A BBC News special programme after the death of performer Michael Jackson
Which Michael Jackson will be remembered? The unsurpassed entertainer, the gifted and driven song-and-dance man who wielded rhythm, melody, texture and image to create and promote the best-selling album of all time, “Thriller”? Or the bizarre figure he became after he failed in his stated ambition to outsell “Thriller,” and after the gleaming fantasy gave way to tabloid revelations, bitter rejoinders and the long public silence he was scheduled to break next month?
In the end, the superstar and the recluse were not so far apart.
Jackson built his stardom on paradox. As a child star he was precocious; as an adult he was childlike. His only competition was himself. Within the razzle-dazzle of his songs, he sang about fears and uncertainties in that high, vulnerable voice: flinching from monsters in “Thriller,” wishing he could just “Beat It” when trouble began.
He was a racial paradox, too: an African-American whose audience was never segregated, but whose features grew more Caucasian and whose skin grew lighter through his career, to discomfiting effect. His own face had become a mask.
His ambition was seductive when he urged “Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough.” He offered something to everybody on “Thriller,” which may have been the most strategic crossover album to date: a duet with a Beatle in “The Girl Is Mine,” dizzying electronic beats in “Wanna Be Startin' Somethin',” rock guitar in “Beat It.”
Fans of Michael Jackson around the world react to the news of his death. Hundreds of people rushed to UCLA Medical Centre in Los Angeles as reports began emerging of the death of singing legend Michael Jackson.
Fans of all ages gathered at the hospital to show their support and await news of the 50-year-old entertainer.
Television vans converged on the centre, while news helicopters circled above. Police officers arrived to keep the growing crowds back.
Some of the fans were silent, while others climbed on fences to try to get a better view.
As Jackson's death was confirmed, many broke down in tears and embraced each other.
Throughout his career, Michael Jackson's face was an object of fascination and speculation as it changed in shape and colour.
This is a look at how surgery and possible illness transformed the pop star's appearance over the years.
Los Angeles County coroner's spokesman Craig Harvey said police had put a security hold on Jackson's case, limiting the amount of information that can be released.
LA County coroner's office statement following the autopsy
He said a three-hour autopsy had been held but the cause of death had been deferred.
"It means that the medical examiner ordered additional testing such as toxicology and other studies," Mr Harvey said.
The tests would take between four to six weeks, at which point he anticipated being able to close the case, he said.
Jackson had a history of health problems, and the singer's friends and associates said they had been concerned about his use of pain-killing drugs.
He collapsed at his Los Angeles home around midday on Thursday.
A recording of the telephone call made to emergency services has been released, in which the caller said Jackson was unconscious and had stopped breathing.
His personal doctor was trying to revive him, the caller said.
News:BBC
Zarina Henderson of Sylmar made a spur-of-the-moment decision to stop by the Jackson compound with her two children, Avazia and Garrid Tillis, at about 9 a.m. today.
Henderson said her daughter had asked where Jackson lived, so she decided to take the kids to see the home in which he grew up in Encino.
"Michael is the major legend, he's a real legend, he's a true legend," she said.
Henderson said she wondered why legends seem to die so early. Although Elvis Presley may have been the king of rock 'n' roll, Jackson brought more people of different backgrounds together, she said.
"He broke the color barrier in music," she said.
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