The greatest pop singer of all time is finally gone. CNN ( read more here) has confirmed that he died at age 50 yesterday, Thursday. According to reports, he collapsed at his rented home in west LA.
Jackson has sold more than 750 million albums and won 13 Grammys, but has not staged a major tour since 1997 or released an album of new material since 2001. His last live performance in Britain was at the 2006 World Music Awards, when he managed just a few lines of "We Are the World" before leaving the stage.
His albums are among the world's best-selling records: Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991) and HIStory (1995).
He appeared in public infrequently since being acquitted of child molestation in California in 2005, and he has struggled to pay his debts. Last year, he was forced to give up the deed to Neverland, his 2,500-acre ranch and miniature amusement park in California.
I was always amazed how he does the moonwalk, and how his face changed over the years.
There are so many eccentric people on this earth, but Michael's one of the most public. Jackson's skin was a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, but starting in the early 1980s, his skin gradually grew paler. This change gained widespread media coverage, including rumors that Jackson was bleaching his skin.In the mid-1980s, Jackson was diagnosed with vitiligo and lupus; the latter was in remission in Jackson's case, and both illnesses made him sensitive to sunlight. The treatments he uses for his condition further lighten his skin tone, and, with the application of pancake makeup to even out blotches, he could appear very pale. The structure of his face changed as well; several surgeons have speculated that Jackson had undergone multiple nasal surgeries, a forehead lift, thinned lips and a cheekbone surgery.Changes to his face were, in part, due to periods of significant weight loss.Jackson lost weight in the early 1980s because of a change in diet and a desire for "a dancer's body"..Witnesses reported that Jackson was often dizzy and speculated that he was suffering from anorexia nervosa; periods of weight loss would become a recurring problem for the singer later in life. Some medical professionals have publicly stated their belief that the singer had body dysmorphic disorder, a psychological condition whereby the sufferer has no concept of how they are perceived by others.
He wasn't just a part of the pop culture, he was the pop culture.
His famous quotes:
"Everyone who knows me will know the truth which is that my children come first in my life and that I would never harm any child."
~After British TV documentary by Martin Bashir Living With Michael Jackson was shown on February 3, 2003
"Why can't you share your bed? That's the most loving thing to do, to share your bed with someone. You say, 'You can have my bed if you want it. Sleep in it. I'll sleep on the floor. It's yours.' I always give the beds to the company."
~Admitting he shared his bed with children, in British TV documentary by Martin Bashir, February 2003
"I love E. T. 'cos it reminds me of me. Someone from another world coming down and you becoming friends with them and this person is, like, 800 years old and he's filling you with all kinds of wisdom and he can teach you to fly. That whole fantasy thing which I think is great. I mean, who don't wanna fly?"
~Interview in Smash Hits, January 20, 1983 - Jackson collaborated with E. T. director Steven Spielberg on the E. T. Storybook album and also narrated it
My father was a management genius. But what I really wanted was a dad.
~Speech at Oxford Union, on his children's Bill of Rights
"If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with."
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