Creepy Joe Jackson – completely unaware of the public’s feelings about aforementioned creepiness – has decided he’d like to keep making money off deceased son Michael for as long as possible. How’s he going to do that? By resurrecting his vocals and pairing Michael’s voice with his brothers – forcing them to get back together once and for all, without Michael’s say.

Daddy Dearest’s newest horror show: Grinning like the dead-eyed zombie Michael Jackson portrayed in “Thriller, smirking shyster Joe Jackson – who shocked America with his child-abusive plan to push grandkids Prince Michael, Paris, and Blanket onstage as the so-called Jackson 3 – touched off a furious family battle with his latest ghoulish scheme: reuniting The Jackson 5 with Jermaine, Jackie, Marlon, and Tito backing their dead superstar bro’ on unissued vocals discovered in his vault.

Said a horrified source close to the family: “Unlike Natalie Cole’s ‘Unforgettable’ duet with deceased dad Nat King Cole, a labor of love, Joe’s spooky scheme is to resurrect meal-ticket Michael and enslave him forever as what he never, ever wanted to be in life – a dumbass oldies act!” The King of Pop’s money-grubbing brothers are – surprise, surprise! – 100% behind Puppet Master Pop, but enraged sisters Janet and La Toya vow they’ll fight the old man’s tacky exploitation of Michael’s memory tooth and nail.

[From the National Enquirer, August 3, 2009, print ed.]

Joe was always pushing for a Jackson 5 reunion, but Michael never agreed. There were rumors he was vaguely into the idea – but considering nothing ever came of it (and all the other brothers and Joe were very much on board) it’s safe to assume he didn’t want to be involved with the project. And if he were going to resurrect old songs, it would have made a lot more sense, business-wise, for him to do his own.

Joe Jackson is evil. There aren’t a whole lot of people who have Evil Eyebrows that aren’t. In fact I can’t think of a single one. When your eyebrows look like that, your personality matches. I’m guessing it’ll never get off the ground because of all the legal issues involved, though obviously a lot of it will depend on who owns the rights to Jackson’s unissued vocals.

In related news, TMZ is reporting that Michael Jackson’s death will “almost certainly” be ruled a homicide.

Law enforcement sources tell us the L.A. County Coroner is scheduled to release the autopsy results in Michael Jackson’s death next week, and the cause of death will “almost certainly” be homicide — death at the hands of another.

We’re told the Coroner himself will make the call mid-week, after he gets the final toxicology report from an outside consultant. But based on the draft report as well as what has become “clear evidence,” causes other than homicide — natural, accidental, accidental overdose, and suicide — have been ruled out.

We’ve already reported that for weeks, the LAPD has treated Jackson’s death as a homicide. They have served multiple criminal search warrants — most recently at Dr. Conrad Murray’s Houston medical office. Dr. Murray is actively being investigated as the person who may have administered the powerful anesthesia Propofol to Jackson the day he died.

We’re told both the Coroner and LAPD have significant evidence that Propofol caused Jackson’s heart to stop.

[From TMZ]

If you were surprised they’re saying homicide, remember homicide is divided into two categories: murder and manslaughter. Though the first assumption might be manslaughter, remember that it is murder if it happened as the result of the commission of another crime or as the result of recklessness endangerment. Depending on the specifics, either one of those could apply to Murray administering Propofol illegally to Jackson. Obviously the police initially suspected him of some sort of wrongdoing since they impounded his car from Jackson’s house right away, and since then the fishiness has only grown. I’m betting he’ll be arrested by Tuesday.

Joe Jackson was on Larry King Live last night, acting like his usual bastard self. Nothing is ever his fault, everybody is always telling lies about him, et cetera. Typical abuser, actually. Nevermind that we’re just quoting accurately. It was actually a doozy of an interview, and Larry was sharper than I’ve seen him in a while, asking Joe about everything from abusing Michael, to Joe’s relationship with his wife, to those quotes from two weeks ago about how Michael’s kids should be in showbiz because “Blanket can really dance”. CNN has the video, and they also have an extensive breakdown of the interview:

Michael Jackson’s father told CNN’s Larry King Monday night that he never beat his son or made any mistakes in raising him. Joe Jackson also said the rumor that he wanted to take the singer’s children on tour as the Jackson 3 was “a bunch of jive.”

