Michael Jackson (102 page)

Their being made to wear brightly coloured gauze scarves that resemble burkas, and other kinds of disguises, in public is
disturbing. The two older ones must watch television and movies and realize that they are the only kids on the planet earth
wearing masks when it’s not Halloween. Certainly, being forced to hide their faces in public puts the two Prince Michaels
and Paris at risk of becoming antisocial, paranoid adults.

In the summer of 2003, Michael and his two oldest children went shopping in a Santa Monica store. He had on a red-and-white
baseball cap, and a lavender surgical mask. Prince, then six, wore smart little slacks, a vest. Paris, then five, had on a
red sweater and plaid skirt, with ruby-coloured shoes that resembled Dorothy’s from
The Wizard of Oz
. Both children had on red-and-black Spider Man masks, which covered them from the neck up. Father and children were followed
by LaToya, in a straw hat. What a scene.

Why does Michael think his children must be protected in such unprecedented ways from kidnappers? Again, using Jackie Kennedy
Onassis as an example, no woman was ever more famous than she was, nor more protective of her and the President’s children.
Yet, she would never have thought to make them wear masks in public. In fact, no celebrity in recent memory – if ever – has seen
fit to disguise his or her children in such an outlandish way. Even after Frank Sinatra’s son, Frank, Jr.,
was
kidnapped in 1963, Sinatra didn’t make him wear a disguise to prevent future abductions! It begs the question of whether
such costumes are for the children’s sake, or a way for Michael to distinguish himself as the most prominent, sought-after
man in the world, thus his offspring the most prominent, sought-after progeny? At the very least, he seems to be imposing
his own fears on to them. However, they’re his children, it could be argued, and he can therefore raise them anyway he sees
fit, as long as he doesn’t abuse them. (Also, Debbie Rowe has said it was
her
idea that the children wear masks and scarves. However, given Michael’s ages-old habit of wearing disguises in public, that
explanation doesn’t seem likely.)

The weird ways he disguises his children aside, has Michael Jackson finally found happiness as a father?

On some days, yes, it would seem that way. From all accounts, he is a father who is good to, and for, his children. He has
joyous times with them, watching them grow up, being completely involved in their lives. Hopefully, parenthood has been a
self-educating experience for him and he’s now setting straight for himself his history of abuse and yearning for a better
childhood, by giving to his own children that for which he has so longed – love, with no strings attached, nothing expected
in return, unconditional.

On other days, he remains one of the walking wounded, a lost boy holed up at Neverland, cowering from an ever-pressing world.
‘How can I get past the pain?’ he recently asked one associate. ‘That’s the question I ask myself. I’m so tired of being controlled
by fear,’ he admitted, ‘and by my own bullshit.’ He’s working on himself, working on forgiveness. He has good days, he has
bad – the latter spent sitting atop his so-called Magic Tree content to retreat into his imagination, reviewing his life, feeling
unhappy about the way things are, coping as best he can with it and wanting to effect change in his life – just wanting some
relief
from it all. Who knows, but maybe when stripped of all of his fortune and celebrity – and his unconventional behaviour – it’s
in that very human place of restless discontent that some of us can find commonality with, of all people, Michael Jackson.

About two years before the Martin Bashir interview was broadcast, Michael gave a speech at Oxford University about raising
children, launching his global initiative for his ‘Heal the Kids’ charity. Much of what he said was absorbing, especially
in that it seemed to have as much to do with his feelings about Joseph as it did about his own experiences as a father. ‘“What
if they grow older and resent me, and how my choices impacted their youth?’ Michael asked rhetorically of his children. “Why
weren’t we given a normal childhood like all the other kids?” they might ask. And at that moment I pray that my children will
give me the benefit of the doubt. That they will say to themselves: Our daddy did the best he could, given the unique circumstances
he faced. I hope,’ he concluded, ‘that they will always focus on the positive things, on the sacrifices I willingly made for
them, and not criticize the things they had to give up, or the errors I’ve made, and will certainly continue to make in raising
them. We all have been someone’s child, and we know that despite the very best of plans and efforts, mistakes will always
occur. That’s just being human.’

The week Michael’s parents visited in February 2003, Michael enjoyed most of his time with them. Of course, as sometimes happens
with families who’ve had a troubled history, there was a brief and sudden disturbance. On the third day, Michael and Joseph
became embroiled in a disagreement. The specific subject of the quarrel is unknown, but witnesses recall Michael loudly insisting
to his father, ‘It’s none of your business, Joseph. This is
my
house.’ It sounded like the sort of argument that has been engaged in by grown children and their visiting parents throughout
the ages. Joseph stormed off to his guest quarters, where he remained for about three hours. Katherine ran to be with Michael;
the two had an intense conference in the kitchen, as Michael cradled Prince Michael II. By sunset, however, whatever it was
that had caused the abrupt outburst had blown over; Joseph joined his wife and son, and grandchildren, for dinner in the ornate
dining room.

On their final morning together, it again rained. As the black limousine approached that would take the senior Jacksons on
their two-hour drive back to Encino, the day’s first sun rays shimmered through dark clouds, suddenly filling the sky with
incandescent light. Michael was dressed for a meeting scheduled that day with business associates; he was fashioned as if
he were European royalty in a black jacket, a white-on-white tuxedo shirt and a tie with crests on it. An artificial mane
of jet-black hair in a straight, pageboy cut fell just to his shoulders. He was also in full makeup, with thick eyeliner and
densely pencilled eyebrows and lipstick. He even had powder on his hands. He and his mother embraced, holding on to each other
for a long moment. Katherine whispered something into her son’s ear. He smiled, broadly, and kissed her on the cheek. Affectionately,
Joseph then took hold of Katherine’s arm and helped her into the stretch vehicle. After Katherine was seated, Joseph turned
to Michael and pulled him into a bear hug. Michael seemed to melt into his father’s arms. The two held on for a long moment.
When he finally released him, Joseph patted Michael on the shoulder, straightened his tie for him in a fatherly fashion, and
then got into the car.

