MICHAEL JACKSON
2003ï¿½2006:         Trial, acquittal and the aftermath
 
In         November 2003, Michael Jackson and Sony Records released a compilation         of his number-one hits on CD and DVD titled Number Ones. The         compilation has sold over six million copies worldwide. On the album's         scheduled release date, while Michael Jackson was in Las Vegas filming         the video for "One More Chance" (the only new song included in         the Number Ones compilation), the Santa Barbara Sheriff's         Department searched the Neverland Ranch and issued an arrest warrant for         Jackson on charges of new child molestation. Jackson was accused of         sexual abuse by Gavin Arviso, who appeared in the Living with Michael         Jackson documentary earlier that year. The allegations later led to a trial in which Jackson was found not         guilty of all charges .
 
Jackson         converted to the Nation of Islam on December 17, 2003. Later in 2005,         because of his links with the Bahrain Royal Family, he converted to         Sunni Islam.
 
Marlon         Brando, who was a frequent user of the Internet ,         informed Jackson on February 8, 2004 that the declarations made by Jordy         Chandler relating to the 1993 child molestation allegations had been         published on the internet site The Smoking Gun. This happened when         Jackson was about to start an interview with journalist Ed Bradley for 60         Minutes. Jackson immediately left the studio and did not conduct the         interview. Jackson also attended Brando's memorial service in 2004 along         with Sean Penn, Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty.
 
Also         on August 6, 2004, Man In The Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story debuted on VH1 starring Flex Alexander as Michael Jackson.
 
Rapper         Eminem parodied new allegations raised against Jackson by Gavin Arviso         in his music video for "Just Lose It" in 2004. The clip caused         controversy and fueled Jackson to make a statement.
 
The         People v. Jackson trial began in Santa Maria, California on January 31,         2005 and lasted less than a month.
 
On         June 10, Jackson's PR, Raymone Bain was reportedly fired. Jackson's         now-defunct website cited that "MJJ Productions regretfully         announces the termination of Raymone Bain and Davis, Bain and         Associates. We thank you for your services". Bain later told the         Associated Press that she had not been fired and that only Michael         Jackson, not his production company (operated at the time by his         brother, Randy Jackson), could fire her. Bain continues releasing press         statements and answering media enquiries on behalf of Michael Jackson,         and was named general manager of The Michael Jackson Company, Inc. on         June 27, 2006.
 
On June 13, Jackson was         acquitted of all ten charges, including four additional lesser ones. CNN         later reported that one of the jurors, Ray Hultman, believed he had         committed child sex crimes in the past but there was not enough evidence         to prove it, and he and another juror announced impending books on their         experiences in the trial.
 
In         September 2005, it was reported that Ray Hultman, one of the jurors,         took legal action against the publisher of his book about experiences in         the trial, claiming heavy portions were plagiarized from a Vanity Fair         article. Hultman also stated he felt "threatened" by the jury         foreman Paul Rodriguez and regretted acquitting Jackson.
 
After         being acquitted of the child molestation charges, Jackson relocated to         the Gulf island of Bahrain, where he reportedly bought a house formerly         owned by a Bahrain MP. Jackson allegedly spent his time in the Gulf         writing new music, including 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,         Shanice, the Reverend Shirley Caesar and The O'Jays all reportedly lent         their voices to the charity song. After many delays, the single was not         released, despite being announced on September 13, 2005. At the time,         Jackson's spokesperson, Raymone Bain, said the list included Mary J.         Blige, Missy Elliott, Jay-Z, James Brown and Lenny Kravitz. It later         appeared that these artists were no longer participating. The charity         single remains unreleased.
 
In         2006, allegations of sexual assault were made against Jackson by a man         who claims Michael Jackson molested him, intoxicated him with drugs and         alcohol, and forced him to undergo unnecessary cosmetic surgery. Michael         Jackson's lawyer Thomas Mesereau, who successfully defended him against         allegations of child molestation in 2005, said "the charges are         ridiculous on their face. They will be vigorously defended".
 