Jackson repeated his suspicion that foul play was involved in his son’s death last month, but he conceded he did not know what happened. He said he had been blocked from seeing or talking to his son in the days before his death.

Jackson denied that he was legally separated from Katherine Jackson — his wife of 60 years — although he did say he spends most of his time in Las Vegas. His wife lives in the family home in Encino, California.

He denied a report that he had agreed to sign a document saying he would not be involved in helping raise Michael Jackson’s three children as a way to help his wife retain custody of them. “I’ve never said I was going to sign any papers to that effect,” he said.

Debbie Rowe, Michael Jackson’s ex-wife and mother of his two oldest children, has not said yet whether she will challenge Katherine Jackson for custody. Joe Jackson appeared careful to avoid any hints that he might encourage the children to enter show business, saying “they have to be what they are, kids, at the moment.”

“I can’t get into that right now, Larry, because, I mean, I just can’t,” he said.

King asked him to respond to a media report quoting an unnamed family source that said Joe Jackson, who turned his sons into the Jackson 5, had approached Michael Jackson’s children about touring next year as the Jackson 3.

“Not true. That’s a bunch of jive. That’s a bunch of — I wish I could say what I should say. That’s a bunch of bull.” Asked about stories that he was abusive to his son as a child, Jackson said “Oh, that’s a bunch of bull S. That’s a bunch of bull S.”

“You never physically harmed him?” King asked.

“Never. Never have. And I — and I raised him just like you would raise your kids, you know? But harm Michael, for what? I have no reason. That’s my son. I loved him and I still love him,” Jackson said. He said he made no mistakes in raising his children.

“Michael was raised properly,” he said. “He didn’t run the streets like most of those other kids that was in his neighborhood.”

While denying any child abuse, Joe Jackson’s explanation did leave the question of spanking: “The media keep hollering about saying that I beat Michael. That’s not true. You know what this beat started — beat started in the slavery days. Where they used to beat the slaves and then they used to torture them. That’s where this beating started. These slave masters, and that’s where that come from. But, hey, there’s a lot of people in America, Larry, a lot of people in America spank their kids, you know? They say they don’t, they’re lying. They’re lying. Now, Michael was never beaten by me, I’ve never beaten at all.”

Joe Jackson said he was not surprised or hurt to learn Michael left him out of his will.

“That’s the way he wanted it,” he said. “And it’s not going to hurt me that I was left out of his will. But it happened.”

The will, written in 2002, places all of Jackson’s assets into a family trust that benefits his mother, the three children and various charities. Joe Jackson showed frustration at being cut out of his son’s life in his last days.

“Larry, I’m going to cut through the chase on this. I could never get to him. I tried all I could and I could never get to him because he — I was barred away from him by securities and all that type of thing. I could not get to him,” he said.

[From CNN]

Not only do I think Joe Jackson is a lying old bastard, I think he’s a pretty bad liar. Truth expert Eyes for Lies thinks the same thing – she writes:

When Joe Jackson answers Larry King about whether or not he was abusive to Michael, and Joe answers, “I never been abusive to him”, you need to take a closer look at the words being spoken here. Joe Jackson clearly skirts the issues by playing with words, if you want my opinion.

Notice how convoluted Joe’s answer is? He talks about slavery and torture, and then ends up saying a lot of people spank their kids and don’t admit it. Why doesn’t he answer the questions directly? Then Joe ends his somewhat non-nonsensical answer by saying he’s “never beaten at all”. I think the key word here is “beaten”. It’s all semantics, if you want my opinion.

A man who abused his children and who is denial about it is likely to diminish his actions, and I believe that is what Joe Jackson is doing here. Notice how he doesn’t deny “spanking” Michael? And how he justifies everyone else must be doing it?

