Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” Projected to Make $250 Million in 5 Days

I thought the idea of a Michael Jackson concert film based on rehearsal footage from his planned run of London shows was ghoulish and exploitative when first announced. The trailer for This Is It didn’t change my mind, but a great many people evidently see only the Michael Jackson of old. We already know the film has had remarkable pre-sales, with Fandango reporting it as #1 in ticket sales now, two weeks before opening. Now a report from AEG, the concert promoter and the film’s financier, claims that Sony is already in the black thanks to the pre-sale numbers. Furthermore, the same report pegs the film’s eventual gross as genuinely massive, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking.

Nikki Finke has the AEG report, which predicts that This Is It will gross $250 million within 5 days. That’s a seriously insane claim; if the movie does that well it will, as an insider quoted by Finke put it, be in Spider-Man and Harry Potter territory. (And remember, it’s folks with a vested interest in the movie making the claim.) The idea of such success would be utterly outlandish if this was any figure other than Michael Jackson. But global audiences remain crazy for all things MJ, so the film is certainly going to bank well. Whether it banks ‘all-time’ numbers is another question.
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Shaquille O’Neal’s Tribute To Michael Jackson

Larry King Asks Joe Jackson If He Beat Michael - He Talks About Slavery

In an interview with Larry King last night, Joe Jackson denied ever beating Michael Jackson as a child. To back up his claims, Joe inexplicably goes on to say that “beating started with slavery,” and any parent who says they never spanked their kid is “a liar.” Except for apparently Joe Jackson who immediately followed that statement with “But I never beat Michael.”

To dig his hole even deeper, Joe also believes Michael was raised properly because he didn’t “run the streets like other kids in his neighborhood.” But, you know, he’s right. Michael simply went on to surgically alter his face into Peter Pan and invite young boys over to his house for wine and porn. If that was anymore wholesome, puppies would jump out of a birthday cake and help the elderly cross the street. True story.

Sony Bids $50 Million for Rights to Michael Jackson’s Final Rehearsal Footage

Sony Corp.’s movie studio has bid $50 million to acquire the worldwide distribution rights to a film based on rehearsal footage for Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” comeback concert series, according to a person familiar with the bid.

The person said Monday that the bid came after several studios, including Paramount, Universal, 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros., were shown footage starting early last week. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the bidding had not been completed.

The winning studio would produce the film with Jackson’s concert promoter, AEG Live, and his estate.
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Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” To Become Top Selling Album of All Time

Michael Jackson’s 1982 album Thriller is poised to surpass Eagles’ Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 and become the highest selling album ever.

In March, Thriller was certified 28 times platinum, a notch behind the Eagles’ 1976 album that was certified 29 times platinum in 2006.

There has been a surge in Thriller sales following Jackson’s death on June 25 and Sony Music Entertainment is pushing album CDs into the distribution pipeline to meet the increased demand.
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Michael Jackson’s Final Rehearsal

Michael Jackson rehearses with dancers during a June 23 session at the Staples Center.

Michael Jackson Takes Top 3 Spot, 7 Albums in Top 50 (June 23 to June 29)

Top 5 album sales for Hip Hop and R&B this week

* MICHAEL JACKSON - THRILLER - 106,956
* MICHAEL JACKSON - ESSENTIAL - 105,648
* MICHAEL JACKSON - NUMBER ONES - 104,163
* BLACK EYED PEAS - E.N.D. (ENERGY NEVER DIES) - 85,229
* EMINEM - RELAPSE - 44,956

View the full chart after the break
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Chris Brown’s Music Pulled Off the Air, Hires Michael Jackson’s Lawyer

Radio stations around the country are pulling Chris Brown’s music off the air after news of his abuse allegations.

Many stations in Florida, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis have stopped playing Chris Brown’s music after listeners called in complaining.

A host on the radio station B103.9 in Florida said “We ask listeners what they thought. They want Chris Brown off the radio”.

Also Chris Brown has hired Mark Geragos to be his lawyer. Geragos has represented for Winona Ryder in her shoplifting case and represented Michael Jackson in his child molestation case before he got fired.

Geragos also successfully defended Robert Blake in the murder of his wife case.

Raekwon Sings Michael Jackson