Michael Jackson dead at 50,

We've just learned Michael Jackson has died. He was 50.

Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon at his Holmby Hills home and paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back.

A source tells us Jackson was dead when paramedics arrived. A cardiologist at UCLA tells TMZ Jackson died of cardiac arrest.

Once at the hospital, the staff tried to resuscitate him but he was completely unresponsive.




We're told one of the staff members at Jackson's home called 911.

La Toya ran in the hospital sobbing after Jackson was pronounced dead.

Michael is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson II.




Filipino Inmates Pay Tribute to Jackson Again
Famous for their rendition of "Thriller" in 2007, the prisoners at the Cebu Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the central Philippines have once again choreographed a tribute to Michael Jackson.

Since news of Michael Jackson's death today, celebrity friends and fans have released the following reactions on their Twitter accounts:

Lindsay Lohan: NO OMG ... sending my love and prayers out to Michael and his family ... i feel sick..

Marlon Wayans: My prayers, my love, my heart goes out to michael jackson and the entire jackson family. I pray so hard for them. I'm crushed! Please pray.

Pete Wentz: Prayers and thoughts with michael jackson ... I haven't hope in so long that news isn't true.

Kim Kardashian: Wow I am truly in shock that Michael Jackson has passed away! I love u Jackson family, my prayers are with the whole family!

Ashton Kutcher: Pray for his kids.


Michael Jackson going into the EMERGENCY at the hospital

La Toya Jackson was in tears as she ran inside the UCLA Medical Center to be with her brother. Sadly, Michael Jackson had already died.

Katherine Jackson, Michael's mom, arrived at UCLA hospital to be with the rest of the family.

Quincy Jones -- I've Lost My Little Brother
Statement from Quincy Jones, who produced Michael Jackson's legendary "Thriller" album:
"I am absolutely devastated at this tragic and unexpected news. For Michael to be taken away from us so suddenly at such a young age, I just don't have the words.

Divinity brought our souls together on The Wiz and allowed us to do what we were able to throughout the 80's.

To this day, the music we created together on "Off The Wall," "Thriller" and "Bad" is played in every corner of the world and the reason for that is because he had it all...talent, grace, professionalism and dedication.

He was the consummate entertainer and his contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever.

I've lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him."

Elton John Sings for Michael Jackson
Elton John was in the middle of his annual "White Tie and Tiara Ball" when he was rocked by the news of Michael Jackson's death
We're told Elton is singing right now at the event and he's dedicated his song "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" to Michael.

Liz Hurley, Hugh Grant, Lily Allen, and Kelly Osbourne were at the party -- however several of the guests left once they heard about the news

Michael Jackson's former publicist, Michael Levine, just released the following statement, claiming he saw today's tragic events coming for years.

"As someone who served as Michael Jackson's publicist during the 1st child molestation incident, I must confess I am not surprised by today's tragic news.
Michael has been on an impossibly difficult and often self-destructive journey for years. His talent was unquestionable but so too was his discomfort with the norms of the world.

A human simply can not withstand this level of prolonged stress.''

Above Jackson's Body Arrives at the Coroner's Office, unloaded from the helicopter

Janet Jackson arriving in LA

Jackson Family -- Demerol Shot Caused Death
A close member of Michael Jackson's family has told us Jackson received a daily injection of a synthetic narcotic similar to morphine -- Demerol -- and yesterday he received a shot at 11:30 AM.
Family members are saying the dosage was "too much" and that's what caused his death.

We're told Joe Jackson recently wanted to put Michael in a rehab facility in Palmdale, California for what he considered an "addiction" to morphine and prescription drugs.

Family members say they felt he was unable to perform for his upcoming concerts because of his drug use.

Members of the upcoming tour say that Jackson was generally lethargic and very late for rehearsals.

There are reports Jackson OD'd yesterday on Demerol, a drug similar to morphine.

Interestingly, Jackson wrote a song called "Morphine" in 1997. One of the lyrics -- "Demerol. Demerol. Oh God he's taking Demerol

Above the picture of Michael Jackson's Doctor
He's presumably the last person to ever see Michael Jackson alive -- Dr. Conrad Murray.
We've obtained this photo of Jackson's live-in doctor -- who unsuccessfully performed CPR on the King of Pop before the ambulance showed up.

Michael Jackson's doctor is a TRINIDADIAN

Dr Conrad Robert Murray, the doctor who was reportedly with Michael Jackson when he collapsed at his home last Thursday, is a Trinidadian. Murray has emerged as a potentially crucial figure in the investigation, with him reportedly being the last person to see Jackson alive.

