Michael Jackson/trivia


 * Through his "Heal the World" Foundation, Jackson spearheaded airlifts of food and medical supplies to war-torn Sarajevo, instituted mentoring, immunization and drug-abuse education programs and paid for a Hungarian child's liver transplant.
 * Macaulay Culkin is godfather to his two eldest children.
 * Jackson shared with Carlos Santana the record for most Grammys won in a year, with 8.
 * Jackson is the first solo artist to generate 4 top 10 hits on the Billboard charts on one album with "Off the Wall."
 * Jackson is the first artist to generate 7 top 10 hits (USA) on 1 album with "Thriller."
 * Until August 2011, he was the only artist in history to generate 5 #1 hits (USA) from one album with "Bad." Katy Perry has since tied this record with her album "Teenage Dream."
 * With Lionel Richie, Jackson co-wrote the song "We Are the World," and was one of its performers.
 * His 1982 album "Thriller" is the biggest selling album of all time, with confirmed sales of over 47 million, and over an estimated 100 million copies worldwide.
 * His 1991 album "Dangerous" is second to "Thriller" as the biggest selling album of all time, with over 20 million copies sold worldwide.
 * Jackon'ss 1987 album "Bad" is third to "Thriller" as the biggest selling album of all time, with 20 million copies sold worldwide.
 * Jackson copied his moon walk after mime Marcel Marceau in "walk-against-the- wind" pantomime techniques.
 * Jackson wrote and recorded a song called "On the Line," produced by Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds, for the movie "Get on the Bus" that wasn't included on the soundtrack for the film.
 * On September 9, 2001, Jackson was sued by two former financial advisors for $25 million over alleged unpaid expenses. Jackson denied owing them anything.
 * Jackson had a skin disease called vitiligo.
 * He was a Jehovah's Witness.
 * Jackson didn't own the right to the entire Beatles catalogue. For example, the family of the late George Harrison own songs he wrote, including "Something," and Sony music owns 50% of the catalogue after Jackson sold it to them because he needed the money.
 * He inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 (as a solo artist).
 * Jackson inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 (as a member of the Jackson 5).
 * Jackson shocked his fans when he dangled his third child, infant Prince Michael II, over a balcony on the fourth floor of a Berlin, Germany hotel for all hovering fans to see. He later stated that he made "a terrible mistake.". [Nov 2002]
 * Starting with "Black or White," Jackson and his record company refer to his music videos, before or since, as "short films," never "videos."
 * He had his look-alike puppet in the French show Les guignols de l'info.
 * Jackson was the godfather of Michael Gibb, son of Barry Gibb.
 * He and his lawyer, Mark Geragos, sued jet charter company XtraJet for invasion of privacy. The firm allegedly installed hidden cameras to tape the two's confidential attorney-client conversations. A California judge has barred the firm from releasing or selling any footage it may have obtained. [25 Nov 2003]
 * In 2002, Jackson had planned to produce and star in the movie "The Nightmares of Edgar Allan Poe", about the last years of writer Edgar Allan Poe. He was to star as the famed 19th century author (who was Caucasian), and had written music for the film as well.
 * For a charity event held at the Neverland Ranch in September 2003, for the first time ever, he invited an artist from the outside to perform there. It was Yannick Harrison, also known as Jay Kid, from Denmark that performed a number of his interpretations of Michael Jackson songs for the specially invited guests.
 * Jackson has sold over 750 million albums worldwide.
 * Jackson was present at the private funeral service for Maurice Gibb.
 * He was voted the 35th Greatest Artist of all time in Rock 'n' Roll by Rolling Stone.
 * His favorite Beatles song is "Come Together" — his version of the song is on "History - Past, Present and Future."
 * Jackson was found not guilty on ten counts of child molestation on June 13, 2005 due to lack of evidence.
 * He was ranked #11 in VH1's list of the "100 Greatest Kid Stars" with his brothers as the Jackson 5.
 * Along with Tito, he was co-best man at Liza Minnelli and David Gest's wedding.
