MICHAEL JACKSON DOCTOR MISSING - FAMILY BELIEVES JACKSON DIED OF PRESCRIPTION DEMEROL OVERDOSE
26 June 2009
Police want to interview Michael Jackson’s doctor after the star’s family suggested he died because of a drug overdose, according to reports.
The King of Pop suffered a cardiac arrest at his home in Los Angeles and was taken to the UCLA medical centre where he was pronounced dead.
Entertainment website Tmz.com said Jackson received a daily injection of Demerol, a synthetic narcotic similar to morphine, and may have been given “too much” on Thursday.
LA police want to talk to the doctor - who lived with the star and administered his injections - but have not been able to trace him, says Tmz.
Jackson’s brother Jermaine Jackson confirmed the pop legend had passed away aged 50 after doctors worked for more than an hour to try to revive him.
The star’s body was flown by helicopter from the hospital to the LA coroner’s office where a post-mortem examination is under way.
It is reportedly being performed by Dr Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran, who was a star witness in the O.J. Simpson trial.
Brian Oxman, a lawyer for the Jackson family, said the singer’s relatives had been concerned about his health for some time.
“Michael appeared at rehearsals a couple of times, he was very seriously trying to be able to do those rehearsals,” he said.
“His use of medications had gotten in the way. His injuries which he had sustained performing, where he had broken a vertebra and he had broken his leg from a fall on the stage, were getting in the way.”
The first reports of Jackson’s death emerged on the internet and sparked a huge surge in online traffic as people searched for the latest news.
Twitter has been flooded with tributes from fans and celebrities alike including Demi Moore, Ashton Kutcher and Stephen Fry.
Moore also paid tribute to Charlie’s Angels actress Farrah Fawcett, who died earlier on Thursday.
See how Jackson’s famous fans reacted to his death.
A tweet from Emily Eavis, organiser of the Glastonbury music festival, said there would be tributes “all over the site all weekend”.
TV channels around the world interrupted programmes to break the news of Jackson’s death, while many radio stations are playing his hits back-to-back.
Singer and actress Cher said: “He was a great singer. You know, he was a genius, like Ray Charles, like Stevie Wonder. They just have this gift.”
Former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney described Jackson’s death as “sad and shocking”.
He said: “I feel privileged to have hung out and worked with Michael. He was a massively talented boy man with a gentle soul. His music will be remembered forever.”
Madonna added: “The world has lost one of its greats but his music will live on forever.”
Fans gathered near Jackson’s childhood home in Gary, Indiana, to pay their last respects to the singer who left the city years ago.
In LA, people lined the streets outside the hospital and coroner’s office while others laid flowers and candles on his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Read more about how fans are paying tribute.
Office worker Yoshiko Plair, who went to the hospital as soon as she heard of Jackson’s heart attack, said: “He changed music, he’s the reason all that black music is on MTV now.
“I followed him from that first song. I’m going to mourn him today and probably for the rest of my life.”
On the other side of America, fans congregated at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York, where Jackson gave some of his earliest performances, to sing and dance in his memory.
Civil rights campaigner the Rev Al Sharpton was among the crowds. He told mourners: “I have known him at his high moments and his low moments and I know he would want us to pray for his family.”
Fans also made their way to the O2 Arena in London, where Jackson had been due to start his sell-out This Is It series of concerts in a few weeks.
Christopher Wright, who had tickets for eight of the 50 shows, said: “Everyone is in complete mourning.
“I’ve been a huge Jackson fan all my life. I was here in March when Michael announced his gigs and just wanted to come down here today.”
Rumours had spread about the state of his health when four of the comeback concerts were postponed last month.
Close friend Uri Geller suggested it may have been the stress of preparing for the shows that killed him.
But organisers AEG Live insisted some of the concerts were moved because of the huge scale of the engagement and had “absolutely nothing to do with health”.
Reports indicate fans who have tickets for the O2 gigs will get a full refund.
Jackson lived most of his life in the public spotlight after first performing in public with his brothers at the age of just six.
He released his first solo album in 1972 and the worldwide smash-hit Thriller ten years later.
The album spawned seven singles which made the Top 10 and its global sales have been estimated at anywhere between 50 million and 100 million.
He unveiled his signature “moonwalk” dance move in 1983 while performing Billie Jean, gliding across the stage and instantly setting a trend which would be copied countless times.
But alongside his success, his personal life was frequently the subject of controversy and his eccentric behaviour saw him nicknamed Wacko Jacko.
In 1993, he was accused of sexually abusing a 13-year-old boy, but no charges were filed against him and the matter was settled out of court in 1994.
In the same year, he married Priscilla Presley, the only child of Elvis, but the union ended in divorce in 1996.
He later wed Debbie Rowe, the mother of his two eldest children Prince Michael I and Paris Michael.
Jackson was widely criticised when he held his third child Prince Michael II - known as Blanket - over the rails of a hotel balcony in 2002.
After being being acquitted of child abuse in another case in 2005 he spent much of his time since living outside the US.
Sky News showbiz correspondent Steve Hargrave said: “We can’t underestimate the effect this will have on Michael Jackson fans who have loved his music and career.”
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