Jackson children to stay with grandma

• Instead Prince Michael,12 and 11-year-old Paris will stay with the late pop star's mother, Katherine along with their younger brother Prince Michael II, aka Blanket.
• Katherine Jackson,79, and her son's ex-wife Debbie Rowe reached an agreement on Thursday.
• Rowe will have "meaningful visitation rights".
• Katherine Jackson's lawyer, Londell McMillan, said: "There is no situation better for these children than for them to be raised and reared in the loving care of Mrs. Katherine Jackson."
• In a will written by Michael Jackson in 2002 he stated he wanted his mother to care for the children if he died.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Cruise Ship Docks With Dead Whale On Bow

:A luxury cruise ship has returned to port after a summer trip with a dead whale lodged on its bow.

• The animal was discovered as the Sapphire Princess prepared to dock in Vancouver after travelling from Alaska.
• Officials from Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans later removed the carcass from the scene at the Canada Place terminal.
• Tourists stopped to take pictures of the whale, while employees from the nearby Vancouver Convention Centre and Pan Pacific Hotel also gathered to watch.
• Princess Cruise Lines, which operates the Sapphire Princess, said it did not know how or when the whale came to be stuck to the ship.
• The company said: "We were shocked and saddened by this discovery, and sincerely regret the circumstances which led to the whale's death.
• "It is unknown how or when this could have happened, as we have strict whale avoidance procedures in place when our ships are in the vicinity of marine life."
• The company insisted it was not aware of any whales being sighted as the ship sailed through the Inside Passage to Vancouver.
• The Canadian Coast Guard was notified as soon as the dead animal was discovered, Princess Cruise Lines said.
• Promising to co-operate with any inquiry, the firm added: "We take our responsibility to be good stewards of the marine environment very seriously, and have clear guidelines for our ships on how to operate if whales are sighted nearby, which include altering course and reducing speed as required."
• The Sapphire has four swimming pools, boutiques and a spa on board.
  She spends each summer in Alaska and travels to Mexico, Australia and the South Pacific at other times of year.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Michael Jackson continues to rule over the European albums chart

• Michael Jackson continues to rule over the European albums chart, dominating the top 10 with six entries as the aptly-titled compilation CD King Of Pop sits at number one.
• Sales of the late superstar's back catalogue have surged in the weeks since his death on 25 June and his hits are still proving popular across the world.
• Four other Jackson compilations feature in the continent's top 10 - The Essential is in second place, The Collection climbs to number four, The Motown Years is at seven and Number Ones is at nine on the new countdown.
• The biggest selling album of all time, Thriller, claims the third spot.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Swine flu fears prompt run on UK pharmacies

• Pharmacies in England are reporting a run on supplies like surgical masks, thermometers and anti-bacterial gels by customers concerned about swine flu amid a surge in the number of people infected by the virus.
• Surgical masks will be distributed by the UK's Department of Health?
• In some cases, drug stores in England say they are out of the items and may not get more in for weeks or months.
• "People are very panicked," said a pharmacy assistant at Zafash Pharmacy in southwest London. "That's why everyone is running for thermometers, surgical masks, and anti-bacterial gels."
• The UK's Department of Health estimated this week that there were around 100,000 new cases of swine flu in England in the week ending July 17 -- nearly double the number of cases for the previous seven days.
• The UK has been hit hard by the H1N1 virus, with only the U.S. and Mexico recording more cases of infection, according to World Health Organization figures earlier this month.
• The World Health Organization has stopped giving a global tally of cases but said Friday that swine flu has now spread to more than 160 areas and territories in the world.
• At least 26 people have died of the disease and this week the British government set up a national flu hot line and Web site to allow those suspected of having swine flu to get a prescription for antiviral medication over the phone.
• Those who are given prescriptions must pick up the medication at designated collection points in their area.
• But at Hodgetts Chemist in north London, a supply of surgical masks that normally lasts for half a year has gone in three days, said pharmacy assistant Sylwia Sznyk.
• Sznyk displayed a receipt from the chemist's suppliers that showed three types of digital thermometers that were out of stock. The pharmacy is now out of thermometers.
• "One of the manufacturers, he said the next thermometers they will have is in October, so now there is no chance to get them from this particular supplier,".
• The supplier is also out of stock of three different types of anti-bacterial gel, she said, even though the gel is ineffective against viruses.
• Central Pharmacy in Ashington, in northern England, is also out of thermometers, pharmacist Nadeem Shah. He said he believes most shops and pharmacies in the area are also out.
• "There's no thermometers at all, which is worrying because it's just a sign that it's going to impact on other supplies as well linked to people generally not feeling well -- in particular paracetamol (acetaminophen), ibuprofen, and other medications," Shah said.
• The pharmacy was out of stock of anti-bacterial gels last month, but manufacturers are making more so it's back on the shelf, he said. However, it's being sold for nearly double the price, he said.
• "They're pennies otherwise to buy, but very quickly some manufacturers have got into the market of producing gels and their prices are quite high," Shah said.
• At their sister pharmacy in nearby Morpeth, any anti-bacterial products at the checkout counter are "gone in a day, rather than in a month," he said.
• "Some of the gels don't do anything different to your soap at home," he said, emphasizing that good hygiene, good handwashing, and disposable tissues are the best way to ward off viral infection.
• "There's definitely some kind of misunderstanding -- people are thinking that having those type of products will give them a bit more confidence. But it's their choice, obviously."
• Though Central Pharmacy does not normally sell surgical masks, they considered stocking some when the virus broke out a few months ago, Shah said. They decided against it so as not to stoke panic.
• "It could be seen as a sign of endorsement rather than asking people to get advice," he said. "It would just give a very visible panic message."
• Croydon Pharmacy, south of London, still has stocks of thermometers despite higher demand, but it has run out of surgical masks, said pharmacist Michael Hammond. He said the pharmacy has noticed a rise in people asking questions and wanting information about swine flu.
• "I think the reaction has been in response to what they've heard on the news," Hammond said. "And even where it is not a true case of the patient suffering, they still want more information. But I think generally we've been able to give them what they need."
• A branch of the Boots pharmacy chain in Fulham, southwest London, has been out of thermometers for two weeks, said employee Wilson Le. They're also running out of anti-bacterial gels; the store doesn't stock surgical masks.
• While it is not running out yet, one pharmacy in the eastern English city of Norwich said it is noticing an increase in demand for masks, thermometers, and anti-bacterial items.
• "It's not completely a foregone situation where I can't get hold of it, but it's becoming difficult," said the pharmacist, who asked not to be identified because his pharmacy is one of the government's distribution points for the antiviral medication Tamiflu, and he didn't want to spark concern.
• The pharmacist said he was doling out Tamiflu to 70 to 80 people a day and described the lack of supplies as worrying.
• "From a business point of view, yes, and from a clinical point of view, yes, because I can't offer the services I need to," he said. "And if people want reassurance from (the supplies), I'm not able to reassure them."
• The pharmacist complained that the paperwork he is required to fill out for each patient takes him five minutes per person, giving him less time to spend consulting with other customers.
• "I wish somebody would have organized it a little bit better," the pharmacist said.
• Shah, of Central Pharmacy, said the run on supplies makes him worry that they won't be available later in the year, when flu season kicks in.
• "Manufacturers would have made their plans for winter a while ago, but if we're consuming these products early, in August and July, I don't know if those manufacturing plans are in place yet," he said.
• The government advises anyone suspected of having swine flu to send a friend or relative -- a "flu friend" -- to their pharmacy to pick up the medicine for them. But that advice isn't being followed by everyone.
• "Some patients come in directly rather than ask their friend to come," said Le, of Boots pharmacy in Fulham. He said one dispenser has come down with swine flu after being infected by a sick customer.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Chomsky: Sri Lanka, a Rwanda-like major atrocity the West didn't care