 * Tatum O'Neal was Jackson's first girlfriend and allegedly his first real love. However, she denied this in her book, saying that he only kissed.
 * Jackson's song "Bad" was initially supposed to be a duet with fellow 80's superstar Prince. Prince said in an interview that he did not wish to sing the line "Your butt is mine."
 * Jackson was James DeBarge ex-brother-in-law.
 * Ronald Reagan wanted to award a special White House medal to Jackson, Bob Hope and the late John Wayne in 1984. However, future Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts advised against the proposal, saying the award was too much for a pop singer.
 * He received a Presidential Humanitarian Award from President Ronald Reagan at the White House in May 1984, in recognition of Jackson's contribution to the government's campaign against drunk driving. "Beat It" was used in television advertisements.
 * On April 24, 2002, Jackson joined Chris Tucker, Tony Bennett, Bill Clinton, and members of the Democratic National Committee at Harlem's Apollo Theatre in New York for a concert fundraiser. Tucker co-hosted the event with actress Cicely Tyson, while Rubén Blades, k.d. lang and Bennett performed. Jackson sang a medley of songs that included "Black or White" and "Smooth Criminal", and was joined by Jane's Addiction guitarist and former Red Hot Chili Peppers Dave Navarro for a portion of his set.
 * Jackson attended a memorial service for Marlon Brando in August 2004, along with Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, and Sean Penn.
 * On March 6, 2001, Jackson addressed the Oxford Union on the subject of child welfare and his new initiative "Heal the Kids".
 * Jackson was asked to write and perform the songs for "Batman," but he had to turn it down because of his concert commitments.
 * In January 2000, Jackson announced he was considering retiring from the music industry, citing his weariness at publicity as a reason.
 * In 1997, Jackson released an album of new material coupled with remixes of hit singles from the "HIStory" album titled "Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix". He dedicated the album to his friend Elton John, who had helped him through his addiction to prescribed painkillers. It went on to sell 6 million copies worldwide, making it the biggest selling remix album of all time.
 * His album "HIStory: Past, Present and Future - Book I" has sold 16 million copies worldwide since its release in 1995, making it the biggest selling multiple-disc album of all time.
 * His 2001 album "Invincible" sold over 10 million copies worldwide.
 * In January 1993, Jackson performed during the halftime show at Super Bowl XXVII. It drew the largest viewing audience in the history of American television.
 * In a move named by Jackson's advisers as "refinancing," it was announced in April 2006 that Jackson had struck a deal with Sony and Fortress investments. In the deal Sony may be allowed to take control of half of Jackson's 50% stake in Sony/ ATV Music Publishing (worth an estimated $1 billion) which Jackson co-owns. Jackson would be left with 25% of the catalog, with the rest belonging to Sony. In exchange, Sony negotiated with a loans company on behalf of Jackson. Jackson's $200m in loans were due in December 2005 and were secured on the catalog. Jackson failed to pay and the Bank of America sold them to Fortress investments, a company dealing in distressed loans. However, Jackson hasn't as yet sold any of the remainder of his stake. The possible purchase by Sony of 25% of Sony/ATV Music Publishing is a conditional option; it is assumed the singer will try to avoid having to sell part of the catalog of songs including material by other artists such as 'Bob Dylan' and Destiny's Child. As another part of the deal Jackson was given a new $300 million loan, and a lower interest rate on the old loan to match the original Bank of America rate. When the loan was sold to Fortress investments they increased the interest rate to 20%.
 * In 1984, he was the winner of the British Phonographic Industry Award for International Solo Artist.
 * In 1988, Jackson was the winner of the British Phonographic Industry Award for International Solo Artist in 1988.
 * In 1989, Jackson was the winner of the Brit Award for International Male.
 * He was a frequent guest at the infamous "Studio 54."
 * On May 27, 2006, Jackson accepted a Legend Award at MTV Japan's VMA Awards in Tokyo. It was his first public appearance since being found not guilty in his child molestation trial almost a year earlier. The award was honoring his influence and impact in music videos over the past 25 years.