When I’ve seen Michael Jackson talk of how afraid he was of his father, I absolutely believed him.

[From Eyes For Lies, Radar Online's video is quoted]

One of the most interesting parts (for me) was Joe’s hedging on the whole issue of how much he’s involved in Katherine’s life. It sounds like they’ve been separated for a while, but that they’re still involved in each other’s lives. This is a key point, and I hope it’s a major part of the custody hearing. I don’t think that Katherine should be appointed guardianship if she’s in any way involved with Joe.

Joe Jackson is shown on 7/10/09 at Michael Jackson’s hometown memorial. Credit: WENN.com

Surprising no one, it seems Joe Jackson is trying to further profit from his son’s death. His scheme this time, according to the National Enquirer, is to turn Neverland into a “perpetual money-machine” much like Elvis Presley’s Graceland. There have been Neverland/Graceland rumors pretty much since Michael died – but this current report comes with a new twist. Apparently, Joe Jackson has been meeting with financiers about buying the Neverland property from the bank, and Joe has even consulted Lisa-Marie and Priscilla Presley on plans for a Graceland-esque tourist attraction. Not content with these plans, Joe also wants to exhume Michael from whatever burial plot he ends up in, and have his body moved to Neverland:

Shocking even cold-eyed showbiz wheeler-dealers, JOE JACKSON’s vile, brazen maneuvers to cash in on MICHAEL JACKSON’s death just hit a new low – even before his son’s body was buried, say sources, he not only huddled with big-buck$$ financiers about buying Neverland back from mortgage holder THOMAS BARRACK JR. of Colony Capital, he secretly set about soliciting advice from ex in-laws LISA MARIE PRESLEY and hard-nosed mom PRISCILLA PRESLEY on how to turn the ranch into a perpetual money-machine, like Graceland – which has netted the Presleys hundred$$ of million$$!

It gets worse: Betraying the wishes of wife KATHERINE JACKSON, who blocked their son’s burial at Neverland – and of Michael himself, who considered the ranch “contaminated” after cop raids during his child molestation trial – evil child-beater Joe wants Priscilla’s advice on how to beat zoning laws and eventually exhume the body from its final resting place, just as ELVIS PRESLEY’s was, then inter it as an eternal tourist attraction.

“Joe tortured Michael in life,” said a source. “If his scheme to bury Michael in Neverland succeeds, his son may never rest in peace. Turning Neverland into Graceland is one thing – imprisoning Michael’s spirit in a hated place is a shocking betrayal.”

[From National Enquirer]

Gross, gross, gross. At this point, I’m pretty much believing anything and everything I read about Joe Jackson. I don’t even think that he’s felt any kind of grief over his son’s death – he’s just looking for a way to profit, a way to be relevant, a way to get attention. From his promotion of a new company at BET’s tribute, to last week’s interview where Joe alluded to making Michael’s kids an entertainment act, he’s just wrong. On the bright side, I can’t see any mortgage company or bank giving Joe a loan to partially or completely buy back Neverland, so this might not go anywhere.

Joe Jackson is shown at the BET Awards on 6/28/09. Credit: PRPhotos

At a press conference on the Monday following Michael Jackson’s death, his father Joe said that Michael’s three children belonged with him and his wife, Katherine, and that “We’re the parents. This is where they belong. We’re going to take care of them and give them the education they’re supposed to have.”

Joe repeats that claim in an interview that will air on ABC on Tuesday, and says “we” should raise the children. As Time reports, Joe and Katherine are thought to have lived apart for years. The question is – if Katherine’s custody is made permanent, will Joe move back in with her to care for the children? Michael explained that his childhood was spent working in the recording studio and practicing, punctuated by his father’s severe beatings. Joe Jackson has already said that Michael’s youngest, Blanket, “can really dance.” It’s not like the guy has changed and he’ll surely exploit Michael’s kids for a buck given the chance and smack them when they don’t toe the line, just like his own kids.