:Prof Noam Chomsky

:Chomsky: Sri Lanka, a Rwanda-like major atrocity the West didn't care

• Prof Noam Chomsky, professor emeritus of linguistics at MIT, said Thursday during a United Nations forum on Responsibility to Protect (R2P), that what happened in Sri Lanka was a major Rwanda-like atrocity, in a different scale, where the West didn't care.
• "There was plenty of early warning. This [conflict] has been going on for years and decades.
• Plenty of things could have been done [to prevent it]. But there was not enough interest." Chomsky was responding to a question that referred to Jan Egeland, former head of UN's Humanitarian Affairs' earlier statement that R2P was a failure in Sri Lanka, where Inner City Press (ICP) noted that nearly 20,000 Tamil civilians were killed.
• On ICP Matthew Lee's reference to the UN's doctrine of R2P which was signed by 191 states in 2005 and question if there was a consensus in UN about this doctrine, Chomsky described the power interests at play at the UN, and how Western Governments' policies of structural adjustments in other countries are tearing those societies apart.
• Lee also noted that Robert Evans, former head of the International Crisis Group (ICG) had earlier said that UN had responded to Sri Lanka in the R2P sense.Chomsky took issue with the optimistic characterization by Evan's of the activities of the UN with regards to R2P.
• R2P is generally noted as Kofi Annan's greatest achievement in "humanitarian intervention," to bring governments and leaders massacring their own people to account. Noam Chomsky, is known as one of the fathers of modern linguistics, a libertarian socialist intellectual, and is also described as a "hero of Homeric proportions," belonging solidly in the pantheon of US's finest minds.
  

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Michael Jackson doc hires bodyguard

Michael Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray has had to hire a bodyguard, his representative has said.

• Murray has emerged as a central figure in the investigation into Jackson's death but has denied reports he gave the pop star any drugs that contributed to the tragedy.
• His representative posted a message on his law firm's website saying: "Dr. Murray was the last doctor standing when Michael Jackson died and it seems all the fury is directed toward him... he is frustrated by negative and often erroneous media reports, he has to walk around 24-7 with a bodyguard.
• "He continued: "He can't operate his practice. He can't go to work because he is harassed no matter where he goes.
• "Investigators trying to figure out what killed Jacko are looking for additional information from the doctor, who tended to him as he was dying.
• "The coroner wants to clear up the cause of death; we share that goal," Murray's rep said."Based on Dr. Murray's minute-by-minute and item-by-item description of Michael Jackson's last days, he should not be a target of criminal charges," he added.Investigators found the powerful anaesthetic propofol in Jackson's home, it has been reported.
• Police detectives have already spoken to Murray twice -- once immediately after the singer's death and again two days later. Murray's clinic in north Houston has also been searched by police investigators.
• A cause of death has yet to be determined for the pop star. The coroner's office is expecting to release autopsy results next week.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Racial tension in the US

:Riot police have broken up a tense standoff between black and white protesters in a town in Texas.

• The conflict began with a march by 100 mostly African-American activists, who were unhappy at the state’s handling of the case of 24-year-old Brandon McClelland who was run over and killed by a vehicle.
• Speaking to US television network ABC, Brandon's mother Jacquiline said: "The reason for today's rally is to let everybody know how the justice system around here is really doing things."
• When the protesters reached the town square, the crowd of black demonstrators ballooned to around 200 people on one side of the street.
• Approximately a dozen white supremacists, including four skinheads carrying Nazi swastika flags, gathered on the other side.
• A skinhead and another white man were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct, before the protesters separated peacefully.
• No blows were exchanged.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Exposed: Repair Shops Hack Your Laptops

:Some computer repair shops are illegally accessing personal data on customers' hard drives - and even trying to hack their bank accounts, a investigation has found.

• In one case, passwords, log-in details and holiday photographs were all copied onto a portable memory stick by a technician.
• In other shops, customers were charged for non-existent work and simple faults were misdiagnosed.
• An investigator from Trading Standards said he was "shocked" by the findings.
  The investigation was carried out using surveillance software loaded onto a brand-new laptop.
• It operated without the user being aware that every event that took place on the computer was being logged.
• All activity on the screen was captured in still images, and the identity of whoever was using the computer was recorded using the laptop's built-in camera.
  Sky engineers then created a simple, easily diagnosable fault, by loosening the connection of the internal memory chip.
• This prevented Windows being able to load. To get things working again, the chip would simply need to be pushed back into position.
• The investigation targeted six different computer repair shops. All but one misdiagnosed or overcharged for the fault.
• The most serious offender was Revival Computers in Hammersmith, West London.
  Shortly after identifying the real fault, an engineer called our undercover reporter to say the computer needed a new motherboard, which would cost £130.
• Tests carried out by our internal Sky engineer after the diagnosis revealed there was nothing wrong with it.
• The surveillance software then recorded one technician browsing through the files on the hard-drive, including private documents and intimate holiday photos, including some of our researcher in her bikini.
• As he snooped through the files, he is seen smiling and showing the pictures to another colleague.
• Later on in the same shop, a second technician loads up the machine and also looks through the photos, which are inside a folder clearly marked 'private'.
• He then plugs his own portable memory stick into the laptop and copies files, including passwords and photos, into a folder labelled "mamma jammas".
• Inside one of the documents copied to the memory stick was a text file containing passwords for Facebook, Hotmail, eBay and a NatWest bank account.
• Once the technician had discovered this information, he opened a web browser on the laptop and attempted to log into the back account for around five minutes.
• The only reason he was unsuccessful was because the details were fake.
• When confronted over the findings, staff at Laptop Revival said they did not want to respond to Sky News on camera.
• However in a telephone conversation, they denied all knowledge of the alleged abuses.
• When shown the findings, Richard Webb, an e-commerce investigator for Trading Standards said: "I'm really quite shocked, both in the range of potential problems this has revealed - people overcharging, mis-describing the faults - but also people attempting to steal personal details.
• "It's a big abuse of trust. If you were expert in computers you wouldn't have to hand in your machine to be repaired. They know that.
• "They know you won't be able to tell what they've done afterwards, they know you're putting your trust in them and unfortunately, as we're seeing, there are too many people willing to abuse that trust.
• "What you've shown is that there is a much wider problem in the industry than we knew about.
• "It suggests we need to look at the area again and we do need to test it like you have done, but with a view of taking criminal enforcement action if these problems are found and evidenced."

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Airlines turning back swine flu victims

:Airlines have put in place measures to turn back passengers showing swine flu symptoms, they said Sunday.

• British Airways said there had been "very small number of cases" where people showing symptoms of the H1N1 virus had been advised not to travel following medical advice.
  And Virgin Atlantic said people suffering from swine flu would not be allowed to travel without a "fit to fly" certificate from their doctor or a hospital, though there have been no cases so far.
• Britain's health authorities are advising people with symptoms to delay their journeys until the signs have cleared up.
• "We have a medical team within the airline as well as a contingency planning group which has met for the past few years to look at the issue of a flu pandemic," A British Airways spokeswoman said.
• "We have a wide range of contingency plans in place which we can use depending on how the situation may evolve.
• "If we have concerns about a customer or the customer is concerned, then we have a 24 hour medical service we can call to give advice to staff.
• "They will speak to the customer and an assessment will be made about their fitness to fly.
• "There have been a number of cases where we have advised customers not to fly on the basis of their diagnosis or symptoms of H1N1."
• Britain is the country worst hit by the pandemic in Europe, with estimates of 55,000 new cases last week.
• Virgin Atlantic spokesman Paul Charles said: "If there are signs of something being wrong, be it excessive sneezing or coughing, not looking well, high temperature, then the airport staff can call in a medical team for extra advice.
• "If the medical team believe there are reasons not to fly, the passenger will be asked to produce a fit to fly certificate from their doctor or a hospital, and they will be put at our cost on to the next available flight."
• Health officials said Thursday that 29 people had died in Britain after contracting swine flu.
• England's chief medical officer Liam Donaldson also said that in a worst case scenario, around a third of Britain's population could be infected and 65,000 killed.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Tito Jackson: "They are Michael's kids'

:Michael Jackson is the biological father of his three children, the pop star's brother has claimed.

