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tv   Dateline NBC  NBC  July 6, 2009 10:00pm-11:00pm EDT

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>> he touched everybody. >> the world waits to say good-bye inside the massive memorial tribute to michael jackson. >> we've never seen anything quite like this. you have the potential of a
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billion people watching. >> his death, new details on the investigation, a list of doctors under scrutiny. >> i don't think they're just going to file charges against someone just because the world wants somebody to pay. >> hear from michael jackson himself, bearing his soul in rare conversations. >> i've been through hell and back. i have, to be honest. >> intimate new stories from friends. michael in cog nieto on halloween. >> he got all dressed up on the dance floor. people were like who is this guy? he's unbelievable. >> and secrets behind the classic "thriller." >> i gave it my best shot ever. >> now it gives us a brand-new thrill. >> his charge, his power just radiated from like every pore in his body. it was light lightning in a bottle. >> tonight the world readies a
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royal farewell to the king of pop. michael jackson, gone too soon, a "dateline" special. good evening, and welcome to "dateline." i'm hoda kotb in for ann curry. as the city of los angeles braces for the memorial service and fans wonder what they will see there, questions and controversy continue to swirl around the circumstances of michael jackson's death. police are reportedly investigating those who may have helped jackson obtain dangerous medications, trying to determine just what killed the man who will be e you logiized tomorrow in a frenzy that helped make him the king of pop. here's josh makowitz. >> the city of angels is
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preparing for the biggest and most expensive send-off it has ever seen. >> we've never seen anything quite like this. you have the potential of a billion people watching. >> and the star of the show as he did so many times has left us to only guess at the spectacle we'll see. who's coming? what exactly will happen? and in a city that's out of money, in a state that's writing ious, who's going to pay for all of this? >> it is our obligation to protect people and to make sure they are safe. what isn't included are the incidentalls and information it technology and traffic control. that's where we need to close the gap. >> acting mayor january perry says tomorrow's bill could top $2.5 million. they hope to have a conversation with the jackson family about paying for some or all of that. while jackson himself may have been famous for not always paying his bills, his family so
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far hasn't said if they'll pay this last one. more than 17,000 free tickets are handed out out of about 1.6 million fans who signed up online. >> this is the best thing that ever happened to any my life. >> i'm very excited. michael jackson, baby, honey! this is history. >> some of winners immediately turned around and signed up on ebay, hoping in what's become quite a long tradition, to make some money off mr. jackson. but the online auction site is said to be deleting the sales offers as soon as they're spotted, and the lapd will have undercover cops in the crowd looking for scalpers. >> when we identify them, they will be arrested and they will go to jail. >> today the family announced the names of some of those who will participate in the service, including mariah carey, kobe bryant, jennifer hudson, usher, brooke shields, and stevie wonder. while the guest list is far from
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complete, here's who apparently won't be coming. >> do not touch me! >> jackson's ex-wife debbie rowe who thought the paparazzi were getting too up close and personal last night. >> are you ready to fight for your children? >> are you ready to get your butt kicked? don't touch me. >> she said she'll celebrate privately, as for the children jesse jackson is one of the few people outside the family to have seen them. >> they're playing with their cousins and are alert and aware their father is dead under the warm embrace of their grandmother with whom they're very familiar. so as children they've expressed this in the crisis they're doing very well, and, of course, their cousins and uncles and aunts and grandparents as secure as one can be in this situation. >> tonight the investigation into the how and why of jackson's death is continuing, with the toxicology report on any drugs found in his