Murray, 51, an experienced cardiologist, was hired to help oversee the star's physical condition ahead of his gruelling concert comeback, US news reports say.

Described as having an unblemished disciplinary record, he is said to be licensed to practise medicine in California, Texas and Nevada in the USA, where he recently closed his practice to work for Jackson full-time.

According to TMZ.com, (a celebrity news website) Murray sent a letter to patients and friends on June 15 saying he was ceasing to practise medicine indefinitely "because of a once in a lifetime opportunity."

"I am deeply saddened to leave you at this point, but please know my absence is not permanent," Murray wrote, adding that he would continue to manage his practice "from a distance".

Yesterday, at St Clair Medical Centre at 18 Elizabeth Street, St Clair, sources said that Dr Murray had visited the centre in 2003 to help set up its Cardiac Cauterisation Lab and subsequently paid occasional visits to the clinic to check on its progress.

The St Clair source said that Murray enjoyed his visits to T&T and talked about his life growing up in San Juan.

Also, a woman, who did not want to identify herself, called the Sunday Express newsroom to say that she grew up in the house next to the Murray family in Bagatelle Road Extension in San Juan in the 1960s. She said she and Murray were classmates at the Febeau Government Primary School on Saddle Road and that the family migrated to the US when Murray was in Standard Five.

An attempt to visit Bagatelle Road Extension yesterday by a Sunday Express team failed; taxi drivers and 'ph' drivers collectively refused to take us into the area with one man just saying that it is a "bad" area.

Reports said Murray graduated in 1989 from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, an independent, historically black university that touts itself as "perhaps the major educator of black physicians in the US".

In Houston in 2006, he helped open the Acres Home Heart and Vascular Institute, fulfilling part of a promise he made after the death of his father, a longtime community leader and doctor. He opened Global Cardiovascular Associates, his Las Vegas practice, in 2000.

The Los Angeles Times quoted officials from Jackson's concert promoters as saying the singer had "insisted emphatically" on Murray's recruitment.

Randy Phillips, chief executive of AEG Live (a concert promoter), told the paper: "Michael told me personally that he trusted this man."

Phillips said Murray had been present at Jackson's rehearsals in Los Angeles and "seemed to care about Michael very much. He was very professional."

Phillips told the Times Murray had been due to travel with Jackson throughout his entire concert run in London.

"...Michael was insistent that he be hired," said Phillips, "Michael said he had a rapport with him."

Police have said that Murray has been cooperative and do not consider him a criminal suspect.

"We will do a thorough interview with the doctor to discuss some of the unanswered questions that have been raised by the death of Michael Jackson and, you know, we expect the doctor will be able to shed some light on some things," deputy Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief Charlie Beck told the LA Times.

Some news reports have also said that records reveal years of financial troubles for Murray. His Nevada medical practice, Global Cardiovascular Associates, was slapped with more than US$400,000 in court judgments, and he faces at least two other pending cases and several tax liens.


UPDATE: LAPD just announced they still have not spoken to the elusive doctor. Also, the reason they towed Murray's car from MJ's house last night is because "it might contain evidence."

Michael Jackson's Doc Quit Medical Practice
We just got a letter that Michael Jackson's doctor sent to his patients 11 days ago, announcing that he will be indefinitely leaving his medical practice.

Dr. Conrad Murray sent the note on his letterhead from his medical practice in Las Vegas. He says, "I am deeply saddened to leave you at this point, but please know my absence is not permanent." He continues, "In my absence, I will continue to manage the practice, and be involved as much as possible but from a distance."

The letter says "My absence is not permanent."

We're told AEG -- the company that was putting on the London concerts -- put Dr. Murray on the payroll

Lisa Marie: Michael Said He'd End up Like Elvis

Lisa Marie Presley -- who was briefly married to Michael Jackson back in the 90's -- said MJ once predicted he was headed down the same path as Elvis ... who died at the age of 42 after battling addiction to prescription drugs.
On her blog this morning, Lisa Marie said Michael once told her: "I am afraid that I'm going to end up like [Elvis], the way he did." She goes on to say, "I promptly tried to deter him from the idea, at which point he just shrugged his shoulders and nodded almost matter of fact as if to let me know, he knew what he knew and that was kind of that."

Lisa Marie also said despite what people think, her marriage to Michael wasn't a sham

One question investigators will have for Michael Jackson's personal physician -- did he botch early CPR efforts on the King of Pop?

On the 911 tape obtained by TMZ, one of Jackson's staffers tells the dispatcher that Jackson is "on the bed" and that a "doctor is here." The doctor is Dr. Conrad Murray.

Several EMTs tell us it's odd that a veteran cardiologist like Murray would attempt CPR while Jackson was on a bed.