• Tito Jackson believes his children - Paris, Prince Michael and Prince Michael II (aka Blanket) - all have a family resemblance.
• He said: "They are all his children. Blanket is Michael's, I can tell. Those eyes don't lie. Them eyes are Michael over again. I see a lot of Michael in him."
• The 55-year-old also dismissed suggestions that the children were too pale to be his brother's.
• "Just because they look white doesn't mean they are not his. Prince looks just like my grandfather. There's no question they are Michael's," he said.
• "They are 100 per cent his...They remind me of me and my brothers when we were growing up."
• But he said nobody, including himself, knew the identity of Blanket's mother, describing it as the "million dollar question". He was born to a mystery surrogate mother the singer never met.
• Tito said that despite growing up in the glare of the media spotlight, the children are "very, very normal".
• The comments came as pictures emerged showing what are believed to be needle puncture marks on the star's ankles and a large wound on his right shin - thought to have been caused by his injection of drugs.
• Meanwhile, a magazine has obtained video showing "never-before-seen" footage of Jackson's head catching fire during filming of his 1984 Pepsi advert.
• Jackson suffered severe burns after a pyrotechnics accident set his hair and scalp alight.

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Jacko Pepsi Footage Leaked

• For years, the harrowing accident on a Pepsi commercial shoot which put Michael Jackson in hospital with terrible burns has remained unseen.
• Somehow now, only weeks after his death, footage of the drama unfolding has leaked, with many pin-pointing this as the moment when the self-styled King of Pop, reaching his absolute peak, was first introduced to pain-killers, an addiction which many claim brought about his recent, unexpected and tragic passing.
• The video shows Jackson performing at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on January 27,1984 before 3,000 understandably very excited fans. Appearing alongside his brothers at a staged gig, all goes well until the sixth take, when he descends from the back of the stage and a battery of pyrotechnics explode prematurely.
• Michael can be seen bounding down the stairs, the top of his head clearly ablaze, before the crew rush to his aid.
• Jackson suffered third-degree burns on his scalp and body in the incident and was rushed to hospital, his iconic glove still in place as paramedics loaded him into an ambulance. Pepsi settled out of court, with the $1.5 million fee going to the Brotman Medical Center in Culver City, CA, which now has a Michael Jackson Burn Center.
• But money could not heal the damage, as habitual use of prescribed narcotics becoming a frequent aid but one that would seemingly take over his life.

Michael Jackson's Pepsi Commercial Accident In 1984

Michael Jackson Pepsi commercial - 1984

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

Michael Jackson: 'Murdered for his money'

:Michael Jackson's sister La Toya believes the King of Pop was effectively "murdered" for his money by a manipulative entourage.

• In interviews with Sunday newspapers, La Toya gave details about the 50-year-old singer's sudden death, drugs found in his body and a stash of cash and jewels that she claims have gone missing.
• She told one paper: "We don't think just one person was involved in the murder. It was a conspiracy to get Michael's money."
• La Toya, 53, accused a "shadowy" group of hangers-on of cutting him off from his family and friends and forcing him to sign up for 50 concerts at London's O2 arena.
• They also fed him drugs and saw him as a "cash cow", she claimed.
• "He was surrounded by a bad circle," she told another paper. "Michael was a very meek, quiet, loving person. People took advantage of that.
• "People fought to be close to him, people who weren't always on his side.
• "Michael was worth more than a billion dollars. When anyone is worth that much money, there are always greedy people around them."
• "I believe Michael was murdered, I felt that from the start," she added. "Not just one person was involved, rather it was a conspiracy of people."
• Jackson was the "loneliest man in the world" with no real friends and isolated from his family at the time of his death - less than 12 hours after completing a rehearsal for his tour, she said.
• His sister has revealed that he was not found in bed but in the bedroom of his physician Dr Conrad Murray and said he had an intravenous drip stand and oxygen canisters in his room.
• She described accompanying Jackson's children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and seven-year-old Prince Michael II - also known as Blanket - to see their father's body and said her brother thought he would die in his 50s.
• "Michael knew he was never going to be a grey-haired old man," she said. "He didn't want to grow old."
• La Toya said she was at her home close to Jackson's in Beverly Hills when she was told by her father that her brother had been taken to the UCLA Medical Centre.
  While in the car on the way to the hospital she said her mother screamed down the phone, "He's dead!".
• "I nearly crashed my car," La Toya said. "My legs went weak. I couldn't press down on the gas pedal. I got to the wrong entrance at the hospital and was begging the security guys to help me and take my car because I was so weak and faint.
• "They took me up to the area where Michael had been taken. Mother was crying and Michael's kids were crying.
• "I screamed, 'Is it true?' and she said, 'Yes, he gone'.
• "I couldn't stop crying."
• La Toya claimed her brother had only wanted to do ten shows in London but that the people around him did not care about him and were only interested in his money, and forced him to agree to do 50 shows.
• While Jackson regularly kept up to £1 million in cash at his home, La Toya said no money nor jewellery was found.
• "Michael didn't keep a close eye on his finances," she said. "A lot of people made a lot of money out of Michael."
• She pledged the family would file a civil lawsuit against anyone they believed responsible and push for police to bring criminal charges.
• She said: "I am going to get down to the bottom of this. I am not going to stop until I find out who is responsible. Why did they keep the family away? It's not about money. I want justice for Michael. I won't rest until I find out what - and who - killed my brother."

By www.MICHAELJACKSON50.com

La Toya claims Michael Jackson was murdered

:Michael Jackson's sister La Toya believes the King of Pop was effectively "murdered" for his money by a manipulative entourage, it emerged tonight.

:La Toya claims Jackson was murdered

• In interviews with Sunday newspapers, La Toya gave details about the 50-year-old singer's sudden death, drugs found in his body and a stash of cash and jewels that she claims have gone missing.
• She told the News of the World: "We don't think just one person was involved in the murder. It was a conspiracy to get Michael's money."
• La Toya, 53, accused a "shadowy" group of hangers-on of cutting him off from his family and friends and forcing him to sign up for 50 concerts at London's O2 arena.
• They also fed him drugs and saw him as a "cash cow", she claimed.
• "He was surrounded by a bad circle," she told the Mail on Sunday. "Michael was a very meek, quiet, loving person. People took advantage of that.
• "People fought to be close to him, people who weren't always on his side.
• "Michael was worth more than a billion dollars. When anyone is worth that much money, there are always greedy people around them."

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Obama makes first African address

:Barack Obama has made his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa as US President.

• Speaking after a G8 summit where leaders agreed to spend $20 billion (£12bn) to improve food security in poor countries, Obama spoke of a "new moment of promise" but stressed that Africans must play a leading role in solving their own problems.
• Mr Obama told Ghana's parliament: "Development depends upon good governance. That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long.
• "That is the change that can unlock Africa's potential. And that is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans."
• Mr Obama took aim at corruption and rights abuses on the continent, warning that growth and development would be held back until such problems were tackled.
• He said America would not impose any system of government, but would increase help for those behaving responsibly.
• The visit has enormous resonance for Africa because of Obama's roots as the son of Kenyan immigrant. He laced his speech with tales of his background and the struggles of his forebears in the face of poverty and colonial rule.
• Ghanaians, many dressed in Obama t-shirts, packed into the streets of Accra in hope of glimpsing the president. They clustered around television sets in homes, bars and backyards to follow his words.
• Obama flew by helicopter to Cape Coast Castle, a former depot of the transatlantic slave trade and a reminder of one of the darkest chapters in African and American history.
• He said: "As painful as it is, I think that it helps to teach all of us that we have to do what we can to fight against the kinds of evils that sadly still exist in our world, not just on this continent but in every corner of the globe."
  
