised when Jackson stopped breathing in his own bed early on June 25, 2009.
A jury convicted Murray of involuntary manslaughter two years later.
Family matriarch Katherine Jackson became guardian to the singer’s three minor children and later sued his concert promoter for hundreds of millions claiming the company negligently hired Murray.
She lost a trial when a jury decided AEG Live had no reason to suspect Murray would give Jackson propofol behind locked bedroom doors.
Despite all the court cases and the secrets they revealed, Jackson’s legacy and earning power remain strong and vibrant a half decade later.
His estate already has earned more than $ 600 million since his death – about $ 20 million of that going to his heirs – and his three children continue to forge their own paths in the shadow of his unparalleled fame.
Here’s a look at the pivotal players in his life, five years later:
Handout/Getty Images LOS ANGELES, CA – JULY 07: In this handout provided by Harrison Funk and Kevin Mazur, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, Katherine Jackson and Prince Michael II attend Michael Jackson’s Public Memorial Service held at Staples Center on July 7, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/MJ Memorial via Getty Images) Enlarge
Ethan Miller/(Credit too long, see caption) LAS VEGAS, NV – JUNE 29: Prince Jackson and Katherine Jackson arrive at the world premiere of “Michael Jackson ONE by Cirque du Soleil” at THEhotel at Mandalay Bay on June 29, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images for Cirque du Soleil) Enlarge
Since Michael Jackson’s death, matriarch Katherine Jackson has acted as co-guardian to grandchildren Prince, Paris, and Blanket.
KATHERINE JACKSON: The beloved backbone of the legendary family keeps a low profile as she and grandson T.J. Jackson, one of Tito Jackson’s sons, act as co-guardians to Prince, 17, Paris, 16, and Blanket, 12.
Her late son’s estate recently paid $ 10 million to purchase the Mediterranean-style mansion where she lives with the kids in Calabasas, Calif.
“Everybody is pleased with the purchase of the home,” her lawyer Perry R. Sanders Jr., told the Daily News Tuesday. “What started as a rental became a place where they really developed a family life, and there’s never the same stability with renting as with owning. (Jackson’s) estate did the right thing, and that’s good news.”
The 12,000 square foot house has a theater, pool and putting green in the same gated community where Justin Bieber recently sold his party palace to Khloe Kardashian.
Sanders said while there were “complex and delicate” issues his client had to work out with the estate’s executors after her son’s death, “right now, the family is being well cared for.”
Katherine reportedly told Closer magazine that she planned to mark the somber anniversary with a private gathering and then a follow-up trip back home to Gary, Indiana, in August – Jackson’s birthday month.
Now 84 years old, the softspoken but stern grandmother was the subject of a bizarre family brouhaha in 2012 when she went “missing” for 10 days and briefly lost custody of her grandchildren.
It surfaced later that her kids Jermaine, Randy, Janet and Rebbie whisked her away to a secluded spa in Arizona as they sent a letter to the estate’s executors accusing them of fraud.
Katherine eventually returned and agreed to share custody with T.J. as she thanked fans for their concern.
Toby Canham/Getty Images LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 08: Dr Conrad Murray (R) arrives at the Airport Courthouse for arraignment on February 8, 2010 in Los Angeles, California. Murray is reportedly being charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson. (Photo by Toby Canham/Getty Images) Enlarge
Rex Features/ASSOCIATED PRESS Manadatory Credit: Photo by Rex Features (1486212e) Enlarge
Conrad Murray was released from jail last October after serving two years of his four-year sentence in Los Angeles County’s overcrowded men’s lockup.
CONRAD MURRAY: The doctor convicted in Jackson’s death walked out of jail last October after serving two years of his four-year sentence in Los Angeles County’s overcrowded men’s lockup. The 6-foot-5 cardiologist went into virtual hiding with his actress girlfriend Nicole Alvarez, 31, and their 5-year-old son as he vowed to clear his name.
He recently released a three-hour video on www.DrConradMurrayTalks.com in which he walks viewers through alleged missteps in his criminal trial and asserts his innocence.
He is adamant Jackson was not on a propofol drip when he stopped breathing.
“That absolutely did not happen. Total fabrication,” Murray says in the video.
Now unable to practice medicine in the U.S. because Texas revoked one of his medical licenses and California suspended another, Murray is hoping he can overturn his conviction with a new appeal in federal court.
“I know Dr. Murray definitely wants to practice medicine again, and I’m confident if he doesn’t obtain his medical license again in U.S., he’ll practice internationally,” his lawyer Valerie Wass told The News Tuesday.
“He’s still adamant he was wrongfully convicted, and he still wants justice,” Wass said. “It doesn’t matter that he served his time, he’s still trying to clear his name.”
Wass said Murray has visited Trinidad, where he grew up, since his release but is still living in the U.S. with Alvarez and their son.
“He’s trying to get his life back together,” she said.
AFP/AFP/Getty Images Michael Jackson’s children from left Paris Michael Katherine Jackson (L), Prince Michael Jackson II (also known as Blanket) and Prince Michael Jackson I stand during a memorial service for their father, music legend Michael Jackson, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on July 7, 2009. AFP PHOTO/GABRIEL BOUYS/POOL (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images) Enlarge
Jason Merritt/Getty Images HOLLYWOOD, CA – JUNE 17: Prince Michael Jackson I attends the premiere of HBO’s “True Blood” season 7 and final season at TCL Chinese Theatre on June 17, 2014 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images) Enlarge
Prince Jackson recently said he still wants to be a director.