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bloodstream available to investigators within days. the lapd will examine patient records of the star's doctors, trying to learn if jackson was getting drugs under fictitious names or if doctors were overprescribed medications. police have executed several search warrants and interviewed dr. conrad murray, the cardiologist with jackson on the day of his death. >> we have a gentleman here that needs help, and he's not breathing. >> did anybody see him? >> yes. we have a personal doctor with him here, sir. >> one focus is the drug propofol, a powerful anesthetic designed for hospital use, but which sources sajakson regularly used at home as a super sleep aid. when they searched his house investigators found the drug in his bedroom. they say dr. murray did not introduce the drug to jackson. he had taken it many times
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before. in an interview last week, dr. murray's attorney said on the day jackson died murray was present in jackson's bedroom. is it true the docket for frequently sat in the room, sort of at the edge of the bed or near the bed when mr. jackson slept? >> on occasion. yes, on occasion. >> because the doctor that that was a good idea or mr. jackson felt more comfortable that way? >> that's the way michael jackson wanted it lots of times. >> chernoff would not name the medications he prescribed, but since doctors agree propofol's use requires patients to be closely monitored, the question how much time he spent with michael jackson on the day he died could become an issue. >> how long between when dr. murray entered the room and realized mr. jackson wasn't breathing and the last time he'd seen mr. jackson? five minutes, ten minutes, one minute? >> it had been minutes. dr. murray, his job is, of
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course, to make sure that michael jackson is in good health. so i think it wasn't very long at all. i can't be sure of that. i'm sorry. but that's my impression. >> couple of minutes? >> that's my impression, yes. >> police say dr. murray remains a witness, not a suspect, but how many doctors prescribed drugs for michael jackson? and is there criminal responsibility in his death? investigators are still trying to sort it all out. it seems that we're a pretty long way from any finding of criminally negligent homicide or anything like that. >> absolutely. >> usc law professor is a former federal prosecutor. >> clearly michael jackson himself is what responsible for this. i haven't heard any allegation that these drugs were given to him against his will. in fact, we have heard some people say that he was begging for some of these drugs. >> and legally, she says, that makes a huge difference. >> michael jackson clearly had a
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hand in this. whether anyone else enabled him to do this, that's something the prosecutors have to look at. they're not in the business of filing charges when somebody acted without criminal intent. they won't file charges against someone who was one of his doctors just because the world wants somebody to pay. it's not going to happen. >> another thing that won't happen, of course, is the comeback tour jackson's fans had been hoping for. when this rehearsal video was shot just two days before he died, no one knew whether jackson's this is it tour would be a success, whether he could really fill a stadium night after night. tomorrow, in this venue, he'll draw a full house, but it will be an event no one in attendance really wants to see. >> it's going to be extremely emotional. i'm happy i got these, but it's sad first that this is a ticket
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event because so many people loved him and so many people want to say good-bye. >> coming up, michael jackson in a rare, revealing moment opening up to fans about pain and perseverance. >> no one can stop me, no matter what. i stop when i'm ready to stop. >> when michael jackson gone too soon continues. and asked her to clean... excuse me, i got to get my kids, soon. i don't have time to clean all this. no worries. new pledge multi surface is fast and effective. nice. quickly cleaning all these surfaces. fast. wow. i'm done. ( exhales ) ( clears throat ) oops! sorry. clean more. faster. that's the beauty of new pledge multi surface. s.c. johnson: a family company. great choice.