  
  
  By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Jackson's body stored in Motown boss' crypt - reports

:Michael Jackson has been temporarily laid to rest in a crypt owned by Motown record label founder Berry Gordy until the entertainer's family agrees on a final burial place, according to US reports.

• The King of Pop's casket has been housed in a top secret location since his memorial in Los Angeles on Tuesday, when it was displayed for all to see at the Staples Center.
• His final resting place remains a mystery, with Jackson's former Santa Barbara County home, Neverland Ranch, the star's hometown of Gary, Indiana and Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills among rumoured burial sites.
• Reports also suggest his family is awaiting the return of Jackson's brain, which was removed for tests during his autopsy, before planning moves forward.
• According to the New York Post, Gordy, who discovered the Jackson 5, offered the family use of his own crypt at the Forest Lawn Cemetery until the star's loved ones sort out what to do with his remains.
• Jackson's body reportedly rests in the crypt marked only with an ornately scripted letter "G" in an otherwise empty mausoleum.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Police probing Jackson drug history

:Detectives investigating the death of Michael Jackson are looking at his prescription drug history and trying to talk to his numerous former doctors.

• Los Angeles' police chief William Bratton told that police were waiting for the coroner's report before ruling out any possibilities in their "comprehensive and far-reaching" investigation into the sudden death of the 50-year-old two weeks ago.
• The coroner's report will determine the cause of death and hinges on time-consuming toxicology tests, but detectives are already gathering evidence.
• Mr Bratton said the Drug Enforcement Agency and the state attorney general's office, which keeps a database of prescription drugs, were helping investigators.
• Meanwhile, it has emerged friends and family of Jackson had grown increasingly concerned over the pop star's use of heavy medication in the last years of his life.
• Sources told that Jackson's sister Janet tried to stage an intervention but was thwarted by her brother's security guards.
• The singer's friend and dermatologist Dr Arnold Klein has said he repeatedly warned Jackson against using the powerful sedative Diprivan.
• Speaking on Larry King Live, Dr Klein said he wasn't surprised that investigators had found several bottles of prescription drugs at Jackson's home.
• The doctor said he occasionally administered the painkiller Demerol, but told Jackson that he was "insane" for turning to Diprivan to help with insomnia.
• And it appears Jackson's dermatologist was not the only one with concerns. Reports also emerged that Janet Jackson was so worried about her brother's emaciated appearance in 2007 that she tried to intervene, but was unsuccessful.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Jackson to live on in games

: Michael Jackson is set to moonwalk one more time in a new video game that features his likeness and actual voice. Eeeh-heee!

• Rumours of an unreleased video game starring the Smooth Criminal have been rife in recent weeks.
• However, the latest news is that Jacko’s own firm, MJJ Productions, has been working on the game for several months, with Jackson himself even finding the time to record a few voice-over lines prior to his untimely demise on June 25th.
• Other details are sketchy, to say the very least, although a Christmas 09 home console release is apparently scheduled and it is understood that the game will feature a number of the star’s most iconic hits.
• An MJJ productions worker has remarked “I am sure it will still be released. Michael loved games”.
• Of that you can be sure. Jackson’s personal collection of full-sized arcade cabinets is enough to fill several pier-end amusement parks, as a recent auction catalogue more than proved. Of course, MJ’s video game appearances are the stuff of legend too.
• Moreover, with Jackson singles and albums dominating their respective charts and unreleased videos and tracks waiting in the wings, the lucrative Michael Jackson industry is set to roll on, and there’s little doubt that video games will form part of it.
• The 1990 Mega Drive hit ‘Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker’ would be a welcome re-issue for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 download. Meantime it looks more than likely that the new, as-yet untitled game will get a release. We sincerely hope so anyway, as we can’t wait to play it!

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Briton tries to give away 52,000 euros in Spain

• A drunken Briton celebrated an inheritance by trying to give it away to strangers at a Spanish airport, government-run news agency EFE reported on Wednesday.
  
• The unidentified man, 59 years-old and dressed like a tramp, laughed as he started handing out a pile of 52,000 euros (45,000 pounds) in travellers' cheques and notes at Palma airport on the holiday island of Majorca before police stopped him, EFE said.
  
• The man, who had apparently just received the money as an inheritance and had just arrived on a flight from Manchester, was bundled onto a plane back to Britain by police.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Swine flu deaths rise to 14 : UK

:The latest swine flu figures show that 14 people have died in the UK after contracting the virus.

• Chief Medical Officer Sir Liam Donaldson said the figure does not mean they all died as a direct result of swine flu but that they had the virus.
• It is unclear where or when the latest deaths linked to swine flu occurred - reports on Wednesday put the total at seven. Of the 14 deaths, 12 occurred in England.
• There are currently 335 people in hospital in England with swine flu of which 43 are in critical care, he added.
• The UK now has the third highest number of cases of swine flu in the world after the US and Mexico.
• However, Sir Liam admitted it was unknown how many people in the UK were truly suffering from the virus as many people would be treating themselves at home rather than contacting their GP.
• Justin McCracken, chief executive of the Health Protection Agency (HPC), said the organisation would not be releasing information about individual deaths, adding that it was a local decision in each case whether to release details of where and who the victims were.
• Sir Liam said the latest data from 100 GP surgeries around England showed that about 27,000 people per week were being diagnosed by their doctor as having a flu-like illness.
• Of these, an estimated 8,000 will have swine flu.
• As of yesterday there were 9,718 confirmed cases of swine flu in the UK - just behind Mexico's total of 10,262 cases.
• The US currently has 33,902 confirmed cases.
• However, cases of swine flu in the UK are no longer being diagnosed by laboratory testing as the virus continues to spread.
• Sir Liam said that London and the West Midlands are approaching epidemic levels in terms of the number of cases being seen.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Tearful memorial for Michael Jackson

:Paris Katherine Jackson, 11, said goodbye to her father at the close of the memorial service.

• LOS ANGELES, California-- Michael Jackson's daughter Paris Katherine addressed mourners at the Staples Center on Tuesday, tearfully telling them her father was "the best father you could ever imagine."
• "Ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine," the 11-year-old said. "And I just wanted to say I love him so much."
• Jackson's children, who often have been hidden by veils or blankets when seen with their father, were sitting in the front row at the Staples Center as their father's life and music were remembered.
• Jackson's remains were nearby in a closed, rose-draped, bronze casket. His brothers, who served as pallbearers, wore single white sequined gloves, a tribute to their brother's signature look of the 1980s.
• "Michael, when you left us, a part of me went with you," brother Marlon Jackson said. "And a part of you will live forever within me, but also a part of you will live forever within all of us."
• Marlon Jackson said the world could not understand what his brother endured "being judged and ridiculed."
• "How much pain can one man take," Marlon Jackson asked. "Maybe now, Michael, they will leave you alone."
• Before the final words Jackson's band members, family, children and celebrities filled the stage to sing Jackson's "Heal the World."
• The song followed a performance of "We are the World," the 1985 hit written by Jackson and Lionel Richie to raise money for African famine relief.
• The Rev. Al Sharpton also addressed the crowd and spoke of Jackson's contribution to the music world.
• "When Michael started, it was a different world, but because Michael kept going, because he didn't accept limitations, because he refused to let people decide his boundaries, he opened up the whole world in the music world," Sharpton said. "He put on one glove, pulled his pants up and broke down the color curtain." Sharpton then addressed Jackson's children.
• "There wasn't nothing strange about your daddy," he said. "It was strange what your daddy had to deal with, but he dealt with it." John Mayer played lead guitar on the song "Human Nature," from Jackson's "Thriller" album.
• An emotional Brooke Shields, who was 13 when she became close friends with Jackson, said they bonded "because we both understood what it was like to be in the spotlight from a very, very young age." "What we did do was laugh," she recounted. "It was always a competition to see who could make the other one laugh more or be sillier."
• The public memorial followed an earlier gathering by Jackson's family and closest friends at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Daughter pays tearful tribute to Michael Jackson

:Michael Jackson's daughter paid an emotional tribute to her father at his star-studded memorial service in LA.