In a partial interview released on ABC on Friday, taken from a longer interview to be aired July 14, Joe says that both he and estranged wife Katherine should take on permanent guardianship duties now that Michael has died. “Their grandmother Katherine and I should raise them,” Joe said. “Yes there’s no one else who can do what we can do for them. We should keep them all together and make them happy. Feed them like they are supposed to be fed.”

Previously there had not been a significant “we” in the children equation. As Michael requested in his will, Katherine has been granted legal temporary guardianship of Prince Michael I, 12, Paris Michael Katherine, 11, and Prince Michael II (also known as Blanket), 7. Deborah Rowe, the biological mother of Prince Michael I and Paris Michael Katherine, who had renounced her parental rights years ago, had stated an interest in taking custody of all three children in a recent interview and her lawyer is involved in the guardianship proceedings. A guardianship hearing set for Monday in Los Angeles was postponed until July 20. Katherine’s lawyer said in a statement that the week delay would allow the opportunity to “privately and amicably” resolve the issue.

While still legally married, Katherine and Joe have long been separated, even residing in different states for the past few years. Michael was often vocal about his critique of Joe’s parenting techniques, telling Oprah Winfrey in 1993 that there was “a lot of sadness” in his childhood. He revealed his father would tease him about his pimples and would even beat him. Jackson said his father was “very hard” and that he was “frightened” of him. In the same interview, he referred to his mother as “wonderful” and “perfection.”

Jackson biographer and family friend Stacy Brown says Joe’s re-emergence is not out of character. “No one can put reins on Joe,” Stacy says. “With a potential custody battle and knowing that he would likely be among the negatives discussed [in any court battle], Joe does what Joe wants.”

Mark Lester, godparent to Michael’s children, says he is not concerned by Joe’s statements. “In recent years, Michael and Joe had repaired a lot of the emotional trauma that had gone on before,” Lester told TIME. He says that Joe has a different relationship with his grandchildren: “I’ve seen how Joe reacts with the kids, he’s very loving with them.”

In the ABC extract, Joe was asked if he felt the Jackson children could go into show business. “I don’t know,” Joe responded. “I keep watching Paris. She wants to do something.” He added that Blanket can “really dance.”

[From Time.com]

In case that’s not enough to send a chill down your spine, Time also reports that Joe received an estimated “$200,000 for the use of family films” for that ABC interview. The guy declared bankruptcy just ten years ago and all of Michael’s money is going to be tied up in legal battles for at least a decade. He’s got find to way to get some cash coming in and the only way he knows how to make money is by exploiting children. That’s what he considers “raising” kids – putting them on display and treating them like expendable commodities. No wonder Debbie Rowe wants to take out a restraining order on him and is considering fighting for custody – she wants to keep those kids far away from their grandfather. The next custody hearing is scheduled for July 20, and Rowe is expected to be there.

Photo credit: WENN.com

This Huffington Post report is just an update on the formal LAPD investigation into Michael Jackson’s death, but at the end there’s a quote from Joe Jackson (who was interviewed by ABC News) that will make your blood run cold. First, the update: LA Police Chief William Bratton (the guy who cleaned up New York under Mayor Giuliani) admits that they still have no idea what they’re dealing with, whether Michael’s death was homicide, accidental overdose, et cetera. Apparently, toxicology is taking forever. I would imagine it would, if the rumors of MJ’s prescription drug habit have any truth.

Now for the grossest part in an already sordid story – Joe Jackson’s interview. He believes that MJ’s death was “foul play”. Okay, that’s interesting. Then, as an aside, Joe started talking about MJ’s kids, saying that Paris was crying whenever her dad’s name was mentioned, but that she has a future in showbiz. He also said that Blanket “can really dance”. Uh, I’m sick to my stomach:

Detectives investigating the death of Michael Jackson are looking at his prescription drug history and trying to talk with his numerous former doctors, the Los Angeles police chief said. Jackson’s father, Joe Jackson, told ABC News in an interview that he believed “foul play” was involved in his son’s death. But in the interview aired Friday on “Good Morning America,” Jackson did not elaborate.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton told CNN that police are waiting for the coroner’s report before ruling out any possibilities in their “comprehensive” investigation into the sudden death of the 50-year-old pop star two weeks ago. The coroner’s report will determine the cause of death and hinges on time-consuming toxicology tests.