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♪ rock with you all night ♪ dance you into the sunlight ♪ i want to rock with you >> michael jackson was a shy man who communicated mostly through music, so it was a rare thrill when he agreed to an intimate chat with fans and answered some of their very personal questions. what they were treated to, a side of the superstar few outside his circle ever saw
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including poignant revelations about the one thing he wished for that he just couldn't have. ♪ my life will never be the same ♪ >> it was october 2001. michael jackson was about to release "invincible," his first new album in six years. a video would follow. to promote his new music, he agreed to an online audio chat sponsored by getmusic.com and rollingstone.com. >> it's a pleasure to talk to you, man. >> pleasure to talk to you. >> fans here and around the world, perhaps some of the same fans who have gathered to mourn him, logged in for a chance to ask the king of pop their questions. >> we have marguerite from the netherlands. >> michael spent an hour on the phone never revealing his
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location. the rolling stone editor was the moderator. >> there was a graciousness in talking to him. he listened and he would respond. it was very clear that -- i don't know if you call them boundaries. he had certain assumptions about what he was going to talk about. >> it was an unusual event for jackson to agree to. he spoke mostly about the new album and his video, but he also shared personal reflections with his fans. >> my favorite thing is to climb trees. i go to the top of tree and look down on the branches. whenever i do that, it inspires me with music. >> a 14-year-old boy asked jackson if there was anything he would change in his life. >> i would like to be able to go out in public and just be normal sometime without people recognizing who i am, just to get a little bit of a feeling of what it's like to, you know, be
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of the regular norm. to see how things are done. learn what people speak about when they're casually talking. as soon as they see it's michael jackson, the conversation changes. it all becomes about me. >> in talking about his music, jackson described the song writing process as spiritual. >> it's really just in the hands of god, and it's written in its entirety before you were born and you're just really the source through which the songs come. they just fall right into your lap. you don't have to do much thinking about it. i feel guilty putting my name on the song. i compose them and do the scoring and lyrics and melodies, but it's still the work of god. >> and the dance, he said, creates itself.
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>> dancing is about interpretation. you become the accompaniment of the music. when you become the bass to billie jean, i couldn't help but do the step i was doing when the song first starts because that's what it told me to do. if i turn around and stop, even my legs and lift up the color of my shirt, it's all spontaneous movement. ♪ seems like it's over now >> jackson told the fan that the song he related to most in the invincible album was "unbreakable." perhaps it was his way of standing tall and defiant against all of the controversy. >> i've been through hell and back. i have, to be honest, and still i'm able to do what i do and nothing can stop me. no one can stop me no matter what.
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i stop when i'm ready to stop. >> ironically jackson had some cautionary words for his fellow musicians. words some think he should have heeded himself. >> doing brilliant and genius work, but in the music business some of the great artists have become stumped because they self-abuse themselves so early with all these crazy things they drink and pills. that's just not good. i hate to say that to hurt anybody, but we should take care of our bodies a little more. ♪ i'm starting with the man in the mirror ♪ >> the final question came from a 16-year-old who asked what jackson would say to fans who dreamed of becoming a star like him. >> no matter what the most powerful thing in the world is the human mind and prayer and belief in yourself and confidence and perseverance no
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matter how many times you do it, you do it again until it's right. and always believe in yourself and no matter who's around you that seems negative or thrusting negative energy at you. totally block it off. whatever you believe, you become. ♪ pretending they're not alone ♪ >> coming up, michael jackson earned hundreds of millions of dollars when he was alive. could he be worth even more dead? >> when you take this new sentiment that's there for michael, you have an opportunity to make an awful lot money. >> when "michael jackson: gone too soon" continues. hey mom i need some minutes.
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and her favorite store to give back to her favorite causes. so she shops target. where she can expect more and pay less. ♪ i'm starting with the man in the mirror ♪ ♪ i'm asking him to change his ways ♪ ♪ >> when he died elvis presley
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was worth less than $5 million. not long ago the rights to his estate sold for 20 times that. what will michael jackson's estate be worth? one thing is certain, dying young is the fastest way to turn a superstar into a legend and his heirs into millionaires. here's dennis murphy. >> he may well have been the king of pop, thriller, the best selling album of all time, but he was also the king of debt. as much as $500 million in the red towards the end of his life. >> it was a money pit. it was a giant amusement park with no paying customers. >> forensic accountant got an inside look at just how out of control jackson's finances were when he was asked by prosecutors to testify in the singer's 2005 trial for molestation. >> his income at that point in time we estimated about 15 -- 10 to $15 million a year.
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his expenditures we estimated were in excess of 20 to 30 million more than that per year. >> by all accounts, michael jackson's greatest liability seemed to be his own lifestyle, which begs the question, could he actually be worth more in debt than in life? >> you take that spending out of the equation and you take this new sentiment that's there for michael, and i think you have an opportunity to make an awful lot of money with that estate. >> in the four days after his death, jackson's record sales skyrocketed. 420,000 albums sold in the u.s. alone, compared to 10,000 the previous week. >> michael has three different titles that sell more than 100,000 copies. never in the history of the billboard charts have the top catalog titles sold more than the top contemporary album titles. michael is doing it three times. >> ints it's not just the existing record for profit.