Common CPR practices call for the patient to be on a hard surface -- because it is difficult to compress the chest on a soft surface. The 911 operator told the staffer to "get him on the floor."

TIME Mag Rushes Out Jackson Issue

Here is your first look at the cover of the Michael Jackson commemorative issue of TIME magazine being rushed to newsstands Monday morning.

The last time the magazine published a special edition in between weekly issues was in the days following 9/11.

THE NANNY OF MICHAEL JACKSON'S CHILDREN SPEAK.

The nanny who cared for Michael Jackson's three children is providing new insight into the King of Pop's battle with prescription drugs.

In an interview with The Times of London, Grace Rwaramba - who worked for Jackson for more than a decade - reveals that she had to pump Jackson's stomach "many times" after he'd taken a dangerous combination of drugs.

"He always mixed so much of it," Rwaramba, 42, is quoted as saying. "There was one period that it was so bad that I didn't let the children see him. He always ate too little and mixed too much."

Look back at Michael Jackson's life

Distraught over Jackson's drug use, she once proposed an intervention, contacting his mother Katherine and sister Janet for help, only to find herself fired by the King of Pop.

"He didn't want to listen; that was one of the times he let me go," says Rwaramba, who started out as an office assistant.

Rwaramba, who was last fired in December, also shed light on Jackson's debt (he was reportedly awash in about $400 million in debt at the time of his death).

Last April, when she visited Jackson's children -- Prince, now 12; Paris, 11; and Blanket, 7 -- she had to buy balloons for Paris' birthday because the singer was so broke.

Says Rwaramba, "Michael had no idea about money."

See Us' photo tribute to stars who have died too soon

On Friday, the day after Jackson died, Rwaramba said the singer's mother Katherine called her from Michael's rented L.A. house and asked where he kept his money. "She said, 'Grace, the children are crying. They are asking about you. They can't believe that their father died. Grace, you remember Michael used to hide cash at the house. I am here. Where can it be?'"

She told Katherine to look "at the garbage bags and under the carpets," Rwaramba recalled. "She said, 'Grace, where are you? Come. I will pick you up from the airport.' She sounded so strong. So strong!"

Rwaramba is now meeting with Los Angeles detective investigating Jackson's death.

Michael Jackson, the man they called "The King of Pop," worried he would end up dead like "The King of Rock 'n' Roll" Elvis Presley, the father of his ex-wife Lisa Marie. Jackson's worries are proving to be prophetic.

Already, the price of Jackson memorabilia is soaring. Pop culture expert Gary Sohmers, who also is an appraiser on "The Antiques Roadshow" told DailyFinance that he saw a reproduction of a Jackson autograph fetch $1,400. Jackson's actual autograph fetches about $400 to $800. Sohmers, a former music promoter who runs allcollectors.com, cautions would-be collectors against buying into Michael mania.
Settling Jackson's estate will be complex. Media reports indicate that the entertainer was $500 million dollars in debt when he died, despite having made $700 million as a performer over his career.

There's also the matter of what will happen to his three children. His mother Katherine's efforts to seek legal custody of the the kids, including "Blanket", who Jackson infamously dangled out of the window, are being opposed by Deborah Rowe, the mother of two of them.

Then there's the property. Jackson reportedly recorded 100 "secret songs" over the years. He also has the property from the Neverland Ranch, an auction of which Jackson canceled in April days before it was scheduled to occur. Julien's Auctions is selling a set of catalogs detailing items in the sale for $500. A phone call to Julien's to find out if the sale was rescheduled was not returned.

Probably Jackson's most valuable asset was his stake in a partnership that owned the publishing rights to more than 200 classic Beatles songs. He spent $47.5 million to buy the rights in 1985; now his share is worth more than $500 million, according to The New York Times. But selling the tunes won't mend the King of Pop's troubled finances all by itself, because he used the collection as collateral for $300 million in loans that still must be repaid.

Before he died, interest in Jackson collectibles was on the decline as fans voiced their disgust over the child molestation allegations against him. That, of course, has changed. Recent sales have been through the roof -- including $25,000 for a painting he did as a child of Micky Mouse. A crystal-studded shirt sold for $52,000, ahead of the $6,000 sales estimate, according to Sohmers.

Jackson has joined a pantheon of music dieties including Frank Sinatra, Kurt Cobain, Bob Marley and John Lennon who will continue to interest collectors for generations to come. Jackson's money woes may be solved through smart licensing arrangements.

"He will make more money in his death than he did in his life," Sohmers said. "My 13-year-old got the opportunity to discover Michael Jackson."
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