 * Despite a number of surgeons' claims that Jackson has undergone multiple nasal surgeries as well as a forehead lift, thinned lips and cheekbone surgery, Jackson wrote in his 1988 autobiography "Moon Walk" that he only had two rhinoplastic surgeries and the surgical creation of a cleft in his chin, while attributing puberty and diet to the noticeable change in the structure of his face.
 * Jackson hired Martin Scorsese to direct the video for the "Bad" album's title track. When the 18-minute music video debuted on television, it sparked a great deal of controversy as it was apparent that Jackson's appearance had changed dramatically. Although Jackson's skin color had been a medium- brown color for the entire duration of his youth, his skin had gradually become paler since 1982, and had now become a light brown color. This was now so noticeable that the entire press took out widespread coverage on it and claimed that Jackson had bleached his own skin. In 1993 Jackson claimed that his changing skin color is due to a skin disorder vitiligo whilst on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
 * Jackson performed at the ball for Bill Clinton's first inauguration on 20 January 1993.
 * "Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection", his 3rd greatest hits package in less than ten years, sold 250,000 copies worldwide following its release in October 2004.
 * "The Essential Michael Jackson", another greatest hits package, debuted at a surprisingly high Number 2 on the UK charts and sold 200,000 copies within five months. In the United States it only reached Number 96 and soon disappeared.
 * Jackson recorded an anti-war song about the US invasion of Iraq, "We've Had Enough", which was included on his greatest hits package "Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection".
 * His greatest hits compilation "Michael Jackson: Number Ones" sold 6 million copies worldwide following its release in November 2003, peaking at Number 1 in most countries except the United States. It had been planned at the last minute after "Resurrection", a follow-up to his 2001 album "Invincible", was canceled.
 * Fortress Investment Group foreclosed and took possession of Jackson's half- interest in the Sony/ATV Music Publishing company, estimated to be worth $1 billion, as well as the entire MiJac Music Publishing company. (December 2005)
 * Promotional videos of his songs directed by, among others, John Landis and John Singleton have cost more than some motion pictures.
 * Jackson paid $1.5 million in 1999 for the Best Picture Oscar awarded to David O. Selznick for Gone with the Wind.
 * Jackson announced his intention to record a charity single dedicated to the victims of Hurricane Katrina entitled, "I Have This Dream". Ciara, Snoop Dogg, R. Kelly, Keyshia Cole, James Ingram, Michael Jackson's brother Jermaine Jackson, Shanice, the Shirley Caesar and The O'Jays all supposedly lent their voices to the charity song. At the time, Jackson's spokesperson, Raymone K. Bain, said the list of performers included Mary J. Blige, Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliott, Jay-Z, James Brown and Lenny Kravitz. All of these artists later appeared to be no longer participating. The Katrina Charity Single remains unreleased.
 * He was a close friend of Mark Lester. Lester is godfather to Jackson's children. Although the two had not spoken for several years before his death.
 * He was never related to Elvis Presley by marriage since Presley died many years before his marriage to Lisa Marie.
 * Jackson is spoofed in Eminem's music video "Just Lose It."
 * Jackson was fired from Two Seas Records, with whom he had signed a recording contract in April 2006 for 1 album. The album had been set for a fall 2007 release.
 * In March 2006, California state authorities ordered Jackson to close the Neverland Ranch and fined him more than $100,000 for failing to pay the staff there or maintain proper insurance.
 * When Jackson performed in England in 1982, he asked to meet former actor Mark Lester. "He wanted to meet someone who had a similar background, a child star," Lester said. The result was a lifelong friendship.
 * He presented with an "Artist of the decade" award by Elizabeth Taylor in 1989, proclaiming him "the true king of pop, rock and soul".
 * Jackson was ordered to pay Debbie Rowe $60,000 for legal fees in their battle for custody over of their two children. Los Angeles Judge Robert Schnider gave Jackson until 28 September to obey the order. Rowe had asked for $195,000, but the judge noted that she had received eight million dollars in the divorce. (6 September 2006).