“Based on those we’ll have an idea of what we’re dealing with,” Bratton said Thursday. “Are we dealing with homicide? Are we dealing with an accidental overdose? What are we dealing with?”

Bratton said detectives are gathering evidence, including items seized from Jackson’s rented home and arranging interviews with his many physicians, but the police chief deferred to the coroner to determine the cause of death.

“The next move really is his,” Bratton said. “We’re not marking time waiting for his report.”

The Drug Enforcement Administration and the state attorney general’s office, which keeps a database of prescription drugs, are assisting investigators. An attorney for Dr. Arnold Klein, one of Jackson’s many physicians, told the Los Angeles Times that the dermatologist was subpoenaed for medical records, which he turned over to the county coroner’s office.

Bratton refused to discuss details of the case. Jackson, who died June 25, had a well-known history of using prescription medications, especially painkillers. Following his death, Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse who had worked for Jackson, told The Associated Press she repeatedly rejected his demands for the potent anesthetic Diprivan, also known as Propofol.

Jackson had multiple doctors, friends and staff who came in and out of his life. Which people were being interviewed by police was unclear because the LAPD has said virtually nothing about the probe.

Joe Jackson said he didn’t know anything about drugs his son was involved in.

“I don’t even know the name of them,” he said. “I do know that whatever he was taking was to make him rest because he had been working so hard.”

Police towed a doctor’s car from Jackson’s home hours after he died and said later it could contain medication or other evidence. Coroner’s officials also said Jackson was taking prescription medication but declined to elaborate.

Meanwhile, Joe Jackson told ABC that he and his wife, Katherine, should have custody of Michael’s three children. “They’ll grow up to be strong Jacksons,” he said.

He said Michael’s daughter, Paris, who spoke at the Tuesday memorial service, was taking the death hard and was crying whenever Michael’s name is mentioned. He said that she might have a future in the entertainment business along with the youngest son, nicknamed Blanket, who “can really dance.”

[From Huffington Post]

I’m so tired of giving Joe Jackson the benefit of the doubt – the man is crazy. He is wrong. He should have nothing to do with those children. Next month, when Katherine Jackson has to go to court to prove she’s capable of raising the three kids, Joe Jackson’s involvement should be a major factor for the custodial issues. As in, if Joe is around, the kids should be nowhere near him.

Joe Jackson is shown at the BET Awards on 6/28/09. Credit: WENN.com

Everybody shows up for free tickets, but I’m not sure if the organizers of Michael Jackson’s Tuesday memorial service expected this. After announcing that tickets to the Staples Center-held memorial would be free, and be given away by a lottery system, organizers were flooded with more than 1.6 million ticket submissions. Only 8,750 tickets will be given away, and winners have been notified via email:

Not even Michael Jackson’s family anticipated the extraordinary number of requests for tickets to his memorial service, scheduled Tuesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

When the registration process closed Saturday night, 1.6 million had submitted their names for the free tickets. Overnight, those applications were “scrubbed” for duplicate entries, and starting at 11 AM PST Sunday, emails [went] out to the lucky lottery winners.

A total of 8,750 registrants will be notified they’ve been selected to get two tickets each to either the live memorial service at Staples or the live simulcast in the smaller Nokia Theatre LA LIVE next door.

And don’t even think of trying to sell those tickets. A process has been set up that should make that impossible.

[From Radar]

Ah, no scalping. I wonder what “process” has been put in place. No matter – I’m sure the overwhelming majority of people who show up will be genuine fans of Michael’s, and they will be eager to remember him properly.