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>> there's a lot of michael jackson music out there, some of it not released. so there's value in recorded music that is untapped. >> the response to jackson's death means he'll top one more chart. the annual list of top-earning deceased celebrities. one of those top earners john lennon died in 1980 with his estate valued at 30 million. he didn't hit his peak until 2006. he brought in $24 million that year alone. and elvis, who holds the top spot on the list, died with less than $5 million. but generated more than $50 million last year, much of that from tourism at graceland. already there's talk of neverland following a similar path. >> graceland now really represents elvis presley, you know, to people around the world. neverland could become that. >> but developing it wouldn't be a moonwalk. for starters, graceland is easy
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to reach, 12 miles from downtown memphis. it's right off a highway and thick with nearby hotels and services, half a million tourists visit every year and leave a few dollars at the souvenir stores. who could resist another doll of the king anyway? >> for many years elvis' estate wasn't worth much. people got ahold of it and knew what they were doing. >> contrast the megaplex that's graceland with this. neverland is set in california cattle country, 150 miles from los angeles. you have to navigate a narrow, two-lane road to get there. the influx of tv trucks and streams of the curious in the last few days are only a preview of the bottlenecks to come if neverland were to become a full-blown michael jackson shrine. >> how do you keep them off my place? how you keep them off parker's place and all the other guys around here? >> i think this is terrible. there's a bunch of people trying
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to make money over michael's dead body, and i hate it. >> king of pop, $5. >> the nearest community is about five miles from neverland. it has only 1,000 residents, and the community is hardly prepared for invading tourists. >> where are these people going to go? where are they going to stay? where are they going to get gasoline. >> down the road neverland may have potential as a big earner for the jacksonest state, but in the here and now they're unquestionable a red hot market for all things michael. last april an auction of singer's memorabilia was abruptly canceled when jackson complained he never approved the sale. now those items may be worth more than ever, as evidenced the day after his death when 21 items went on the auction block. >> it was stuff that was previously thought to bring in 10 to $15,000, brought in a couple thousand dollars. the reports are out there today
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that people who bought tickets from the london concert make it clear they don't plan to turn their tickets in for refunds. they want the souvenir. that's an indication of the kind of value that we'll see on memorabilia. >> in all jackson's assets are expected to outweigh his debt by $200 million or month. assets that include his own music catalog as well as his share of the beatles and sony song catalog. purchased in 1985 for 47 million and now worth up to 400 million. already a battle is under way over who will control that fortune. his mother, katherine, has been granted temporary custody of jackson's children and last week petitioned the court to be named administrator of his estate. but a will dating back to 2002 was filed last wednesday naming two long-time associates as executors and stipulating that the entire estate be turned over to a family trust.
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earlier today a judge appointed those two associates as administrators for the time being, but tabled the issue of whether the 2002 will is, indeed, valid. >> we will be watching very closely and hoping to work with all the parties to make sure that mr. jackson's legacy is treated with respect and dignity. >> michael was a complicated man in life by all accounts. he's left behind a pretty complicated situation for those who survive him. whether it's his family, his children, his business advisers, the record labels, the publishing company, there's a lot of different parties here right now trying to figure out who has the right to what. it's going to take years to really figure this all out. >> coming up, great stories from his closest friends like that halloween night when michael went out in costume in in cognito. >> he went out dance floor at this halloween floor and started
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dancing. nerp like, who is this guy? he's unbelievable. >> when "michael jackson: gone too soon" continues. near light
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tonight.. what one train rider.. believes happened.. plus.. the family of the teens speak out. new details in the murder of former ravens quarterback steve mcnair. tonight.. what the family of his girlfriend is saying.. that could give police clues into their deaths. next on 11 news..