 * In October 2002, it was revealed by various international banks that Jackson was in financial debt into the tens of millions of dollars due to various unpaid loans.
 * Some of his favorite pastimes were water balloon fights and climbing trees. He wrote several songs sitting in his favorite tree at Neverland, which he called Giving Tree, because it was so inspiring.
 * In The Jacksons: An American Dream, he is portrayed by Alex Burrall and Jason Weaver.
 * Jackson is the godmother of his daughter Paris Jackson and son Prince Michael is Elizabeth Taylor.
 * Jackson is the godfather of Nicole Richie.
 * Jackson didn't tour America after the Bad tour in 1987.
 * Jackson received a Special Award for a Generation at the Brit Awards in 1996.
 * He received the World Music Award for world's best-selling album of all time, "Thriller," at the Monte Carlo Sporting Club, on May 8, 1996.
 * Jackson received the Diamond Award for selling more than 100 million albums at the World Music Awards in London on 15 November 2006.
 * Jackson ended more than a year of speculation by buying the British music publishing company ATV Music for a reported £34 million ($50 million) in August 1985. The company owned 40,000 songs, including the Northern Songs catalog which contained all The Beatles songs up to their Apple Days. Jackson outbid Coca-Cola, EMI, CBS (who thereafter looked after the catalog for Jackson) and a very disappointed Paul McCartney, who had originally tried to buy Northern Songs for £21 million ($35 million) in 1981 and then later - again unsuccessfully - in conjunction with Yoko Ono.
 * On May 1, 2001, Jackson's video for "Thriller" was voted at #1 by VH1 on their countdown of the Top 100 Greatest Videos Of All Time. At #2 was "Like A Prayer" by Madonna.
 * He won a poll of superstars to have his image on a stamp issued by the Virgin Islands in July 1985. He asked that the Virgin Islands donated all revenue (the stamps were priced between 60 cents and $1.50) to welfare and education.
 * On November 15, 2006, Jackson disappointed his fans by singing a few lines from "We Are the World," accompanied by a children's choir, after he had been rumored to perform his 1982 hit "Thriller" as a triumphant comeback at the World Music Awards at Earls Court, London. Jackson left the stage to audible boos from the audience - some of his fans had paid up to £500 a ticket to see him perform.
 * Jackson filed complaints against the Independent Television Commission and the Broadcasting Standards Commission of the UK following the documentary "Living with Michael Jackson: A Tonight Special".
 * Jackson held his first live concert in four years at Madison Square Garden, New York, in early September 2001. He was paid £10 million for two concerts.
 * He originally intended to begin his solo career when he turned eighteen in 1976, but financial problems forced him to remain with the Jackson Five, renaming themselves the Jacksons for legals reasons, until 1979.
 * While Jackson has claimed 104 million sales for his 1982 album "Thriller", the Guinness Book of World Records has put the figure at 51 million copies sold as of 2006.
 * A $10 million lawsuit filed by Jackson was dismissed by a US judge. The lawsuit was filed against a man from New Jersey who was allegedly in possession of items and memorabilia that Jackson claims were stolen. (14 January 2006).
 * In 1997, a survey declared Jackson the most famous person in the world, ahead of Pope John Paul II and then Bill Clinton.
 * It is clear in the opinion of a number of plastic surgeons that Jackson has undergone extensive plastic surgery and it may be said that he is hardly recognizable as the same person he was as an adolescent, but the effectiveness of his cosmetic surgery has been hotly debated.
 * He was the highest earning singer of 1988-1989, with $125 million from his worldwide "BAD" album tour.
 * In March 1990, Jackson was honored by CBS as the "top selling act of the Eighties."
 * Jackson was seen by a record 500,000 people during his seven day stand at Wembley Stadium in July 1988.
 * "Moonwalker" was certified as the all-time top selling music video in March 1989.
 * He attended James Brown's funeral in Augusta, Georgia. (30 December 2006).