• Paris Michael Katherine said: "Ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine and I just wanted to say I love him so much."
• The 11-year-old was then embraced by her aunt Janet Jackson as tears rolled down her face.
• Paris had earlier been joined by her brothers Prince Michael, 12 and Prince Michael II, 7, on stage with the rest of the Jackson family for a final tribute to the King of Pop, singing along to his charity single, We Are the World.
• The trio have rarely been seen in public over the past decade, and when out with their father they wore masks or veils to shield their faces from photographers.
• Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder and Usher led the emotional service for Jackson as the music world and thousands of fans joined his family to say farewell.
• Jackson's brothers, each wearing a single sequined glove in homage to his signature look, carried the singer's gold-trimmed casket into the Staples Center sports arena, where the Thriller star had rehearsed the day before his death for a highly-anticipated series of comeback concerts at London's O2 Arena.
• Carey performed Jackson's 1970 ballad I'll Be There and singer Smokey Robinson read out tributes from former South African president Nelson Mandela and singer Diana Ross.
• Praising Jackson for triumphing over tragedy in his life, Mandela said: "Michael was a giant and a legend in the music industry and we mourn with the millions of fans worldwide.
• "We also mourn with his friends and his family for the loss of our dear friend who we will miss and memories of him cherish for a very long time."
• The message from Ross said: "Michael wanted me to be there for his children and I will be there if they ever need me - I hope today brings closure for all those who loved him. I send my love and condolences to the Jackson family."
• Around 18,000 fans, who won tickets in a web lottery, crowded into Staples for the two-hour ceremony honouring Jackson, who died aged 50 on June 25 after suffering cardiac arrest at his mansion in the city.
• When it was Wonder's turn, he said: "This is a moment I wished I had never seen come. Michael, I loved you and I told you that many times, so I'm at peace with that."
• He dedicated his songs Never Dreamed You'd Leave In Summer and They Won't Go When I Go to Jackson, and was rewarded with a standing ovation inside the auditorium.
• In a lighter moment, US basketball star Magic Johnson revealed to the crowd that Jackson had a soft spot for Kentucky fried chicken.
• RnB singer Usher identified Jackson as his greatest inspiration and was the first artist to touch his coffin. After breaking down in tears singing Gone Too Soon, he was embraced by members of the Jackson family as he was led away from the stage.
• Police had estimated that more than 250,000 people would gather outside the arena but the orderly crowds were much smaller than expected.
• Family members had held a private funeral service earlier at Forest Lawn Cemetery.
  The ceremonies come as the courts untangle the future of Jackson's estate and police investigate the circumstances of his death.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Jackson on stage one last time

:Jackson on stage one last time

:Michael Jackson's coffin is to be exhibited at Los Angeles' Staples Centre during the singer's memorial, police said.

• The addition of the body adds to the spectacle currently gripping central Los Angeles.
  Police blocked off roads and warned those without tickets to stay away because they wouldn't be able to get close to the centre.
• More than 1.6 million people registered for free tickets to the King of Pop's memorial, and 8,750 were chosen to receive two tickets each.
• Among the memorial participants will be Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, Usher, Lionel Richie, Jennifer Hudson, John Mayer and Martin Luther King III.
• About 50 cinemas across America were planning to broadcast the memorial live, for free, and fans all over the world will celebrate with a variety of events.
• Earlier today roads were closed and media massed at Forest Lawn Cemetery in LA, where relatives were expected to hold a private funeral.
• The night before, activity had been spotted there involving the Jackson family. La Toya Jackson was seen being driven away from the cemetery. Helicopter footage showed a hearse backing up to the Hall of Liberty - a circular building at the cemetery that contains a 1,200-seat auditorium - to deliver a coffin. A few hours later, the coffin was reloaded into the hearse and delivered to another nearby building.
• Meanwhile, Jesse Jackson has spoken of how the Jacksons are coping.
• The civil rights leader said: "They are doing amazingly well. It is a big family, they are leaning on each other. They are a strongly religious family and they are going to have a proper religious ceremony today at the grave site in Forest Lawn. They have lost a lot, but they have a lot left in each other."

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Cemetery staff 'working' with Jackson family, police confirm

: A memorial poster for Michael Jackson is displayed outside Staples Center in Los Angeles on Sunday.

• LOS ANGELES, California -- The first official indication that a family service for Michael Jackson will be held at Forest Lawn Cemetery came from a Los Angeles police official Sunday.
• Forest Lawn officials were working with the Jackson family on their plans, which were part of "a package" of events Tuesday, said Jim McDonnell, assistant chief of staff of the Los Angeles Police Department.
• His comments, however, did not answer questions about where or when Jackson would be buried.

By www.michaeljackson50.com

Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey set for Jackson memorial

:A fan leaves a note on a Michael Jackson memorial outside the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

• LOS ANGELES, California -- The Michael Jackson memorial service at the Staples Center on Tuesday will be a star-studded affair, with singers Mariah Carey, Usher and Stevie Wonder among the participants, according to an announcement released on behalf of the Jackson family.
• Also participating in the event will be basketball stars Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson, and singers Jennifer Hudson, John Mayer and Smokey Robinson, the family said.
• The Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III will be among others taking part.
• Ken Ehrlich, known for producing the Grammy Awards, is producing the memorial show, his company said. And Kenny Ortega, who was to have co-directed Jackson's series of concerts in London this summer, will direct it.
• Fans without tickets to the memorial are being asked to stay away from downtown Los Angeles and watch the service on television.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Jackson spectacle likely a world event

: Will Michael Jackson stop the world?

:Fans have set up impromptu shrines to Michael Jackson, including this one at his family's house.

• Thousands are expected to swamp Los Angeles, California, to mourn him Tuesday at the Staples Center, and the accompanying media crush will be enormous.
• The tribute to the King of Pop at Harlem's Apollo Theater earlier this week drew coverage from all over the world, along with a public turnout in the thousands.
• Given the feverish interest in all things Jackson, the Los Angeles memorial could be one of the most-viewed events of all time.
• This will obviously be a huge media event, and with Web streams of the funeral, it may be impossible to say for sure how many people watched once all is said and done, because there's still no comprehensive way to measure Web viewing," said Toni Fitzgerald, of Media Life, in an e-mail interview.
• A handful of events have earned the kind of worldwide coverage to put the world on pause, if only for a moment. The 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy "had the nation locked in a trance for two or three days," recalled TV critic Ed Bark of UncleBarky.com.
• The world audience for the Apollo 11 moon landing has been estimated in the hundreds of millions. The BBC estimated 2.5 billion people watched the 1997 funeral of Princess Diana.
• The numbers are easily exaggerated -- nobody knows how many people are watching in groups or in public places -- and the Web has complicated matters further. But in a multichannel, satellite TV, computer-and-cell phone world, the Jackson memorial could have an audience in the hundreds of millions.
• It was first believed the event would take place at Jackson's Neverland Ranch. But the family announced Thursday that it will hold a private ceremony Tuesday, and then a massive public memorial service at the Staples Center. Fans had until 6 p.m. Saturday to register for free tickets to the memorial service. Organizers used a computer to choose 8,750 names from 1.6 million who registered since Friday.
• "You have to go back to the Beatles, the death of John Lennon perhaps, and the death of Elvis Presley to find a comparable figure in, not just pop music, but pop culture," said Entertainment Weekly critic-at-large Ken Tucker. (EW, like CNN, is a unit of Time Warner.) "And Jackson so self-consciously turned himself into not just an American pop icon but a global pop icon. I think this does have worldwide implications and interest." See how interest in Jackson's music has skyrocketed.
• The circumstances of Jackson's death have led to comparisons with Presley's in 1977, but in terms of coverage, the two can't compare. The news wasn't even the top story on CBS' "Evening News," Bark recalled, and there certainly wasn't wall-to-wall nationwide live coverage of his funeral. A public viewing drew about 30,000 fans; the funeral, two days after his death, was held in Graceland's living room.
• But Bark said there are parallels, at least in terms of coverage, with the Kennedy assassination.
• "These days it's so much harder to get a bulk audience on any given venue the way the [broadcast networks] did back then, but still the enormity [of the event] -- it's the syndicated tabloid shows ... and TMZ and all the cable networks devoting lots of attention to it, [and] the broadcast networks can't seem to do enough specials in prime time," said Bark. "I do think it's comparative but in a very different way."
• Officially, the sorts of events that have attracted the largest mass audiences have been scheduled entertainment or sports programs. Sixty percent of America watched the 1983 "M*A*S*H" finale; more than half watched the 1980 "Who Shot J.R." episode of "Dallas" and the 1977 "Roots" conclusion.
• The Beatles' first appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in 1964 drew about 45 percent of the country. The Super Bowl is routinely the year's most watched program, with audiences north of 80 million -- about 40 percent of U.S. television households.
• Although interest in Jackson has been high, the number of viewing choices (and, perhaps, the traditional decline in summer viewing) has kept the ratings for individual Jackson-oriented shows down.
• "Jackson's death came up in just about every conversation I had from Thursday to Sunday, and yet only 5 million people tuned in to some of those broadcast specials," Media Life magazine's Fitzgerald observed.
• Still, the public memorial service might be different.
• "I expect you'll see very big tune-ins on the cable news networks and on BET, if they cover it; they had huge numbers for their BET Awards focused on Jackson over the weekend," Fitzgerald said. The BET Awards was watched by 10.7 million, the most ever for a cable awards show.
• "With the celebrity factor thrown into the funeral, who'll be there, who'll talk, I would guess tens of millions in the U.S. will watch it on TV," she said.
• It is certain is that the news media will be there in force.
• "I guess we're all going to wait and see what the spectacle is," Bark said. "There may be no precedent for this."