PRINCE JACKSON: The eldest son wore masks as a child to protect his identity but recently has courted more limelight. He had a small role in the TV series “90210” last year and was a presenter on “Entertainment Tonight.”
He recently said he still wants to be a director – something he discussed with his dad before his death – but stressed he doesn’t want any special treatment.
“I would like to be a director one day. But to be a good director, you have to know how an actor works and feels on set,” he said in an interview with The News.
“I want to learn my craft and experience being in TV shows and possibly movies before I even consider going behind the camera,” he told reporter James Desborough.
“I don’t expect to just walk into jobs or roles because of who I am,” he said in the rare interview.
GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images Michael Jackson’s daughter Paris Michael Katherine becomes emotional as she speaks at a memorial service for her father at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on July 7, 2009. AFP PHOTO/GABRIEL BOUYS/POOL (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images) Enlarge
On December 29, 2013 Paris Jackson posted an image of her and her mother, Debbie Rowe on Instagram. Enlarge
Paris Jackson remains enrolled in a therapeutic boarding school in Utah following her suicide attempt last year.
PARIS JACKSON: Jackson’s only daughter melted hearts when she made an impromptu speech at his public memorial service, calling Jackson “the best father you could ever imagine.” She later enrolled at the elite Buckley School in Los Angeles and seemed to be thriving before the shocking news she attempted suicide at her grandmother’s house.
The teen was rushed to a hospital June 5, 2013, after cutting her arm with a kitchen knife and purportedly swallowing a fistful of pills, sources told the Daily News. She spent weeks in the hospital and later enrolled in a therapeutic boarding school in Utah.
“Their father is dead…she is devastated. She tried to kill herself,” mom Debbie Rowe testified during the AEG trial last August.
“She doesn’t feel like she has a life anymore,” Rowe told jurors as she broke down sobbing.
A year later, Paris “is doing good,” Katherine Jackson told Closer.
The grandmother said the teen remains at her Utah school but visits often.
“She’s wanting to come home, and she gets to at the end of every month,” Katherine reportedly said.
“She is getting back to normal. I think she has made quite a bit of progress over the last year,” an unidentified source told E! News earlier this month. “She is in a much better place than a year ago. It’s just a matter of time before she comes home.”
Pool/Getty Images LOS ANGELES, CA – JULY 07: Prince Michael Jackson II (aka Blanket) onstage during the Michael Jackson public memorial service held at Staples Center on July 7, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Jackson, 50, the iconic pop star, died at UCLA Medical Center after going into cardiac arrest at his rented home on June 25 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni-Pool/Getty Images) Enlarge
Splash News/Splash News Blanket Jackson wears his purple-belt as he leaves karate class with his nanny and security guard in Calabasas, CA. Enlarge
Blanket Jackson refused to cut his long hair after losing his dad.
BLANKET JACKSON: The youngest of the Jackson children, Blanket was just seven years old when his father died in their rented Holmby Hills estate.
Katherine Jackson testified last year that the tyke refused to cut his long hair after losing his dad.
“He doesn’t want to cut it because that’s the way Michael liked it,” Katherine testified last July. “He doesn’t want to cut it. I don’t want to do that to him.”
Fans got a rare glimpse of his personality in December when ABC’s “Good Morning America” posted excerpts of a video interview promoting a documentary project.
Blanket said he shared his famous father’s humanitarianism and interest in wildlife conservation.
“I’m just trying to help, like Africa, because that’s a very poor continent,” he said in the video segment. “There’s a lot of animals being killed from like poachers and stuff, so I want to help, like, endangered species of animals.”
Katherine told Closer that Blanket also wants to carry on his dad’s dream of breaking into movies.
“Blanket has been shooting movies ever since Michael passed, and he just got a new camera,” she told the magazine.
Marcos Vasquez/BuzzFoto/FilmMagic BEVERLY HILLS, CA – AUGUST 06: Debbie Rowe sighting at Dr. Arnold Klein’s office on August 6, 2009 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Marcos Vasquez/BuzzFoto/FilmMagic) Enlarge
Mike / Splash News/Mike / Splash News Debbie Rowe has lunch on Mother’s Day without her kids at Shakey’s Pizza in Palmdale, CA. Enlarge
Debbie Rowe has been spending more time with daughter Paris since Michael Jackson’s death.
Debbie Rowe: Jackson’s ex-wife was estranged from the pop star when he died but rushed to their daughter’s side after her suicide attempt and testified for Katherine last year.
The owner of a horse ranch northeast of Los Angeles, she reportedly is engaged to one of Jackson’s former producing partners Marc Schaffel.
She posted a smiling photo with Schaffel and her 3.54-carat diamond engagement ring on her Facebook page last March.
“He loves me, knows my kids, loves my kids, and we’ll see where this goes,” she said in an interview with TMZ.com.
The former nurse told jurors in the AEG trial last year that she had no regrets about “leaving” her two young children, Prince and Paris, with Jackson when their three-year marriage ended in divorce in 1999.
“Michael wanted to be a father. I didn’t sign on to be a mom. I loved him very much, and I still do,” she said, crying. “I wanted him to be a father. I wanted him to have everything that he didn’t have growing up, wanted him to experience it with his own child, his own children.”
ndillon@nydailynews.com
Music & Arts – NY Daily News