Someone whose grief is taking a decidedly more pleasant turn is Joe Jackson. After the now infamous incident at the BET Awards where Joe promoted his record label while being interviewed by CNN, there’s new evidence to suggest many in the Jackson family are simply tired of Joe. Courtney Hazlett at MSNBC has an unnamed source who claims “If Joe hadn’t said what he did about the new label, it’s likely there would have been less attention on him at the press conference the next day where he ended up bringing up the label again,” said a source close to the family. “It shined a spotlight on Joe’s power to upset the family balance.” There are also rumors that Rev. Al Sharpton’s involvement hasn’t been beneficial – shocking. Meanwhile, Radar has a report about Joe’s continuing bizarre behavior:

Michael Jackson’s father Joe just finished his Sunday morning breakfast at an IHOP in Encino, CA and while everyone deals with grief differently he appeared to be anything but in mourning.

Sitting with a male friend, Michael’s long-estranged dad was “laughing, smiling and joking” the whole time, an eyewitness at the next table told RadarOnline.com. At one point he mentioned dealing with Michael’s life insurance.

There was no sign of grieving on Joe’s part, and no mention of the fate of Michael’s children, the source said. The eyewitness thought Joe’s behavior was strange in that he was so upbeat just days after his son’s death.

Joe, who turns 80 later this month, had a tortured relationship with Michael, his superstar son who died June 25. For the record, Joe had coffee, eggs and sausage to start his day.

[From Radar]

I would agree that grief takes many forms – but I’ll still say that at every point in the past week and a half Joe Jackson has appeared to be at best, senile, and at worst, a cold-blooded bastard who seems to be using his son’s death as way to get attention and promote his own agenda. And besides that, who goes to IHOP and doesn’t order pancakes?

Photos are of fans and the media outside the Jackson family home in Encino on 7/3/09. Credit: WENN.com

Yesterday we reported on the many tributes paid to Michael Jackson at Sunday’s BET awards. We focused on Janet Jackson’s brief, classy and emotional statement on stage at the awards show. Michael’s father Joe did not make an on-stage tribute, but he did speak to several members of the press both on the red carpet and backstage at the event. One interview in particular was noticed by many – this CNN interview 79-year-old Joe did on the red carpet with the young CNN anchor/reporter Don Lemon. To his credit, Lemon seemed to be aiming for a simple, dignified interview with the patriarch of the Jackson family. What he got was a bizarre, halting, unemotional interview with a man who was using a public tribute to his son as a way to cross-promote his record company. Here’s some of the transcript of the interview:

Don Lemon: I know it’s been really tough for you guys.
JJ: And? And? [pause] Yeah, it has. It’s been really tough, remember we just lost the biggest star in the world, the biggest superstar.
DL: Why did you decide to show up here tonight? To pay tribute to your son?
JJ: Yes, to pay tribute to my son, to Michael.

Joe then brings up his publicist or some kind of spokeswoman who reads a statement from Joe while he stands right there. Joe says that he wished Michael had been recognized more in his lifetime, and Joe also says he has “a lot of concerns” about Michael’s doctors, et cetera. Then Joe goes off at the end of the interview:

JJ: But I want to make this statement…this is a real good statement here. Marshall and I… we own a record company called… tell him…
Marshall Thompson: Renz Records… (??) … the technology, Blue Ray, that’s the next step.

[Transcribed from CNN]

To make matters worse, a few hours later, Joe Jackson tried to take it back. He told the Associated Press: “I was asked a question last night about the record company… We have a lot of good artists fixing to come out… I was asked that question and I answered just like it was asked because they wanted to know what else I was doing.” Except Don Lemon didn’t ask about the record company, Joe volunteered that information, apropos of nothing. Jesse Jackson and a ton of other people chimed in, you can read some of those comments here.

I thought Joe Jackson’s comments were gross and insensitive, but I also think the guy’s 79 years old and that grief takes many forms. I think Joe was most likely always a piece of work, most likely an abusive bastard, and that little has changed. But just because he isn’t beating his breast and wailing doesn’t mean he isn’t grieving in his own way.