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Michael Jackson to be buried Tuesday in LA: official

Michael Jackson will be buried at a Los Angeles cemetery on Tuesday shortly before a gala tribute to the pop icon at an arena here, the city's acting mayor said.

:The entrance to the Forest Lawn Cemetery where Michael Jackson will be buried Tuseday.

• The funeral will take place at Forest Lawn Cemetery at 8:00 am (1500 GMT), two hours before the memorial service at the downtown Staples Center, Jan Perry told the local NBC television affiliate Monday.
• The funeral would end speculation that the family may wait to clear legal hurdles to bury the King of Pop at his Neverland Ranch, his fantasy estate north of Los Angeles that some fans wanted to turn into a memorial.
• Perry, a city councilwoman, is in charge of Los Angeles as Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is on vacation in South Africa.
• Forest Lawn, located near some Hollywood studios, is one of Los Angeles' best-known cemeteries and is no stranger to celebrities.
• Screen legends Humphrey Bogart, Clark Gable and Jean Harlow are buried at Forest Lawn.
• The cemetery also tries to preserve pre-Hollywood aspects of US history. It features a monument to the country's first president, George Washington.
  Jackson's death has unleashed a flurry of fan tributes and media attention, raising fears that his funeral would turn into a circus.
• Some 1.6 million people applied for 8,750 registrants to win tickets for the service at the Staples Center arena and a neighboring arena, where the event will be shown on giant screens.
• One report said that Jackson's mother Katherine, 79, the guardian of her estate, quashed plans for a procession of his body through Los Angeles, finding the idea ghoulish and traumatic for the King of Pop's three children.
• The family had initially considered a funeral at Neverland, some 250 kilometers (150 miles) north of Los Angeles in tony Santa Barbara wine country.
• But the plan met opposition in some quarters and presented legal complications as families generally cannot bury bodies in residential areas.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Michael Jackson memorial tickets banned on eBay

Auction site eBay has banned the sale of tickets for Michael Jackson's memorial service in Los Angeles.

• Some fans who won the lottery for a voucher which can be redeemed in return for the tickets for Tuesday's service have been trying to flog them for anything from 99 cents to thousands of dollars.
• But eBay said it has banned the sales after a storm of protest against touts who are trying to sell the free seats. Offers were invited on the web just minutes after applications closed.
  Winners received a unique code and instructions on how to pick up their tickets at an off-site distribution centre. A wristband will be placed on winners' wrists and both that and the ticket will be needed for entry before the service set for 10am LA time on Tuesday.
• A spokesman for eBay said: "eBay will not allow the sale of tickets to the Michael Jackson memorial service being held on Tuesday July 7. All such listings currently on any of our sites are being removed."
• More than 1.6 million fans registered for the service and the lucky ones were told their applications had been successful via email overnight. Each of the 8,750 names gets two tickets. The odds of getting a congratulatory email was about one in 183.
• The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Centre, with 6,500 seats in the Nokia Theatre overflow section next door.
• Before the ticket draw, officials of AEG, the owner and operator of the Staples Centre "scrubbed" the entries to eliminate duplicates and any suspected of being made by automated systems, Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine said.
• No details were given about the actual memorial events. The ceremony will not be shown on the arena's giant outdoor TV screen and there will be no funeral procession through the city.
• Police and city officials in Los Angeles warned all those without tickets to stay away from the Staples Centre and said as many as 700,000 people may try to reach the arena.
  Assistant Police Chief Jim McDonnell said Jackson's family was planning a "private family function" at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills. No further details were available.
• Urging fans without tickets to stay away, he told reporters: "We looked at other funerals around the world and different numbers that have come out for that.
• "We've heard that for Elvis Presley's funeral there were about 75,000 for that, for Princess Diana there were about 250,000, so you can estimate that Michael Jackson with his popularity around the world, there will be significant numbers that intend to come out.
• "Whether they hopefully will take that advice that this is not the best place to be unless you have a ticket, we'll have to wait and see."
• Jackson, who died on June 25 after suffering a suspected cardiac arrest, had been due to perform 50 concerts at London's O2 Arena starting later this Meanwhile, others who refused refunds for the star's ill-fated London concerts are also selling them online.
• Bosses at AEG Live, which was promoting the 50 This Is It gigs at the O2, said they are treating fans with the "same reverence" as Jackson did by offering refunds or specially-designed hologram tickets last week.
• But as dozens of the tickets appeared on eBay, some sellers were asking prices of £170 each - up to £100 above their original price.
• Thousands of fans were left anxiously waiting to see if they would get their money back after the singer's death. They had originally sold at a rate of 11 per second, 657 per minute and nearly 40,000 an hour with face prices of £50 to £75.
• In March, tickets to his This Is It concerts at the O2 became the "hottest-selling on the planet", according to organisers, with 750,000 fans snapping them up.
• Jackson was due to perform the farewell concerts this summer, bowing out on an illustrious music career spanning several decades while aiming to restore his fortunes.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Video shows Michael Jackson's ghost?

Michael Jackson fans are convinced that his ghost has been captured on a video shot at his Neverland home.

• A shadowy figure was caught on camera passing the end of a corridor by a news cameraman filming from the singer's bedroom.
• The cameraman and a news reporter who was with him at the time failed to spot the "ghostly figure" during filming.
• The apparent sighting is the latest in a number of strange rumours to emerge following the King of Pop's death nearly two weeks ago.
• There's the one about Jacko being buried without his brain in a solid gold coffin.
  And that he will go ahead with his world tour as a hologram.
  
  
  

By www.michaeljackson50.com

Wimbledon - Federer takes record with epic win

:Roger Federer won a record 15th Grand Slam after beating sixth seed Andy Roddick in an epic fifth set 5-7 7-6 7-6 3-6 16-14 in the Wimbledon men's final.