The tall, oak gates of Neverland opened before them as the Jackson parents were slowly driven away, leaving Michael at the
foot of the long, long road leading out of the ranch. He waved goodbye. As they disappeared into the horizon, Michael lingered
a while, perhaps with memories flooding him fully, carrying him back to Encino with his parents, farther back even, to Gary
with the rest of his family.

While he stood there silently, a light rain began to fall. He tilted his head back, letting the gentle drops fall upon his
face. As if on cue, a young male in his twenties, wearing a black silk shirt and slacks, hurried toward Michael, trailed by
two uniformed, ageing housekeepers. The trio gained momentum as they realized the King was getting wet. The man opened a bright,
red umbrella with a flourish, and held it above Michael’s head. The women wrapped him in a scarf and cloak as he stood motionless,
like a mannequin being staged for display. Michael attempted a small smile of appreciation to the three; their faces remained
stoic.

As the rain began to fall harder, Michael turned away from those gates that opened to the outside world. The four then made
the long trek back to the main house at a slow pace: Michael and his young man-servant, side-by-side under an umbrella; the
two old maids dragging behind, becoming drenched in the downpour. An eerie parade of strangers in the rain. None of them speaking,
all knowing their task. Onward, to Neverland.

He thought being ten was hard, being famous before he knew what it was to be a human being. He thought being eighteen was
hard, going through adolescence with the eyes of the world upon him. Twenty-one was hard, too, feeling like a phoney, not
fitting in… choosing plastic surgery, hoping it would be the solution to all his problems. He came to thirty with a desire
to do good, but it was hard. While his career was history-making, his life remained… hard. Forty. Then forty-five… harder
than he ever dreamed possible.

The end of 2003 and beginning of 2004 has been the worst period of time in Michael Jackson’s life. Making it even more unfortunate
for him is that he had, at the time that the last edition of this book was published, been working, even if tentatively, on
repairing his personal life as well as his career, trying to come to terms with the past, with his father and other family
members, and making important choices about how to handle other problems in his life. Yet he still had not made the most important
decision of all, the one having to do with the on-going habit of entertaining other people’s children at Neverland. Such continual
lapses in judgement and caution has caused another massive personal upheaval for him, a true crisis in his life.

What a shame. There are no other words to describe the sight of Michael Jackson being led away in handcuffs… then, the mug
shot… then, the arraignment on child-molestation charges.

Michael was at the Mirage Hotel suite in Las Vegas on 18 November 2003 when a police raid of Neverland, the second one in
ten years, occurred. He was shooting a video for a new song, ‘One More Chance’, written and produced by R. Kelly (who has
also been arrested on child-molestation accusations, in a case that is still pending). However, there was no way for him to
continue with the project. Seventy officers had descended upon the Jackson ranch and spent fourteen hours searching for evidence
that might connect him to the latest charges. ‘I don’t think I’ll be able to get through it,’ he said, according to an aide
who was present. Michael looked desperate and alone, said the aide, ‘the very foundation of his soul, shaken. But, still,
there was a strong sense among people present that he had somehow brought it onto himself.’

It’s true that after the first allegations of molestation were made against him ten years ago, Michael Jackson had every opportunity
to change his behaviour. He would have been smart to stop himself, not just from making obsequious comments about young people
(‘I would die if there were no children in the world’) but from seeking out the company of other people’s offspring. At the
very least, it seemed unwise and even foolhardy for a man once accused of molestation to continue having sleepovers with the
children of strangers.

After the Chandler case was resolved, many on Jackson’s team hoped he would never again mention the subject of children – and
certainly not be seen on television cuddling them, as he was on the controversial Martin Bashir documentary. As we have seen
earlier, during his interview with Bashir, Michael admitted sleeping in a bed with many children. ‘When you say bed you’re
thinking sexual,’ Michael said. ‘It’s not sexual, we’re going to sleep. I tuck them in. It’s very charming, it’s very sweet.’
While watching Michael holding hands with the wide-eyed and star-struck youngster in the documentary, who was described as
a cancer-survivor, anyone who had been following Jackson’s chequered story over the years and knew his troubled history with
the parents of young boys could sense trouble ahead. Indeed, a year later, that same boy is Michael’s accuser.

What was Michael Jackson thinking? Had he been so emboldened by the solution to the Jordie Chandler problem that he was now
arrogant about the way he lived his life? Did he not recognize the need to protect himself from the possibility of similar
events? Was he so naive that he simply didn’t understand the danger in which he continued to place himself by entertaining
hundreds upon hundreds of children at his Neverland ranch? Or, one at least has to wonder, did he just have the misfortune
to cross paths with a family that is now out to get him, and ruin him?

Of course, there is another possibility: Maybe Michael Jackson is a paedophile – a remote prospect as plain and simple as it
is sick and twisted – and he got caught… again. The question remains unanswered at this stage, at least from a legal standpoint.
There are many who believe in his innocence, and probably just as many who believe in his guilt.

Ten years earlier, even at the height of the Jordie Chandler scandal, matters hadn’t escalated to the point where an arrest
warrant was filed against Michael. During the latest raid in 2003, if Michael had been home, he would probably have been taken
to jail and booked, immediately. The authorities had an arrest warrant with his name on it, and an ambulance present in case
he fainted.