2006ï¿½present: Visionary, Tokyo and the World Music Awards
 
In         February 2006, Jackson's label released Visionary - The Video Singles,         a box set made up of twenty of his biggest hit singles, each of which         were issued individually week by week over a five-month period.
 
An         appeals court ruled on February 15, that a lower court improperly         terminated Deborah Rowe's parental rights to her two children with pop         star Michael Jackson, opening the door to a possible custody battle         between the singer and his ex-wife. The retired judge, Steven M. Lachs,         acknowledged in 2004 that he failed to have state officials do an         independent investigation into what was in the best interests of the         children. As of September 29, 2006, the case has reportedly been settled         according to the lawyers representing each party.
 
On         March 9, 2006, California state labor officials closed the singer's         Neverland Ranch and fined him $69,000 for failure to provide employment         insurance. The state "stop order" bars Jackson from "using any employee labor" until he secured required workers'         compensation insurance. In addition to being fined $1,000 for each of         his 69 workers, Jackson is liable for up to 10 days pay for those         employees who now are no longer allowed to report to Neverland for work.         Thirty Neverland employees have also sued Jackson for $306,000 in unpaid         wages.
 
Soon         after this payment, Jackson's spokesperson announced on March 16, 2006         that Jackson was closing his house at Neverland and had laid off some of         the employees but added that reports of the closing of the entire ranch         were inaccurate. There have been many reports of a possible sale of         Neverland, but nothing tangible has been reported yet.
 
In         a move named by Jackson's advisors as "refinancing", it was         announced on April 14, 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 catalogue, 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 catalogue. 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 catalogue 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%. None of the details are officially confirmed. An advisor to         Jackson, however, did publicly announce he had "restructured his         finances with the assistance of Sony".
 
On         April 18, 2006, Michael Jackson signed a management deal with English         music producer Guy Holmes. Holmes is the recently appointed CEO of Two         Seas Records, with whom Jackson has signed a recording contract for one         album. The album is set for a fall 2007 release.
 
On         May 27, 2006, Michael Jackson accepted a Legend Award at MTV Japan's VMA         Awards in Tokyo . It         was his first major public appearance since being found not guilty in         his child molestation trial almost a year earlier. The award honors his         influence and impact on music videos in the last 25 years. Following the         award ceremony, Jackson also made an appearance on SMAPxSMAP.
 
In         2006 F. Marc Schaffel, a former associate of Jackson, filed a suit for         millions of dollars allegedly owed to him after working with Jackson on         an unreleased charity record named "What More Can I Give" and         documentaries. Florida businessman Alvin Malnik, who had advised         Jackson, appeared in court and stated that Jackson appeared to be         bewildered by financial matters. Schaffel claimed to have made frequent         loans to the singer totaling between $7 million and $10 million.         Schaffel had received an urgent plea from Jackson for $1 million so that         Jackson could buy jewelry for Elizabeth Taylor so that she would agree         to sign a release for her involvement in a Fox special.
 
These         court proceedings also brought to light unsuccessful projects planned         with the actor Marlon Brando, including a dual interview at the actor's         private island near Tahiti ,         and a DVD on acting. Brando's son Miko Brando, a long time bodyguard and         assistant to Jackson stated "The last time my father left his house         to go anywhere, to spend any kind of time... was with Michael         Jackson". "He loved it... [He] had a 24-hour chef, 24-hour         security, 24-hour help, 24-hour kitchen, 24-hour maid service".
 