 * On November 11, 2004, Jackson inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame for his outstanding contribution to British music and integral part of British music culture.
 * He returned to live in the United States on 24 December 2006, setting up residence in Las Vegas.
 * On June 13, 2003, the day after his neighbor and friend of 25 years Gregory Peck died, Jackson went to Peck's house to help his widow plan the memorial service. Peck had once publicly praised the singer as a model parent.
 * The music video for "Thriller" was with 13 minutes the longest music video ever, until this record was broken by Mike Skinner with the video for the song "When You Wasn't Famous."
 * Jackson greeted thousands of US troops in a US army base south of Tokyo on 10 March 2007. About 3,000 troops and their family members gathered in a fitness center at Camp Zama. Jackson, after shaking hands with and thanking the troops personally for their service, spoke to the crowd gathered, saying, "Those of you in here today are some of the most special people in the world. It is because of you in here today, and others who so valiantly have given their lives to protect us, that we enjoy our freedom." Jackson also attended a ceremony at the camp for an army member being promoted and put a pin on his uniform.
 * At his peak, Jackson was reportedly worth around $1 Billion.
 * Jackson inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002.
 * His 1979 debut solo album "Off the Wall" has sold around 20 million copies worldwide.
 * His 2001 album "Invincible" was his first full album of new material for ten years, since 1991's "Dangerous".
 * Jackson fell out with Quincy Jones after the producer cut half the songs from his 1987 album "BAD". In a 2006 interview with "The Daily Telegraph" newspaper, Jones admitted he had not spoken to Jackson for years.
 * In 1984, Jackson was diagnosed with lupus.
 * Jackson claimed to have given $300 million to charity, more than any other celebrity apart from Oprah Winfrey.
 * He was the former son-in-law of Priscilla Presley.
 * Jackson was the childhood school friend of David Gest.
 * Jackson attended the funeral of his close friend Ryan White in April 1990.
 * He was a longtime supporter of AIDS research and over 32 more charities.
 * In the early 1970s, while still very young and a member of the Jackson 5, he appeared on The Dating Game. Roles were reversed; Jackson asked questions and picked a date from 3 eligible "bachelorettes".
 * Jackson was a fan of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
 * A special 25th anniversary edition of his 1982 album "Thriller" called "Thriller 25" sold an estimated 3 million copies worldwide.
 * Upon his death, many fans left remembrances at the Hollywood star, located at 1541 Vine Street, awarded to a long time radio talk show host also named Michael Jackson. Upon hearing of this, the radio commentator said, "I am willingly loan it to him and, if it would bring him back, he can have it. He was a real star. Sinatra, Presley, The Beatles and Michael Jackson.".
 * The Jacksons were awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 1500 Vine Street in Hollywood, California.
 * Jackson made an out-of-court settlement with the family of 13-year-old Jordie Chandler for an estimated $25 million in January 1994, following allegations of sexual abuse against children.
 * Jackson owed an estimated $435 million in debts at the time of his death.
 * At the time of his death, Jackson was living in a rented mansion once owned by the actor Sir Sean Connery in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles.
 * His favorite movie as a child and teenager was Oliver!.
 * Celebrities provided varied comments after Jackson's sudden death. Madonna and Diana Ross released statements saying they could not stop crying. Jackson's former wife, Lisa Marie Presley, said the singer had told her he was afraid he would end up like Elvis Presley, her father. Elizabeth Taylor, a long-time friend, said she, "can't imagine life without him." Liza Minnelli told CBS, "When the autopsy comes, all hell's going to break loose, so thank God we're ­celebrating him now." Jamie Foxx, stated: "We want to celebrate this black man. He belongs to us and we shared him with everybody else.".
 * Following his death, Obama sent a letter of condolence to the Jackson family, and during a press conference the Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said that President Obama viewed Jackson as a "spectacular performer, and a music icon". In Congress, Representatives Diane Watson and Jesse Jackson Jr. asked members to observe a moment of silence.
 * MTV and BET began airing his music videos, and ran two news specials, until 8 p.m. EDT the following day of his death.
