RollingStone.com Recap of Michael Jackson Burial

Michael Jackson Finally Laid to Rest at Private Ceremony in L.A.



9/4/09, 9:02 am EST
Photo: Harrison Funk/ The Jackson Family via Getty

Seventy days after the death of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop was finally laid to rest last night, September 3rd, with a private ceremony Glendale, California’s Forest Lawn Cemetery. About 200 close friends and family members attended the evening funeral, which concluded with Jackson being entombed in Forest Lawn’s Great Mausoleum, the final resting place of Walt Disney, Clark Gable and other legendary talents.

Elizabeth Taylor, Berry Gordy, Quincy Jones, Jackson’s ex-wife Lisa Marie Presley and Macaulay Culkin attended the ceremony, along with Mila Kunis, This Is It director Kenny Ortega, Teddy Riley, Chris Tucker, Corey Feldman and Miko Brando. According to a statement from the Jackson family, Michael’s five brothers Tito, Jermaine, Randy, Marlon and Jackie all served as pallbearers.

Michael’s three children Prince Michael, Paris Michael and Prince Michael II placed a crown atop Jackson’s casket to signify his status as the King of Pop. The Jackson family had provided a live video feed to media prior to the ceremony when guests began arriving at the cemetery, however the feed ceased transmission the moment the Jackson brothers went to take Michael’s gold-plated casket out of the hearse.

After Pastor Lucius Smith read the opening prayer and a portion of Ecclesiastes 3:7, Gladys Knight sang the gospel hymn “His Eye Is on the Sparrow.” Songwriter Clifton Davis next sang the Jackson 5 tune he wrote for the group, “Never Can Say Goodbye.” Speakers then began to take the podium to pay tribute to the singer, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, Michael’s father Joe Jackson and other close friends and family members.
According to the New York Times, the media that congregated outside Forest Lawn outnumbered the number of fans, though one group of fans held a large white banner that read “Gone too soon.” Following the ceremony, according to the ceremony’s nine-page engraved invitation, family and friends of Jackson were encouraged to drive to an Italian restaurant in Pasadena, California, for “a time of celebration.”
The first page of the invitation also featured a quote from Michael’s 1992 book of essays and poems Dancing the Dream, “If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with.”

Seeing 70 days in print like that sent a shiver down my spine.

I can't believe it has been that long

GirlSaturday wrote:
Michael’s three children Prince Michael, Paris Michael and Prince Michael II placed a crown atop Jackson’s casket to signify his status as the King of Pop. The Jackson family had provided a live video feed to media prior to the ceremony when guests began arriving at the cemetery, however the feed ceased transmission the moment the Jackson brothers went to take Michael’s gold-plated casket out of the hearse.

Don't you think that the children placing a crown on the casket is very telling? I think it symbolizes the death of the King of Pop, but not the death of their father. Otherwise, they would have placed something more personal on the casket.

annieisnotokey wrote:

GirlSaturday wrote:
Michael’s three children Prince Michael, Paris Michael and Prince Michael II placed a crown atop Jackson’s casket to signify his status as the King of Pop. The Jackson family had provided a live video feed to media prior to the ceremony when guests began arriving at the cemetery, however the feed ceased transmission the moment the Jackson brothers went to take Michael’s gold-plated casket out of the hearse.

Don't you think that the children placing a crown on the casket is very telling? I think it symbolizes the death of the King of Pop, but not the death of their father. Otherwise, they would have placed something more personal on the casket.

I agree Annie. In terms of performing and being the King of Pop, that is not the image the kid saw, he was just Daddy. He hadn't really performed in quite awhile. His life has been more about the kids than anything else, as it should be.

Yep. During the Memorial there was some sort personal jewelry that Paris placed with Michael. I think that it was a locket.

annieisnotokey wrote:

GirlSaturday wrote:
Michael’s three children Prince Michael, Paris Michael and Prince Michael II placed a crown atop Jackson’s casket to signify his status as the King of Pop. The Jackson family had provided a live video feed to media prior to the ceremony when guests began arriving at the cemetery, however the feed ceased transmission the moment the Jackson brothers went to take Michael’s gold-plated casket out of the hearse.

Don't you think that the children placing a crown on the casket is very telling? I think it symbolizes the death of the King of Pop, but not the death of their father. Otherwise, they would have placed something more personal on the casket.

Wait a minute. Didn't they forget the part about the open casket and the children placing "Dear Daddy" letters inside, next to Michael's ten weeks-dead body? I wonder why Rolling Stone (and every other published summary thus far) left out THAT heartwrenching, unforgettable, and utterly gruesome part.

Could it be the general public was lied to AGAIN, although most people seem not to notice AGAIN? What would shock me is if ANYthing reported about Michael and the events of June 25 turns out to be true.

nlb wrote:That;s not something really associated with the kids.

Something else not associated with the children is the Bad-era photos the Jacksons insist on using for all of these events. Michael looked perfectly fine in the 2000s (and damn fine, if you ask me), so why not include some photos that reflect the image of their father that the children are familiar with? Just one more reason for Blanket to always look so confused.

70 days since my health is going to.... :p

"Wherever. Whatever. Have a nice day."

"Wherever. Whatever. Have a nice day."

Ecclesiastes 3:7 (Living Bible Translation)

Begins from verse 1 with, "There is a right time for everything ..

verse 7:

... A time to tear, and a time to repair;

A time to be quiet;

A time to speak up"

Maybe the photos from the last couple of years weren't really Michael? i know it sounds crazy but those photos from the bad era were really Mike?

Maybe that is why they used them? Though i think it is more plausible with the Liberian photos and him directing everything behind the scenes.