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♪ like a comet blazing across
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the evening sky ♪ ♪ gone too soon >> so much of michael jackson's life was on public display, but in private friends say he was a different person. have you ever heard about the time he danced up a storm at a halloween party in disguise? or how about his unlikely bond with the incredible hunk? josh shares some stories from friends. >> most, perhaps all of the world, knew him as a superstar. but this man's friendship with michael jackson existed away from the glare of fame. >> he was extremely loyal. i would say in the 20 years now that i knew him, i never probably went more than two or three months, you know, without hearing from him. >> gotham chopra is the son of doctor, author and spiritual adviser deepak chopra who introduced his son to jackson
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when he was 15. their friendship lasted 20 years. >> even if he had nothing to say, he would just call to say, you know, how's your mother, how's your father? what's going on? where have you been traveling to? did you hear about the song? have you seen this movie? >> wait until they get a load of me. >> and chopra remembers seeing the movie "batman" with yackson in 1989. >> michael liked the joker and connected with that character that way then. >> why did he connect with the joker? >> i saw in the character of the joker somebody who could coexist and be this mildly charismatic character but also underneath had a lot of pain and suffering frankly and that was something i would come to understand was the case with michael. >> i'm still all alone. >> one face shown to the world, another saved for those close to
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him. for michael jackson, this was life imitating art. >> he would perform at womembly stadium in front of fans that would go absolutely nuts, and he would get a police escort with him back to his extravagant hotel room. as great as it was, he was completely isolated and trapped. there were thousands outside the hotel screaming and shouting all night. he would sit at the top like, you know, happy about it. >> but also kind of imprisoned? >> completely. >> gotham chopra spent a lot of time with jackson, went on the dangerous tour with him if 1992 and helped him write songs but couldn't get his friend to go out in public with him. jackson was simply too famous. his security wouldn't permit it, except on the day when everyone wears a mask. >> it was on halloween, and he got all dressed up and put on a disguise. i think that was here in los angeles. michael went out on the dance
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floor at this halloween party and started dancing. people were like, oh, my god. who is this guy? he's unbelievable. >> that guy's good. >> he never took off his mask and faded into the background. it was one of the rare times. he enjoyed that. he used to go trick-or-treating. halloween was definitely the one holiday he loved. >> you probably remember the incredible hulk starring lou fa rig notice that went on the air in 1978. michael jackson liked it so much he became friends with him, even hiring the former mr. universe to get him in shape for what jackson hoped wook a comeback tour. he saw jackson weeks before he died. >> he was relaxed, funny, and i haven't seen him in a while. we talked about everything. >> he told me that jackson clearly felt enormous pressure to make his up coming tour a true comeback.
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>> all the stuff he was dealing with, the aggravation, the finances, the tour, going to england, built a stage, a new production company. >> sounds like a lot of stress. >> yeah, huge, huge. >> you ever worry about him? >> no, because he was excited. he couldn't wait to go to london. >> he says he saw no signs physical or behavioral that jackson was using drugs, but gotham chopra did for years. he says jackson acknowledged him. >> he was using prescription drugs and i would ask him about it and taung to him about it. he interacted normally, and you could see and tell. he was honest about it. he would never admit to the amount he was using, but he wouldn't like about it necessarily. >> when you would say to him, this is a bad idea. you shouldn't be doing this. you should get some help. he would say -- >> there's always three types of reactions, and i through time saw those denial, anger and
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sometimes admission and acceptance and sort of -- yeah, acceptance that i need help. >> but he would never get any help? >> i think he would, but i don't think that he ever sustained his help. >> former cbs records chief says that fans and friends were left feeling cheated that a country that loves the idea of redemption would have once again embraced jackson had he lived. >> i think people wanted him to come back and be a big star again. people approached me and said do you think michael jackson will come back? i said, i don't know. i would hope he would come back because it's an ephiny, it's a hollywood ending to the story. that's what the world misses. >> was his death a surprise to you? >> it was shocking to hear. no, it wasn't necessarily surprising. he also looked at people like james dean, elvis presley and
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john lennon and in some ways aspired to be what they were. in part they were immortal liiz by their premature death. the first thing i thought about was his children and what will happen to them and all of that, but you know, i can't say i was totally shocked. >> it's human nature to want to help your friends, to tell them they're making bad decisions our their disappointing you, and when your friends don't take your advice it's human nature to ask a basic question. ♪ why why >> coming up, think it's fun to watch? imagine being the girl on the set of "thriller." >> michael knew exactly how he wanted to dance and play and sing around me. >> they made music history. the making of michael jackson's "thriller" when "dateline" continues. but other days, like today, it's my office.