When it was announced yesterday that Michael’s mother Katherine would be taking temporary custody of Michael’s three children, and that she had filed papers to be the kids’ permanent legal guardian, many commented that they hoped Joe wouldn’t be around those kids. Some theorized that Joe and Katherine were basically living apart – well, our hopes have been dashed. Joe gave a press conference outside of the “Jackson compound” where the kids are staying with Katherine. Joe began to talk about the kids, and he said that they “belong” with he and his wife:

“We’re the parents. This is where they belong,” he said Monday at a press conference with Rev. Al Sharpton outside the Jackson family estate in Encino, Calif. “We’re going to take care of them and give them the education they’re supposed to have.”

Asked about Debbie Rowe (the biological mother of two of Michael’s three children), Joe said, “Debbie Rowe has nothing to do with what we’re doing.”

He said the children — Prince, 12; Paris, 11; Prince Michael II, 7 — are with other young ones in the Jackson family and are “happy with the kids they’re around.”

“We have kids back there, small ones like they are,” he said. “They were never around other kids. They’re happy.”

Asked if nanny Grace Rwaramba will look after the kids, Joe said, “We’re looking at that, too. She’s a good friend of the family and of the kids.”

Joe [also] denied rumors that they will bury Michael at his former Neverland Ranch. “That’s not true,” he said.

[From US Weekly]

I really don’t know who the kids should go to in this situation. I was okay with them going with Katherine when I thought Joe wouldn’t get near them. Debbie Rowe seems… odd. And not in an “eccentric” way, in the “she wouldn’t be able to figure out how to cook dinner” sort of way. What’s the conventional wisdom for the kids going with Janet?

Photo is from BET Awards. Credit: Albert L. Ortega / PRPhotos

I’ve only seen some of the clips from the BET Awards that aired Sunday night, but it looked like a total tearjerker evening, even from the opening. Jamie Foxx was the host, and he “made his entrance in a red leather Billie Jean jacket” as “Beat It” played. Jamie then “showed off some of Jackson’s signature moves, including Jackson’s infamous crotch-grabbing routine.” BET’s site has a lot of links and video clips here.

Joe Jackson and Janet Jackson were in attendance – from the coverage, I don’t think Joe appeared on stage, he only talked to the press on the red carpet and backstage, in the pressroom. But Janet came out on stage and spoke, paying tribute to her brother. She showed a lot of grace and class – but I’ve always loved Janet, so I’m biased. She told the audience, “My entire family wanted to be here tonight but it was too painful… To you, Michael is an icon. To us, Michael is family. He will forever live in all of hearts… On behalf of my family and myself, thank you for all of your love, thank you for all of your support. We miss him so much. Thank you so much.”

Sunday’s BET Awards at Los Angeles’s Shrine Auditorium honored entertainers for their achievements last year and served as a tribute to Michael Jackson – whose father Joe Jackson and sister Janet Jackson were very visible at the event, only three days after the death of their son and brother.

Sporting a black hat, sunglasses and a dark suit, the patriarch of the Jackson family appeared on the red carpet and told CNN about Michael: “I wish the world had recognized him when he was living. Right now, he’s bigger than ever. But I wish he was here to see all this, to hear all this.”

The memory of Michael dominated the gala. Host Jamie Foxx made his entrance in a red leather “Billie Jean” jacket. “No need to be sad. We want to celebrate this black man, he belongs to us – and we shared him with everybody else… It don’t matter what he looked like … what his nose looked like … it was what he sounded like… We gonna go through all of Michael Jackson…Who was the best?” Foxx then asked the audience. The crowd shouted,”Michael!”

The host closed his opening monologue with his rendition of Jackson’s signature Moonwalk. “I hope I can make it,” said Foxx, adding that it was his first attempt at the fancy footwork since 1983.

Throughout the evening, entertainers, including R&B female artist of the year Beyonce, paid tribute to Michael as his father sat in a ringside seat in the auditorium, next to Rev. Al Sharpton. Beyoncé dedicated her award to Michael, whom she called “my teacher and hero.”

Award presenter Marlon Wayans, accompanied by Jeremy Piven, addressed Joe Jackson and said, “The Jacksons had a profound effect on my family. If it wasn’t for the Jacksons there would be no Wayans. Thank you.”

