This Day (Lagos)
Chinyere Okoye With Agency Report
1 July 2009
Lagos — Michael Jackson's body will be transported from Los Angeles to his Neverland Ranch on Friday at 10 a.m. and be presented for public viewing. A private memorial service is scheduled for Sunday as part of his burial rites.
Though it was not immediately clear whether Jackson's body would be interred at Neverland, Northwest Indiana, however, he will be buried in his hometown of Gary, Indiana, and the family had been in contact with Gary Mayor Rudy Clay, on preparations for the burial.
Jackson will, written in 2002, had been found, according to family lawyer, Londell McMillan. The intrigue surrounding Jackson's billion-dollar legacy intensified yesterday, when it was claimed that the singer's final will divides his estate between his mother, three children and various charities, excluding the father who had become the public face of the family's grief.
Joe Jackson, who had a strained relationship with his most famous son, is conspicuously absent from the document, which was drawn up in 2002 and is expected to be submitted to Los Angeles Superior Court tomorrow, by John Branca, Jackson's attorney at the time of his death.
The development, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, came as the custody battle over the singer's children was muddied by claims that neither Jackson, nor his former wife, Debbie Rowe, were actually their biological parent.
It sets the stage for an intriguing legal showdown on Monday, when the court will weigh up claims on the star's former property and resolve the long-term fate of Michael Jr, 12, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael II, the seven-year-old youngest son who is widely known as "Blanket."
This week, Katherine Jackson, Michael's 79-year-old mother, was granted temporary custody of the children and limited powers over his assets, which were roughly US$400million in debt at the time of his death, but have since soared in value.
Michael Jackson's doctor who didn't call 911 for 30 minutes after finding Jackson unconscious won't be attending his funeral.
We were told Dr Conrad Murray hasn't been watching the media coverage and has been "isolating himself" from the public. Also, Murray hasn't spoken with the Jackson family since he saw them at the hospital on the day Michael died.
Murray's representative said he's skipping the funeral to "mourn privately for the death of his friend."
Jackson's most valuable possession is believed to be a 50 per cent stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, a pop archive that includes a back catalogue of Beatles material and had been valued at US$1billion. He also owned Mijac, a catalogue of his own work, which has returned to the top of the charts since his death.
The singer was a partner in Colony Capital LLC, the business that has owned Neverland ranch, his former country seat north of Santa Barbara. In future, the site could potentially be turned into a lucrative tourist attraction along the lines of Graceland, former home of Elvis Presley.Joe Jackson seems unlikely to become much richer from any proceeds, though. The family patriarch who managed the Jackson 5 during the 1960s and 1970s, had a famously abusive relationship with his nine children, and is often blamed for Michael's psychological problems.
The will effectively disinheriting him is said to name Mr Branca - who worked for Jackson from 1980 to 2006, and was rehired shortly before his death - as one of the estate's two executors. The other is a veteran music industry executive called John McClain.Katherine's standing as one of the main beneficiaries is unlikely to subsidise her husband's lifestyle. The couples have been living separate lives for decades, and are based in different homes: one in Encino, the other in Las Vegas. In her autobiography, Katherine revealed that Joe was habitually unfaithful, and said only her beliefs as a strict Jehovah's Witness prevented her seeking a divorce.The family's lawyer and only official spokesman, L Londell McMillan, said yesterday that he hadn't yet seen a copy of a will. His priority remains establishing the exact circumstances surrounding the 50-year-old singer's death.
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