 * The news of his death spread quickly online, causing websites to crash and slow down from user overload. Both TMZ and the Los Angeles Times, two websites that were the first to confirm the news, suffered outages.
 * His death triggered an outpouring of grief. Fans gathered outside the UCLA Medical Center, his Holmby Hills home, the Apollo Theater in New York, and at Hitsville U.S.A., the old Motown headquarters in Detroit where his career began, now the Motown Museum. Streets around the hospital were blocked off, and across America people left offices and factories to watch the breaking news on television.
 * An Amazon spokesperson said that the website sold out of all of his CDs, and those of the Jackson 5, within minutes of the news of his death breaking.
 * He had been scheduled to perform 50 sold-out concerts to over one million people at London's O2 arena, from July 13, 2009 to March 6, 2010, which he implied during a press conference would have been the final concerts of his career. Unfortunately he passed away before he could perform any of these shows. His rehearsals for the tour were documented in "This Is It,"
 * On the day of Jackson's death, Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) paramedics received a 911 call at 12:21 pm (19:21 UTC), and arrived three minutes and 17 seconds later, at which point Jackson was reportedly not breathing. The recording of the emergency call was released by the LAFD on June 27, 2009. Paramedics are reported to have wanted to pronounce him dead at the scene, but a doctor insisted he be taken to a hospital. CPR was performed on the way to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where they arrived at 1:14 pm (20:14 UTC), and continued for an hour. He was pronounced dead at 2:26 pm (21:26 UTC).
 * Producer Keya Morgan gave Jackson a ring that once belonged to Marilyn Monroe.
 * Following the week of his death, his album sales collectively spiked over 2000%.
 * The Staples Center Michael Jackson memorial service non-performing VIP attendees included Sean Combs, Larry King, Barbara Walters, Jaleel White, Kimberly 'Lil' Kim' Jones, Spike Lee, Don King, Vicki Roberts, Nicole Richie, Dionne Warwick, Kim Kardashian, and Kris Jenner.
 * Music website Amazon sold as many Jackson albums in the 24 hours after his death as in the previous 11 years.
 * His gold coffin seen at his memorial is a rare design called the Promethean. It cost $25,000 and is made of solid bronze but is 14-carat gold-plated with a hand-polished mirror finish and lined with velvet. It is identical to the coffin used to bury James Brown in 2006 - which may have inspired Jackson after he saw it when Brown lay in state.
 * Jackson's memorial service from the Staples Center on Tuesday, July 7th 2009 brought the Internet's second largest day ever in terms of total traffic.
 * In the 1980s, Jackson and Queen lead singer Freddie Mercury became close friends and recorded three songs together - "Victory", "State of Shock" (later recorded by Mick Jagger) and "There Must Be More To Life Than This". All are demos and have never been officially released.
 * The Elephant Man was one of his favorite movies.
 * Jackson spent his last days at a rented mansion at 100 North Carolwood Drive in Los Angeles. The property was once owned by Sean Connery.
 * An Andy Warhol head-and-shoulders portrait of Jackson made the cover of Time magazine on March 19, 1984.
 * He died on the same day as Farrah Fawcett. Both were in California at the time. She died at 9:28 a.m PDT, he was pronounced dead at 2:26 p.m. after hours of unsuccessful resuscitation.
 * It is estimated that Jackson's earnings in the six months following his death on June 25 2009 will top the entire $149 million (£90 million) made by Jimi Hendrix since he passed away in 1970.
 * 2 months after his death, just before what would be his 51st birthday, and the day of his burial, his Number Ones album surpassed Taylor Swift's highly successful album Fearless as the best selling album of 2009 at that point.
 * Jackson had a long standing relationship with Cherokee Studios, reaching back to his days with the Jackson 5. It was during an early Jackson 5 recording session at Cherokee that Shelley Berger, longtime Motown Manager, first realized his talent, telling Rolling Stone Magazine he would be "the new Sammy Davis." Later, he came back to Cherokee to record his multi platinum breakout solo Album Off the Wall. His relationship with Cherokee continued throughout his solo career, culminating in the recording of what went on to become the best selling album of all time, Thriller (109 million albums sold worldwide).