Piven, meanwhile, joked, “If it wasn’t for Michael Jackson, people like Justin Timberlake would probably be selling curly fries in the [San Fernando] Valley.” As some members of the audience groaned, Piven quickly interjected, “Said with love.”

LeBron James, collecting his best male athlete trophy, told the crowd, “My heart and prayers go out to the whole Jackson family. What they did for us … was amazing.”

At the close of the ceremony, Janet Jackson spoke publicly for the first time since Thursday about Michael. “My entire family wanted to be here tonight but it was too painful,” she told the BET audience, including her father who stood and applauded from his seat. “To you, Michael is an icon. To us, Michael is family. He will forever live in all of hearts.

Tearing up, she added, “On behalf of my family and myself, thank you for all of your love, thank you for all of your support. We miss him so much. Thank you so much.”

In the pressroom, where he made a brief appearance, Joe Jackson was asked if Michel might have a message for his fans at this time. He responded, “I think if Michael was here he would’ve enjoyed the celebration, but … he couldn’t be here. It’s like he was larger than he was ever before. I think Michael gives his love to everybody and we hope his record will never be broken.”

As for how he would like his son to be remembered, the elder Jackson said, “Well as you know, since the tragedy has happened, I would like him to be remembered forever all over the world. We know that all over the world everybody will support him.”

[From People]

Even though I had stopped viewing Michael Jackson as an entertainer or singer many years ago – only seeing him as some tragic, sordid character – I was surprised to find myself crying at some of the tributes to Michael the past few days. While we don’t really know for sure what happened in his personal life, I was moved when I thought back to my childhood, and how big Michael Jackson was, and how he fundamentally changed music, pop culture, and how he influenced so many lives in positive ways. He was an amazingly gifted man, and I think the BET tribute was a nice way to honor his life and his contributions to music and culture.

Shown at the BET Awards are Joe Jackson, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Estelle, Chaka Khan, Taraji P. Henson, Ne-Yo, Wyclef Jean, Soulja Boy, Tyrese Gibson, Kanye West, Ciara, Cassie, Meagan Good, Monica, and MC Lyte. Credit: WENN.com

Crazy ass Jackson family patriarch Joe Jackson has decided it’d be a really good idea to the Jackson 5 back together – with the additional drama of sisters LaToya and Janet thrown in. While rumors of a reunion have been floating around for decades, supposedly the family is pretty close to working out a deal with a production company.

They would all move into the Jackson family home in Encino, California. That’s right, not only do we have Jackson family singing, we have Jackson family midnight pillow fights. Or whatever the hell they do. Supposedly Michael has even agreed to be involved, though he’ll be the only one not moving into the house.

The family is hoping that because Michael and Janet are on board it will clinch the deal. “They feel the timing is right – because Michael is becoming professionally active again, and they believe fans are ready to find out what the family is doing,” an insider told the Enquirer.

“The show will follow the lives of the brothers as they move back into the old Jackson family home in the L.A. suburb of Encino and live and perform together again.”

Michael will continue living in his Las Vegas home but will be a big part of the show… The series will center on the at-times dysfunctional family dynamics of the brothers, Michael’s eccentricity, and the flamboyant sisters, Janet and LaToya.

“Although Michael will stop in and oversee some of the recording with The Jacksons, he’ll be doing most of his singing from his private studio in Las Vegas and then have the tapes transferred to where his brothers are laying down tracks in L.A.,” explained the insider. Jermaine will run the show, but Michael has made it very clear that he wants the last say on the music.” According to the insider, Jermaine is convinced the show will be a smash hit.

[From the National Enquirer, July 7th, 2008, print ed.]

What can possibly go wrong? Frankly, I think they should do it. By most accounts the Jackson family is so messed up that it can’t really get any worse. And only Janet has a bit of a career left. Michael’s going to have to rebuild everything from the ground up. So what have they got to lose? Respect? Already gone. Fame? Gone. Money? Gone. Well, mostly. They might as well see how long they can beat this dead horse.