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The Michael Jackson Followers News
Thu, Jul 2 2009
Jackson's public viewing set for Friday
Topic: Main News

By Alan Duke and Saeed Ahmed
CNN

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- More than two dozen TV satellite trucks lined a narrow, two-lane road leading to Neverland Ranch early Wednesday, jostling to reserve space for a public viewing of pop icon Michael Jackson's body later this week.

Jackson's body will be taken to the ranch, north of Santa Barbara, California, on Thursday in preparation for viewing Friday, a law enforcement official said. The family plans a private service Sunday.

The question of what killed Jackson last week has gone unanswered pending toxicology results. Fans across the globe Tuesday continued to mourn Jackson five days after the 50-year-old singer went into cardiac arrest.

A 2002 will from the performer has surfaced, but it may be one of several, Jackson family attorney Londell McMillan said. Until now, the Jackson family has said it had not seen one.

In New York, thousands lined the streets Tuesday outside Harlem's Apollo Theater, the hall that helped launch Jackson's career.

At 9, the singer won a 1967 Apollo amateur night showcase with his brothers.

"We left our house at 4 o'clock in the morning and got here at 9, and we were lucky to get here," said Angela Staples, who came from Pennsylvania with daughter Jasmine.

For many of Jackson's fans, the cause of his death bore less significance than remembering his life.

On Wednesday, the top nine positions on Billboard magazine's top pop catalog albums chart housed Jackson-related titles. VideoWatch how singer's death has spurred sales »

Many fans said they were heartened to learn of Friday's public viewing.

"I came all the way here [to be near where Jackson lived], but to find this out -- that I can make a pilgrimage to his home to say goodbye to him -- that is beyond my wildest dreams," said Donna Lewis, a self-proclaimed "super fan" who drove to Los Angeles from San Francisco to mourn with fellow Jackson lovers.

Planning is under way for a 30-car motorcade carrying Jackson's remains to leave the Los Angeles area at 10 a.m. Thursday for Santa Barbara County, a law enforcement official said.

Jackson's hometown of Gary, Indiana, angled to have its favorite son buried there and planned a massive memorial service at a local ballpark in July.

Gary Mayor Rudy Clay told a Chicago, Illinois, radio station Tuesday that he has been in contact with the Jackson family about the burial.

A burial site could be near a proposed Jackson family museum and a performing arts center, said mayoral spokeswoman Lalosa Burns, who said Clay hadn't received any confirmation.

Clay told WGN that he expects Jackson's body, at the least, will be taken to Gary for a July 10 memorial service at U.S. Steel Works ballpark.

Jackson's father, Joe, has said Neverland Ranch has been ruled out as a burial site, but the family has given no public indication on where the singer's final resting place may be.

Michael Jackson purchased Neverland Ranch -- named for the fictional world in J.M. Barrie's "Peter Pan" -- in 1987 and filled it with animals and amusement rides.

Tom Barrack Jr., the billionaire who engineered Jackson's financial rescue last year and gained control of the ranch through his company, said the property's future will be discussed later.

The focus now, he said, is to ensure that grieving fans who gather there are treated properly.

As for the will, Jackson family lawyer McMillan acknowledged Tuesday that others may exist.

"We need a certain amount of time to look at that," McMillan said. "I don't personally know, but it's possible."

The 2002 will surfaced Monday after a Los Angeles judge gave the singer's mother, Katherine Jackson, temporary control of her son's "tangible personal property."

The pop icon's three children -- ages 7, 11 and 12 -- also were placed under his mother's temporary guardianship.

McMillan said he has seen the will but would not disclose its details.

"There is a process called probating the will that will validate any will in due course," he said.

CNN's Kara Finnstrom and Don Lemon in Los Angeles and Stephanie Smith and Aspen Steib in New York contributed to this report


Posted by MJ Friend Anna at 1:51 AM JST
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