 * Jackson held 10 different Guinness World Records.
 * In 1991, Sony Pictures Entertainment announced a top secret film project called "MidKnight" which would star Jackson as meek young man by day, who secretly changes into a heroic singing and dancing knight at the stroke of midnight. The film was part of Jackson's $1 billion re-up with Sony Music. But the project fell apart due to contractual issues as well as the 1993 child molestation allegations.
 * Jackson received his very first screen kiss in the John Singleton-directed music video "Remember the Time" (1992), when he kissed Iman (playing Queen Nefertiti to Eddie Murphy's Pharaoh).
 * Jackson achieved the dubious distinction in 2009 of meriting the number three position on Forbes magazine's list of "Top-Earning Dead Celebrities". Jackson's posthumous earnings of $90 million were surpassed only by Yves Saint-Laurent and Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (as Rodgers & Hammerstein).
 * Jackson's music video "Liberian Girl" (1989) comprises what is arguably the most star-studded ensemble of cameos in pop music history. In order of appearance are: Beverly Johnson, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Sherman Hemsley, Brigitte Nielsen, Paula Abdul, Carl Weathers, Whoopi Goldberg, Quincy Jones, Jackie Collins, Amy Irving, Jasmine Guy, Rosanna Arquette, Billy Dee Williams, Lou Diamond Phillips, Olivia Newton-John, John Travolta, Corey Feldman, Steven Spielberg, Deborah Gibson, Ricky Schroder, Blair Underwood, 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Bubbles, Suzanne Somers, Lou Ferrigno, Don King (and "Son"), Mayim Bialik, Virginia Madsen, David Copperfield, Emily and Richard Dreyfuss, Danny Glover, Olivia Hussey, Dan Aykroyd and Steve Guttenberg. Jackson appears only at the very end manning a camera on a crane. Directed by James Yukich.
 * Ever since he was a boy, Jackson was a fan of the Three Stooges, especially Curly Howard. In fact, for the Curly biography "Curly: An Illustrated Biography of the Superstooge" (Citadel Press, 1985), written by Curly's niece Joan Howard Maurer, Michael wrote the Foreward. The irony here is that both men died at roughly the same age: Curly at forty-eight, Michael at fifty.
 * Jackson was a fan of Fulham Football Club (English Premier League soccer club), based at Craven Cottage, Fulham, London, England. Fellow fans include Elizabeth Hurley, Lily Allen, Hugh Grant, Pierce Brosnan, Hugh Laurie, Benicio Del Toro, Daniel Radcliffe and Andrew Johnston.
 * Jackson performed live with Britney Spears in September, 2001. Together they performed Jackson's song "The Way You Make Me Feel" at the Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Special in Madison Square Garden. This was Jackson's last live performance of the song in front of an audience.
 * Jackson also did sketches and drawings.
 * Jackson was close friends with Lou Ferrigno. Jackson invited Ferrigno to be his personal trainer to prepare for the 'This Is It' concerts. Ferrigno had appeared in the "Liberian Girl" short film in 1989 and they remained friends until Jackson's death in 2009.
 * His greatest hits compilation called "Michael Jackson: Number Ones" was released on November 17, 2003, along with one new song called "One More Chance."
 * In November 2003, Jackson was arrested and charged with sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy.
 * In February 2005, trial for charges including molestation and intoxication of a minor begin. Expected to last at least 6 months.
 * In June 2005, Jackson acquitted on all charges in the child molestation and intoxication of a minor trial.
 * In November 2006, Jackson accepted Guinness World Record award for Greatest Album of all time, at London's Earls Court.
 * In August 2011, Cardiff, Wales: Concert being planned to honor the King of Pop on October 8, 2011 at Millennium Stadium, featuring Aguilera, Christina, Robinson, Smokeey, Gree, Cee Lo and others.