On         July 14, 2006, the jury awarded Schaffel $900,000 of the original $3.8         million he sued Jackson for, which Schaffel later reduced to $1.6         million, and finally to $1.4 million. The jury also awarded Jackson         $200,000 plus interest of the $660,000 that Jackson claimed he was owed         by Schaffel. The trial revealed that Schaffel had been dismissed after         Jackson learnt of his past work as a director of gay pornography.         Schaffel claimed that Jackson "once wanted him to go to Brazil to         find boys for him to adopt. He later modified that statement to "children" to expand Jackson's family". Jackson's lawyer Thomas Mundell said         that he had never heard the allegation during the pre-trial         investigation and that "it was an effort to smear Mr Jackson with a         remark that could be interpreted to hurt him in light of the case         against him last year".
 
On         July 31, 2006, a federal judge allowed a $48 million claim against         Jackson and one of Jackson's trusts for unpaid fees and breach of         contract. All parties were ordered to reappear in court in September.
 
On         November 2 and November 3, 2006, Access Hollywood aired a special Michael         Jackson in Ireland which showed Jackson and will.i.am of The Black         Eyed Peas in the process of recording Jackson's new album.
 
On         November 14, 2006, Sony officially released the Visionary box         set. He also visited the London office of the Guinness World Records.         There, he received eight awards: "Most Successful Entertainer of         All Time", "Youngest Vocalist to Top the US Singles         Charts" (at the age of 11 as part of the Jackson Five), "First         Vocalist to Enter the US Singles Chart at Number One" (for "You Are Not Alone"), "First Entertainer to Earn More         Than 100 million Dollars in a Year", "Highest Paid Entertainer         of All Time" ($125 in 1989), "First Entertainer to Sell More         Than 100 Million Albums Outside the US", "Most Weeks at the         Top of the US Albums Chart" (for the album Thriller) and "Most Successful Music Video" (for the music video Thriller).
 
On         November 15, 2006, Michael Jackson received the Diamond Award, for         selling over 100 million albums, at the World Music Awards. This was his         second public appearance at an awards show since the trial of 2005.         Despite substantial publicity prior to the event, he did not perform "Thriller", limiting his performance to "one verse and         one chorus" of "We are the World". Coverage of the event         noted that Jackson "looked uncomfortable at times" and called         the appearance "an unhappy return to the London stage".         According to the head of public relations for the World Music Awards         (Julius Just), the sound was cut due to a noise curfew. Officials at         Earl's Court, the arena where the event was held, have said that this         was not the case and that they had "accommodated the show and the         show's organisers by obtaining an extension to our licence in order to         allow the show to run to eleven o'clock".
 
2005: Live In Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour
Television
The                       Jacksons TV Show was an animated series that first aired on June 16, 1976                       and last aired on March 9, 1977. It starred Jackie, Tito,                       Marlon, Michael, Randy, Rebbie, LaToya, and Janet Jackson.
The                       Simpsons, Season                       3 Episode 1, "Stark Raving Dad". The                       episode first aired on September 19, 1991. He was credited                       as John Jay Smith.[99]
Video                   games
Michael                       Jackson's Moonwalker is an arcade game that was ported to the Sega Mega Drive /Sega Genesis and Sega Master System and                       various 8-bit home computers, including the Amiga ,                       which sported more levels and better graphics.
Sonic                       The Hedgehog 3 features sampled noises from Jackson and his instrument                       players who worked for him at the time. Due to his 1993                       scandal some songs written by him were removed; however                       the original game still contains some content from him and                       his team although Jackson is uncredited. New Sega PC "retro" versions do not contain any of the                       material from Jackson or his team.
Space                       Channel 5 for the Sega Dreamcast featured Michael Jackson                       in the later levels.
Space                       Channel 5 Part 2,                       a dance game for the PlayStation 2 and Sega Dreamcast also                       featured Michael Jackson in the later levels.
Ready                       2 Rumble Round 2 is a fighting game for the PlayStation 2 and Sega                       Dreamcast featuring Michael Jackson as a hidden character.
Grand                       Theft Auto: Vice City for the PS2 , PC ,                       and Xbox includes                       two songs by Michael Jackson: "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".