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the dancing was cool and the music was hot and the poem was mesmerizing. the thriller video was amazing, and we wondered the first time we saw it how did they come up with that? december 1983 the debut of the thriller video. >> people waited for it. this video was advertised for weeks. >> everybody was home ready with their tvs on to watch this video.
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>> this was a moment in popular culture and musical history. it was a turning point. >> it was record-setting, at $500,000 the most expensive video of its time and in 1999 mtv's number one greatest music video made. it would catapult him to the pop culture stras fear and create a high point he would never match again. it began at a time when music videos were small and simple, and to make it an almost movie-like event jackson call odd john landis, the director famous for american werewolf in london and animal house. to fund the project they went to the head of cbs records. >> i said go away, will you, please? but eventually it was hard to turn him down, buzz bauz he was so successful. i could have, but it would have been a very bad move had i done
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that. how do you turn down michael jackson? >> but the budget was a monster. to help make up for the cost, jackson and landis decided to produce and sell a documentary called "making michael jackson's thriller." it documented their brilliant team at work, acclaimed choreograph choreographer michael heaters and rick baker. production began. the music video had a simple, basic plot. boy meets girl, boys turns into monster, enter the zombies. and enter vincent patterson, assistant choreographer of the thriller video and a zombie. he had danced in "beat it" and would collaborate with michael jackson for the next 14 years. but "thriller" changed vshg. >> that was the origin of him sfeping away from the jackson 5
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and really becoming michael jackson, the solo artist. so he was nervous and intimidated. he was always a very, very shy man. >> all you need to do is glimpse some of the documentary film to see a new michael jackson. >> being with dancers, you could see him relax. you could see him enjoy himself, but when this guy got up in the middle of us and started dancing, it was like late ning in a bottle. it was like electricity that you've never felt before in your life. his charge, his power just radiated from like every pore in his body, and it was infectious. >> ala ray was the girl in the video. she was a playboy centerfold in 1980 and listed michael jackson as one of her favorite performers. >> i was so in awe of michael when i met him. just to be in his presence is like major. it was a major deal to me.
