Michael Jackson was born Aug. 29, 1958, in Gary, Ind. He is 46 years old. In 1993, Forbes estimated Jackson was worth $350 million. Others have said he has trouble paying bills and could be close to bankrupt. Jackson was a Jehovah's Witness until he was 29 years old. He renounced the faith in 1987.
The Charges
Jackson was charged with molesting an underage cancer patient and giving him alcohol, specifically:
Four counts of committing a lewd act upon a child; One count of attempting to commit a lewd act upon a child; Four counts of administering an intoxicating agent to assist in the commision of felony child molestation; And one count of conspiring to commit child abduction, false imprisonment and extortion.
Jackson pleaded not guilty. The defense maintained the child's mother was attempting to get money from the singer by making the charges. Jackson was found not guilty on all counts.
Marriages And Children
Jackson has been married and divorced twice. He has at least three biological children: Prince Michael, 8; Paris Michael Katherine, 7; and Prince Michael II, 3. In May 1994, he married Lisa Marie Presley. They were together two years. She filed for divorce in January 1996. In November 1996, Jackson married Debbie Rowe, a nurse for one of his doctors. Their son, Prince Michael Jackson, was born in February 1997. They had a daughter, Paris Michael Katherine, in April 1998. Jackson and Rowe divorced in 1999. Rowe has little or no contact with the children. Jackson has said his third child, Prince Michael II, was carried by a surrogate mother. Jackson refers to Prince Michael II as "Blanket." This is the child Jackson infamously dangled off a hotel balcony in 2002.
Childhood
Jackson was the fifth of nine children. The family has six boys. Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael formed "The Jackson 5." Randy, the youngest, wasn't in the group. Marlon had a twin, Brandon, who died within a day of birth. There are three girls: Maureen, LaToya and Janet. Jackson's father, Joseph, had played guitar with a local group called the Falcons. His mother Katherine loved country music. The family were devout Jehovah's Witnesses. Joseph has been called demanding and formed his sons into the group "The Jackson 5."
The Jackson 5
The group was formed in 1964, when Michael was 6 years old. Their big break came when Gladys Knight and piano player Bobby Taylor noticed them. In 1968, The Jackson 5 was signed to the Motown record label. In 1976, the group left Motown and signed with the Epic Label (part of CBS) in 1976.
Solo Career
In 1978, Jackson played the Scarecrow in "The Wiz" and met producer Quincy Jones. Jones was pivotal in Jackson's initial sound, helping produce 1979's "Off the Wall." In 1982, Jackson released "Thriller." It blasted him to fame, with seven hits. Next, in 1987, came "Bad." It sold fewer copies but was still a hit. "Dangerous" was released in 1991. It was Jackson's third album to sell more than 20 million copies. 1995's "HIStory: Past, Present, and Future Book I" was considered a relative flop. In 1997, "Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix" did worse. In 2001, Jackson's "Invincible" was more of a success. In 2003, he released "Number Ones." The only new song on the album was "One More Chance."
Health
Jackson told Oprah Winfrey in 1993 that he suffers from vitiligo, a rare skin disease in which white spots or patches appear on the skin. It's also called leukoderma. He has admitted to having plastic surgery on his nose, but said it was to improve his voice.
Records
"Thriller" was the No. 1 selling album on Billboard's charts for 37 weeks. It had an unprecedented seven Top 10 hits. Jackson earned eight Grammys in 1984 alone, based largely on "Thriller." In 2001, Jackson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Trivia
"Beat It" featured guitarist Eddie Van Halen. As a devout Jehovah's Witness, Jackson went door to door on behalf of the religion. After the release of "Thriller" he put on a disguise and knocked on doors, but he soon became too famous for that. Jackson has an honorary doctorate degree in human letters from Fisk University.