• Federer's victory was all the more incredible for the fact that he recovered from one set down, and trailed 6-2 in a second set tie-break before he won the next two sets to seize control of a scintillating encounter on Centre Court.
• Roddick refused to be denied, and the American fought back against the world number two with ferocious intensity, and clinched the fourth set 6-3 with real conviction.
• The fifth set was a positive barrage of aces from the rackets of both players but finally, serving to stay in the match for the 11th time, Roddick was broken as Federer sealed a monumental win.
• At 27 years old, Federer has now overhauled Pete Sampras's incredible tally of 14 titles, among which he can count six Wimbledon crowns to surpass Bjorn Borg and Lawrence Doherty's five.
• For Roddick, it was a third defeat to the Swiss in finals at the All England Club to follow similar results in 2004 and 2005, and to compound the American's frustration, his nemesis now holds a staggering 19-2 career advantage over him.
• The artistry of the Swiss generally trumped the 26-year-old's punch and grit and, in playing in his seventh straight Wimbledon final and record 20th Grand Slam title match, the world number two looked utterly composed.
• Both players settled incredibly quickly, finding a good rhythm on serve and looking comfortable in the process, as the first 10 games were rattled through.
• Indeed, Roddick did not commit an unforced error until the set was locked at 5-5, despite Federer having sauntered through his service holds in a more serene fashion.
• The American was forced to save three break points in his sixth service game, and even had to challenge a line call to save the second, but held his nerve impressively.
• Perhaps a touch of complacency set in to Federer's game, as he drilled two erratic forehands wide and long to hand Roddick the crucial break which clinched the first set for the American 7-5, to the crowd's disbelief.
• With the second set mimicking the first on the most part, the only game which was not taken with assurance on serve was at 5-5, with Federer double faulting for 30-30, but again he came through unscathed.
• Roddick began the second set tie-break with a 143mph ace and, having won 26 out of 31 breakers this season, the American looked invincible as he raced into a 6-2 lead.
• The turning point was perhaps an inexplicably mishit backhand volley from the sixth seed, and his four set points slowly and painfully eroded before him as Federer stormed back to clinch the second set with his first opportunity at 8-6.
• While Federer proceeded to cruise through his service games at the start of the third set, Roddick was forced to battle valiantly to save a break point at 30-40 in the sixth game, as the Swiss turned the screw.
• Roddick showed real resilience in forcing a second tie-break, and this time the roles were reversed as Federer raced into a 5-1 lead, pouncing on two tepid second serves from the American.
• The sixth seed clawed his way back into the breaker, and demanded of his opponent that he hold his nerve at 6-5 to serve out for the third set: Federer duly did just that.
• Roddick was undeterred by having slipped behind in the match, and broke the Swiss in the fourth game of the fourth set, slamming a backhand down the line to re-exert his authority.
• Federer smelt an opportunity after the American had double faulted at 30-30 with a 4-2 lead, but the sixth seed won an epic 21-shot rally with a powerful forehand, and followed it with a booming ace to consolidate his break.
• Federer surged into a 0-30 lead with Roddick erring slightly as he served for the fourth set, but the American harried superbly to win an extended rally, and delivered another stunning first serve out wide to take the match into a fifth and final set.
• In just the second game of the final set, Roddick continued his unblemished record of saving break points in the match, and rescued a sixth with an emphatic first serve out wide after Federer had won an 18-shot rally with a deft forehand.
• Both players refused to compromise on their serves, crunching big deliveries seemingly at will, and Federer unthinkably out-aced his opponent as the final set coasted along through 6-6 and beyond.
• With the set locked at 8-8, Roddick found an exquisite backhand passing shot down the line to prompt two set points, but somehow Federer wrestled his way out of trouble in the manner of an escapologist, holding after deuce.
• As both players grew wearier, their impeccable standards finally began to wilt, and two overhit backhands from Roddick handed victory to Federer, his record-breaking victor in the most dramatic manner.
• Prior to the match Federer stood, in many people's eyes, on the cusp of ending the perennial debate over whether he is the game's greatest ever player. His record now stands alone.

He is the BEST!

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Save £8,000 on your mortgage

• The size of the deposit at your disposal when applying for a mortgage has rarely been so important. Two years ago, even if you had little or no money available as a downpayment on a house, you still had a wide range of options, and would not have had to pay much more than those with massive deposits.
• All that has changed. There is now a significant difference in the rate you can access depending on just how much cash you can hand over upfront, and it's getting worse by the week.
• I've put together some tables which show just how hard you will be hit if you only have a relatively small deposit.
  
• The long-term fixers
  Let's start with what in my view is the most sensible type of mortgage deal if you are about to buy your first home: five-year fixed rate mortgages . Below I have put together the market-leading deals in each loan-to-value (LTV) bracket, based on a 25-year repayment mortgage of £150,000.
• Now that's pretty shocking isn't it? My table shows that if you only have a 10% deposit (90% LTV) to put down, you will pay around £1,600 a year extra in mortgage payments, compared to a borrower with a 40% equity stake (60% LTV). Over the course of a five year deal, that means you'd pay an extra £8,160 !
• Even the jump between a 60% LTV mortgage and a 70% LTV mortgage is a difference of almost £400 each year, hardly an insignificant sum. And remember, these are the market-leading products. Should you go for a different product, the contrast is even starker.
• The good news is that there is precious little difference between the rates on offer if you have a 20% deposit compared to those with 40% equity burning a hole in their pocket.
  However, if you are unable to convert your 10% deposit into a 20% deposit, then you will end up paying an extra £1,416 a year. That's an extra £4,248 over the course of the three-year deal.
• Once again, while things are pretty close with the very cheapest products on offer, when you move beyond the market-leading rates, wider gaps do begin to emerge - so be sure to shop around .
• Gambling on a tracker
  And finally, I had a look at the variable mortgage products on offer at the moment. Personally I think you have to be crazy to even consider a tracker mortgage at the moment, because I think interest rates will only go up in the near future, not down. But for the sake of balance, here are the best deals on a three-year variable deal.
• There are no products available at 90% loan-to-value on a tracker basis, though certain small building societies (such as Cumberland BS) are offering deals at 85% loan-to-value to local borrowers.
• While there is an obvious anomaly with the 70% LTV deal from the Co-op, which is the market leader by a fair distance, it again shows that those with a 40% deposit face much smaller payments than those with just 20%.
• It's all about choice
  Of course, it's not just about the cheapest products, but also how many different mortgages you can choose from in each loan-to-value band.
• The table below, which comes from mortgage sourcing firm TrigoldCrystal, outlines just how scarce high loan-to-value deals are - and how the situation is getting worse.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Madonna paid tribute to Michael Jackson as she described him as one of the greatest performers the world has ever known

:Madonna pays tribute to Jackson at O2 gig

• A huge picture of Jackson as a child was beamed above the stage during a short dance melody dedicated to the star as the Queen of Pop performed at the O2 Arena in London.
• One of her dancers dressed in Jackson's trademark black hat moonwalked across the stage to the delight of the huge crowd packed into the arena.
• Short versions of two of Jackson's greatest hits, Billie Jean and Wanna Be Startin Somethin, were also performed.
• Madonna then turned to the crowd and said: "To one of the greatest performers the world has ever known - Michael Jackson."
• Jackson had been due to perform 50 concerts at the O2 Arena starting later this month.
• The star died on June 25 2009 after suffering a suspected cardiac arrest.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Brits barred from Jackson memorial

• The clamour for tickets for Michael Jackson's public memorial has begun - but the singer's British fans will be left disappointed. Skip related content
• Only US residents with tickets secured through an online ballot will be allowed in to the Staples Centre in Los Angeles.
• Other fans of the King of Pop will be able to watch Tuesday's event from their homes as organisers announced it will be broadcast around the world.
• The stadium's website temporarily crashed within moments of AEG Live president and chief executive Tim Leiweke announcing the opening of registration for the draw.
• He said 17,500 free tickets will be available in pairs for Jackson's fans - 11,000 of which will admit entrance to the Staples Centre itself with 6,500 places to watch on screens at the nearby Nokia theatre. Registration will end at 2am Sunday morning BST, with the 8,750 successful applicants drawn at random and then notified by email between 7pm Sunday to 4am Monday BST.
• Mr Leiweke said: "First off, our thoughts and our prayers are with the family, all of the Jackson family, and in particular with Michael Jackson's fans.
• "It is the family's wish to create a service and a celebration that all of Michael's fans around the world can be part of. Thus the family has made arrangements to provide a worldwide pool feed to every network for free. The family has also made available 17,500 tickets for Michael's fans to be part of this service."
• No information was given about what the memorial service will involve or celebrities who might appear.
• Jackson's legion of fans have been descending on Los Angeles since his sudden death at the age of 50.
• City officials told a press conference they were encouraging people to stay away unless they had tickets for the memorial as strict checks would be in place.