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>> you can see her excitement in the music video. >> she had these big, innocent-looking eyes that were perfect,t perfect, particularly early when she has his pigtails and innocent virgin outfit. there's a million sexy girls in l.a., but there was an innocence to her that just worked. >> i think i like you. >> watching scenes of the rehearsals and the documentary, you can see that her instructions were simple. just walk to the beat. >> at first i was walking a little bit too fast. john landis said slow it down a little bit, because he wants michael to more or less dance around me. by the time we went to shoot it for the first time, michael knew exactly how he wanted to dance and how he wanted to play and sing around me. >> as they got ready to shoot, the dancers long overlooked in hollywood were stunned by the attention they received. >> we were treated each of us like we were the stars of the video. >> and scenes from the
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documentary prove it. >> they put these molds on our face, then they would put the fake teeth in and you would sit there as a young dancer and watch yourself frighteningly age from whatever you were in your mid-20s to years dead. it was unbelievable. you sort of scared yourself when you looked into the mirror. >> the night filming began, even the weather matched the mood they were going for. it was freezing, rare for los angeles. >> we worked our butts off, and suddenly the combination of the choreography and the music and the costumes and the makeup all fit together, and we knew once we started and that music started blasting out into the night that we were part of something very, very special. >> you can see the magical combo of beat, humor, horror and camp right up to ol a's famous scream. >> my instructions for the
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scream was to just react to what was going on in that room with all the breaking glass and all the zombies coming for me. so i gave it my best shot and my best scream ever. >> we had a great time, it was like halloween magnified a ga zillion times over. >> the excitement of the "thriller" music video spread around the world. >> we were actually stunned. it just went crazy worldwide. >> i think the week that that video was released, that was the pinnacle of michael jackson mania. >> that whole year of "thriller" elevated michael to astounding, dizzying level of fame. >> thriller was not without the problems, they sued for back royalties and the disputes are ongoing. still today, 26 years after it was made, the thriller music video lives on in movies, on
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youtu youtube, in a tribute from a filippino prison. ♪ this is thriller night note no one is going to save you ♪ >> last year on the "today" show where vincent patterson gave a lesson on zombie moves. >> there's never been anything like michael jackson. >> to many this megahit video is michael jackson's crowning achievement. >> it's music, it's dance, it's costumes, it's fun. people see michael jackson, and they see that video, they have a good tichme. they're smiling and laughing and want to join it, and that's an amazing legacy to have. >> coming up, a global dance party, spontaneous celebrations from cuba to china dedicated to man troubled but whose music was triumphant. >> he was somebody whose music
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triumphant. >> he was somebody whose music really translated across ag ) wow, sweet minivan! ( revs engine ) ha ha! whoo! ( thunderclap ) that's a minivané to you! ♪ it's raining! with the great taste of a mcdonald's mccafé mocha, a better day is possible. freshly ground espresso, real steamed milk, and decadent chocolate. go ahead, mccafé your day. ♪ ba da ba ba ba go ahead, mccafé your day. ( "tuesday afternoon" by the♪ tuesday es playing ) ♪ afternoon
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it's safe to say around the world there's been a lot of grieving the last week or so, but there's been a lot of dancing, some terrific moves worthy of the king of pop. as fans gather in every corner of the globe to celebrate, the one thing about michael jackson that was beyond controversy, the power and poetry of his music. in the days leading up to michael jackson's funeral, somber was out and sequins were in. o outside the famed apollo theater in harlem, every day since his death it's amateur night. >> it was electric. everyone was dancing, little kids and senior citizens. >> suddenly the superstar who
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faded to black not long ago was on center stage feeling the love. reverend al sharpton who organized the tribute inside chose the black music mecca for highly sentimental reasons. when they won amateur night in 1967, they were frequent guests at the apollo. when the jackson 5 took over the stage in 1980 during their reunion tour, they proved one against they can dazzle the crowd at this venue that turned spectators into lifelong fans on the spot. new york did not have a monopoly. >> he touched a lot of people around the world. he was a very access i believe pop star, and he was somebody whose music really translated across a lot of different cultures. >> we're celebrating. we shouldn't be at home being sad. >> a week or two ago people
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might have listened to the songs and thought also about the weirdness of him. but now that he's not here anymore, it's like the songs have been liberated from all of that extra stuff. we can just play the songs and dance and have fun trying to dance like him. just enjoy him as an entertainer. >> he was everybody's brother. he was everybody's kid that grew up. he sang from our heart and then expanded it and opened doors for us. >> from china to mexico to hitsville usa in detroit, fans war belled, slid and swayed to the soundtrack of their lives. >> you think about the last 30 years, from anybody who was born from the late 1960s through the '80s, you know, michael jackson has been famous for their entire lives. so it's not surprising that this very international, globally known guy prompts this kind of global response.
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>> when something like this happens, you want to be part of it. you want to almost celebrate his life. >> michael! >> whoo! >>
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>> any developments to night in the death investigation of two teens found dead on the tracks. one killed sunday, the other died today.

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