Unmasked The final years of michael jackson by Ian Halperin

Ian Halperin is author/coauthor of five books, including the bestsellers Fire and Rain: The James Taylor Story, and Celine Dion: Behind the Fairytale, as well as a number of exposes on the modeling industry. He coauthored Who Killed Kurt Cobain? with Max Wallace. He is also a former winner of the Rolling Stone magazine Award for Investigative Journalism. Ian is a regular correspondent for Court TV and has contributed to 60 Minutes 2.

In late December 2008, Ian Halperin told the world that Michael Jackson had only six months to live. His investigations into Jackson's failing health made headlines around the globe. Six months later, the King of Pop was dead. Friends and associates paint a tragic picture of the last years and days of his life as Jackson made desperate attempts to prepare for the planned concert series at London's 02 Arena in July 2009. These shows would have earned millions for the singer and his entourage, but he could never have completed them, not mentally, and not physically. Michael knew it and his advisors knew it. Anyone who caught even a fleeting glimpse of the frail old man hiding beneath the costumes and cosmetics would have understood that the London tour was madness. Why did it happen this way? After an intense five year investigation, New York Times bestselling author Ian Halperin uncovers the real story of Michael Jackson's final years, in UnMasked a suspenseful and surprising thriller. Whatever the final autopsy results reveal, it was greed that killed Michael Jackson. For other books on Michael Jackson click here...

Tribute to Michael Jackson continued

Time described Jackson's influence at that point as "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too". Jackson suffered a setback on January 27, 1984, which was to have repercussions for the rest of his life. While filming a Pepsi Cola commercial at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, he suffered second degree burns to his scalp after pyrotechnics accidentally set his hair on fire. Pepsi settled out of court, and Jackson donated his $1.5 million settlement to the Brotman Medical Center. On May 14, 1984, he was invited to the White House to receive an award from President Ronald Reagan for his support of charities that helped people overcome alcohol and drug abuse.

With the industry expecting another major hit, Jackson's first album in five years, Bad (1987), was highly anticipated.[48] It had lower sales than Thriller, but was still a substantial commercial success, spawning seven hit singles in the U.S., five of which ("I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror" and "Dirty Diana") reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, more than any other album.[49] As of 2008, the album had sold 30 million copies worldwide.

Jackson's skin had been a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, but starting in the early 1980s, it gradually grew paler. The change gained widespread media coverage, including rumors that he was bleaching his skin.[37] In 1986, he was diagnosed with vitiligo and lupus; the vitiligo partially lightened his skin, and the lupus was in remission; both illnesses made him sensitive to sunlight.

To view a list of good albums, music and books go here

Tribute to Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was born August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana to a working-class family. The son of African-American parents Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson and Katherine Esther, he was the seventh of nine children. Jackson showed musical talent early in his life, performing in front of classmates and others during a Christmas recital at the age of five. In 1964, Jackson and Marlon joined the Jackson Brothers—a band formed by brothers Jackie, Tito and Jermaine.

Jackson later began performing backup vocals and dancing; at the age of eight, he and Jermaine assumed lead vocals, and the group's name was changed to The Jackson 5. The Jackson 5 recorded several songs, including "Big Boy", for the local record label Steeltown in 1967 and signed with Motown Records in 1968. the band continued to tour internationally, releasing six more albums between 1976 and 1984. From 1976 to 1984, Michael Jackson was the lead songwriter of the group.

Jones and Jackson jointly produced Off the Wall. Released in 1979, it was the first album to generate four US top 10 hits, and eventually sold over 20 million copies worldwide. After Jackson's early 1982 contribution, "Someone In the Dark", to the film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which won him a Grammy for Best Album for Children,[28] Epic issued his second album, Thriller. In what would turn out to be the apex of his career, the album remained in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 for 80 consecutive weeks, 37 at the peak.

To be continued... to see a list of books click here

A few books on Michael Jackson

* On Michael Jackson
* Michael Jackson the Early Years
* The Solo Years