By www.michaeljackson50.com

RAF mourns dead pilots

The Royal Air Force (RAF) on Friday grieved the deaths of two pilots after their fighter jet crashed during a routine flight in Scotland.

• The Tornado F3 came down Thursday while on a sortie at Glen Kinglas in Argyll.
• "At the moment our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends and colleagues of the two aircrew who lost their lives, a defence ministry spokesman said.
• "The crash is being investigated at the moment. There will be a service inquiry held by the RAF," he added.
• According to the ministry's website, Tornado F3s have been in service since 1985.
• Their most important feature is the ability to patrol at long distance from their bases, and they are capable of operating in all weathers and at night.
• An RAF pilot was killed along with a school-age cadet last month when their training plane collided mid-air with a civilian glider in Oxfordshire, northwest of London. The glider pilot parachuted to safety and was not harmed.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

Michael Jackson rehearsal footage

Video of Michael Jackson rehearsing for his 'This Is It' show 36 hours before his death has been released.

By www.michaeljackson50.com

Swine flu 'could top 100,000 a day'

The number of swine flu cases could reach more than 100,000 per day by the end of next month, Health Secretary Andy Burnham has warned.

• The UK has moved past the stage of containing the swine flu outbreak and into the "treatment phase", he said.
• "We have reached the next stage in management of the disease," Mr Burnham told the Commons.
• "The national focus will be on treating the increasing numbers affected by swine flu. We will move to this treatment phase across the UK with immediate effect."
• There are now 7,447 laboratory-confirmed cases in the UK, he said.
• London and the West Midlands have already had sufficiently high numbers to move towards a policy of outbreak management, which saw people with swine flu clinically diagnosed rather than being confirmed by laboratory reports.
• Mr Burnham said that last week saw a "considerable rise" in swine flu cases.
• "There are now on average several hundred new cases every day," he said.
• "Our efforts during the containment phase have given us precious time to learn more about the virus. We have always known it would be impossible to contain the virus indefinitely and at some point we would need to move away from containment to treatment."
• He added: "We have now signed contracts to secure enough vaccine for the whole population." The first will become available next month, with 60 million doses available by the end of the year.

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/

King of Pop's body to 'lie in state'

Michael Jackson's body will go on public view at his famous Neverland ranch, according to reports.

• Although the family are yet to confirm any details of the 50-year-old's funeral, US media suggest his body will be taken to the ranch about 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
• The complex was where Jackson kept his personal fairground and where he often entertained fans.
• Meanwhile, tributes continue to pour in for the artist with Stevie Wonder performing a rewritten version of one of his biggest hits in honour of the late entertainer.
• It is understood a public viewing of the King of Pop's body has been scheduled for Friday and a private funeral will be held on Sunday.
• Butch Arnoldi, a spokesman for Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department, said: "Our guys are meeting as we speak with the California Highway Patrol to discuss the security issues."
• Meanwhile a Jackson family lawyer confirmed the singer - who suffered a heart attacklast Thursday - had left a will.
• Londell McMillan said: "My clients are now aware after filings that a will has been presented. His various advisers are looking for additional documents."
• Jackson was booked to play 50 gigs at the O2 arena in London starting later this month.
• The King of Pop's tour promoter Randy Phillips, president of AEG Live, said he hoped there could be tribute concerts to Jackson.
• Mr Phillips denied Jackson was suffering from stage fright, saying AEG Live would at "some point" be releasing footage of the rehearsals.
• He said the show was going to be "beyond anything", adding: "At some point the world needs to see this production and I would imagine it could be done as a tribute with the family, with the brothers performing, some sisters, and the stars that were influenced by him.
• "The world needs to see this production. It would have been, which is the tragedy here, one of the most amazing shows ever, so at some point we want the world to see that.
  "We are discussing with the family so the sooner, the better."
• Describing rehearsals the day before his death, Mr Phillips said: "He was so amazing in the final week.
• "He gave me a hug and said 'now I know I can do this'. He was that engaged and that incredible."
• He added the family wanted the public to share in grief at the funeral but plans had not yet been finalised.

Michael Jackson's body 'won't go on display'

• Michael Jackson's body will not go on public show at his ranch, his family has said, amid news he left his estate to his mother and children.
• A statement released by the Jackson family's PR firm, Sunshine, Sachs & Associates, read: "Contrary to previous news reports, the Jackson family is officially stating that there will be no public or private viewing at Neverland.
• "Plans are under way regarding a public memorial for Michael Jackson, and we will announce those plans shortly."
• And Santa Barbara County officials said there are no final decisions by the family for any funeral or memorial service in the county or at Neverland, located around 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
• Meanwhile, the singer's will specifically cuts out ex-wife Debbie Rowe and sees the entire estate left to a family trust which will provide for Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11 and Prince Michael II, 7, who is known as Blanket - as well as his 79-year-old mother Katherine.
• The will - which when written in July 2002 estimated Jackson's estate at more than £300 million - also names his mother as the children's guardian and singer Diana Ross if Katherine is unable to take care of them.
• The will names Los Angeles-based attorney John Branca, a long-time Jackson counsel, and music industry executives John McClain and accountant Barry Siegel as co-executors, but Siegel resigned as a co-executor in 2003.
• The pop star, who died last Thursday at the age of 50 after suffering cardiac arrest at his rented Los Angeles home, left behind a multimillion-dollar estate that includes part ownership in a Beatles music catalogue and his own music company that held rights to some of his music.
• Elsewhere, his long-time friend and leading civil rights campaigner Jesse Jackson urged mourners to "celebrate Michael's life" amid reports that obsessed fans were committing suicide in the wake of the superstar's death.
• In a message posted on website YouTube, Mr Jackson said: "This is a time that, while our hearts are heavy and there's great pain and great loss, we celebrate Michael's life.
• "And we celebrate his life by creating futures not funerals, futures not funerals, to make Michael happy and maintain his sense of dignity, (his) sense of decency. It made Michael happy saying 'We Are The World'. Don't self destruct, don't give up or surrender.
• "We fall down sometimes, we get back up again, and again and again. That's the right thing to do. In Michael's name, let's live together as brothers and sisters and not die apart as fools. Through all of this, keep your hope alive."
• Earlier, a nutritionist said the singer pleaded for a powerful sedative to cure his insomnia ahead of his comeback tour in London.
• Cherilyn Lee, 56, a nurse and nutrition specialist in California, said the singer had asked to be prescribed the drug Diprivan - despite warnings that it could have harmful side-effects.
  Jackson, who released Thriller in 1982, the best-selling album of all time, had been booked to play 50 gigs at the O2 arena in London starting later this month.
• Tour promoter Randy Phillips, president of AEG Live, denied the singer was suffering from stage fright, saying his firm would at "some point" be releasing footage of the rehearsals.
  He said the show was going to be "beyond anything", adding: "At some point the world needs to see this production and I would imagine it could be done as a tribute with the family, with the brothers performing, some sisters, and the stars that were influenced by him.
• "The world needs to see this production. It would have been, which is the tragedy here, one of the most amazing shows ever, so at some point we want the world to see that. We are discussing with the family so the sooner, the better."
• Describing rehearsals the day before his death, Mr Phillips said: "He was so amazing in the final week. He gave me a hug and said 'now I know I can do this'. He was that engaged and that incredible."

By http://www.michaeljackson50.com/