Gary feels empty for Michael Jackson

Pop star Michael Jackson spent just five years of his life in Gary, Indiana, but two years after his death the town is still celebrating his entire career.Performers, vendors and fans are likely to be on hand Saturday at Jackson's boyhood home: a white, one-story house at 23rd and Jackson. A monument on the front lawn proudly marks the spot. The Essential Michael Jackson

One person who’s eager to show his support is Kelechukwu Brnfre, who heads a performing arts troupe in Gary called Beautiful Soul.Michael Jackson's Vision

“We base our work on the creativity of Michael Jackson and on the hard work ethic of all the (steel) mill people here,” Brnfre told WBEZ earlier this week. Brnfre says he’s heard all the talk about Gary’s plans to memorialize Michael, including the creation of a Jackson museum. The plans were discussed as late as last year, when Mayor Rudy Clay and Michael Jackson’s father, Joseph, touted the creation of a $300 million complex to commemorate the life and times of the entire Jackson clan. But the effort’s fallen flat, leading one city official to call it “all but dead.”Number Ones

Still, Brnfre says Gary should celebrate. “Right now, we have the house. You have a historical route where you can put different places where he actually performed. We have a lot of things tangibly that we can work with on the interim of waiting on something big like that,” Brnfre said. “The people don’t really need anything huge to celebrate him. We’ve always celebrated him no matter what.”Michael Jackson: This Is It

Brnfre’s troupe will show their moves outside the house Saturday afternoon. The event is expected to include food, T-shirt vendors and music. “The world can expect a ‘Tribute to Michael’ every year in June in Gary, Indiana,” Mayor Clay stated in a press release. “The world is invited.”Off the Wall (Spec)

Michael Jackson died in his California home at the age of 50, in an apparent accidental overdose of sleep medication.Bad (Spec)
Greatest Hits - HIStory, Vol. 1
Michael Jackson: Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour
Thriller
Michael Jackson - History on Film, Vol. 2
This Is It

MJ predicted his death

The mystery hanging large over Michael Jackson's untimely death refuses to die. Now in a latest, his sister's new book Starting Over raises even more questions.Dream With Me

Says La Toya Jackson, that the first thing that struck her when she learned of her brother's death was, "Who killed Michael?"True Grit (Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy)

The book, scheduled to go on sale next week, also has it that MJ had often voiced his fears that he'd be killed over his estate and music publishing catalog.The Hunger Games

In a heartening account, La Toya says that MJ's daughter Paris confided in her that "Daddy was always cold" and that "he would always cry."21

She paints a rather grim picture of Jackson's bedroom after his demise, and found it "torn to pieces," with furniture all messed up and items carelessly thrown about. He also wanted his father's Joseph's help to "get these people out of my life." MJ was most reluctant to do anything more than 10 shows for his comeback gig, but the pressure on him was enormous as he was arm-twisted into agreeing to a total of 50 shows!True Grit     The Days of Summer

Auction: Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ jacket

The jacket Michael Jackson wore in his “Thriller” video is hitting the auction block.

Auction administrator Darren Julien says the red and black leather jacket is “the most recognized and significant piece of pop culture” to come up for sale, and he expects it to fetch at least $200,000 at the Music Icons auction on June 25 and 26 at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills.

Jackson autographed the jacket as a gift to his longtime costume designers, Dennis Tompkins and Michael Bush. He wanted them to use the small calfskin jacket as a template for his future concert fashions. A portion of the proceeds from its sale will benefit the Shambala Preserve, where Jackson’s two Bengal tigers, Thriller and Sabu, have been living since the pop star left his Neverland ranch in 2006.

Other Jackson items up for sale include the wig he wore when he announced his ill-fated “This Is It” concert series in London, a fedora and spangled glove he wore on stage, his shirt from the “Scream” video and the battered mailbox from the Carolwood Drive estate where Jackson died at age 50 in 2009.

The Music Icons sale also includes one of Eric Clapton’s guitars, Frank Sinatra’s patent leather boots and 1986 Jaguar, handwritten lyrics and a leather jacket from Johnny Cash, jackets and a guitar from Elvis Presley, a signed harmonica from Bob Dylan and nearly 600 other pieces of music memorabilia from Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, The Beatles and others.

The collection will be on view free to the public from June 13 to 25 at Julien’s Auctions Gallery in Beverly Hills.