Guys, you aren’t going to believe this!  Remember the other day when I told you all about LaToya Jackson and her allegations of murder regarding her brother Michael?  She was really full of opinions and gave a four-hour interview to News of the World.  Not only did she claim that MJ was offed, she seemed to know who the guilty parties were. 

Well, this is a pretty earth-shattering revelation, but I guess LaToya was paid for that interview.  I know, I know … I was shocked too!  It’s just impossible for me to fathom that any member of the Jackson clan would try and turn a profit from the death of one of their closest loved ones.

In other really weird Michael Jackson news, for some unknown reason Us magazine thought it would be a good idea to release never-before-seen video footage from MJ’s 1984 Pepsi commercial taping.  It’s a clear close-up of Michael’s hair catching on fire.  Watching people who are unknowingly ablaze holds no interest to me, but lots have emailed wanting to see it.  Use your own judgment, but if you want to see it, here you go.

Debbie Rowe’s lawyers are in a tither over that New York Post article I talked about this morning regarding how Debbie Rowe was getting another $4M bucks to sign over her parental rights to Katherine Jackson.  According to Rowe’s attorney, Eric George, the claims are “completely false.”  They have asked NYP for a full retraction.

While we’re pondering that,  Rebecca, a supposed “close friend” of Debbie’s ran to Extra and shared private emails sent between the two.  Check these out:

July 2nd

“I’m not going after custody,” Debbie writes to Rebecca. “These kids are not mine. They were never mine. They were always Michael’s. I was Michael’s best friend.”

July 5th

“My lawyer is telling me I have to take some responsibility about the welfare of the children,” Rowe writes. “Do I want the kids? Hell no. Does it look good for me to ask for them? Absolutely. I don’t want to look like the woman who gave away her kids and just forgot about them. Would Michael want Joe to have them? I think it would be the last thing that he would ever have wanted.”

In addition, Rebecca told Extra, “The motivation is money,.  I really have to be honest… If the children aren’t the ones she wants, what else will she gain from it?”

Debbie Rowe has decided not to pursue custody for the two biological children that she carried for Michael Jackson.  I say “decided not to pursue” which in the case of Debbie Rowe, will always mean “received a really large financial settlement.”

In an agreement drawn up between the Jackson family lawyer and Debbie’s lawyer, Rowe will receive a payment of approximately $4M in exchange for terminating her parental rights once and for all.  Thankfully, there is a clause that prohibits her from shaking down the next guardian-in-waiting if Katherine Jackson were to die.  I guess you could say this is an “All Sales Final” deal.

Let’s see, this makes the third time Debbie Rowe has sold these children.  When she gave birth to them, she received $8M and $900,000 a year for five years.  Then when the sexual abuse allegations surfaced, she brokered a deal for another $4M and a house worth almost a million bucks.  My basic math skills tell me that these kids have been sold for almost $22M at this point.  I find this so sad. 

Meanwhile, Joe Jackson wants a Jackson 3 (Michael’s three children) group to be formed, the other Jackson brothers that were to be a part of a new reality show are upping their demands from $200,000 for the pilot up to $10-20 million, and Michael’s body has been removed from its temporary resting place at Forest Lawn to undergo more testing.  These.  Poor.  Children.

 Jackson has erased any doubt as to where she stands on the death of her brother Michael.  In a four-hour interview with News of the World, she shares her belief that her brother was murdered for his money and Beatles song catalog.  “We don’t think just one person was involved in the murder. It was a conspiracy to get Michael’s money.  I know who did it and I won’t rest until I nail them!”  While LaToya is busy screwing the suspects, I hope the police get involved in making some arrests.

She also discussed the condition of Jackson’s body as more evidence supporting her theory of foul play.  “He had many needle marks on his neck and on his arms, and more about those will emerge in the next few weeks. But nothing has changed my mind that this was murder and I won’t give up until I find out what killed my brother.  A couple of years ago Michael told me he was worried that people were out to get him. He said, ‘They’re gonna kill me for my publishing. They want my catalogues and they’re gonna kill me for these.’”

Michael’s sister asserts that the people who most closely surrounded the pop star controlled his environment and kept him from family.  “They tried to keep the family away at all times, even my dad.  Michael was being controlled. No one could get through to him.  We wanted to know why we were being kept away and my father Joe was always trying to get to see him. He tried so hard to be there for Michael. He was seen as a threat but he was trying to help. And if you keep the family away, you can conquer. It’s like they say, divide and conquer.”

LaToya also takes credit for ordering the second autopsy.  She already knows the result of the toxicology reports performed by the family’s coroner and could only say “I think everyone will be surprised when the results come out.”   Listen, the only way people are going to be surprised is if  his blood work comes back showing nothing except Flintstone vitamins.

LaToya had so much more to say — after all, when was the last time the media wanted to talk to her? — that you can read here.  Is there any doubt that she’ll be speaking to reporters for the rest of her life about Michael’s “murder,” children, and legacy?

Joe Jackson granted an interview to ABC news — you can watch a clip here — in which he spoke about his son Michael’s death.  He stated that he truly believes MJ died at the hands of foul play and also alluded to Michael’s children being in show business.  Some people never learn …  Even when asked what he remembered most about his son, it was about his performing ability.  I haven’t heard this man talk at all about Michael, the person.

There is a protocol followed by most major news outlets:  they don’t pay for interviews.  But they do pay licensing fees for media that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to, such as home movies.  Joe Jackson, ever the opportunist, accepted a payment of $200,000 from the network in exchange for early home movies of his meal ticket Jackson that were used in the interview.

Things on the horizon that you can expect:  A book “written” by Joe Jackson, a Jackson family tour complete with Michael’s kids, civil lawsuits filed by Joe aimed at every health care professional who ever met Michael, King of Pop merchandise licensing deals on everything from lunch boxes to cereal boxes.  After all, Michael’s death is a business — a profit-making venture.  To his father, at least.

Poor Michael Jackson! As we’d assumed originally following his death, it appears the talented singer struggled terribly in a battle against drugs.

Documents obtained by CNN — created in 2004 during preparations for Jackson’s molestation trial — indicate that the singer took between 10 and 40 Xanax pills a night. (Although no one seems to know the dosage of those pills, which is strange. Usually these things are described in milligrams, not “pills.”) The documents show that Michael used his employees’ names, aliases and a variety of out-of-state doctors to amass all these pills. Among the pill bottles found at Neverland Ranch in 2004 was a generic form of Xanax prescribed for Frank Tyson (a Jackson employee) by Dr. Arnold Klein, the rumored bio-dad of Jackson’s kids. A bottle of Prednisone found at the Ranch was also prescribed by Dr. Klein in the name of Peter Midani. Now keep in mind that Dr. Klein is a dermatologist — he’s got no business prescribing Xanax. I understand that acne can be stressful, but, in general, you’d have to take that up with a psychiatrist to get anti-anxiety meds. And no one has any good reason to take 40 Xanax per night. “This dosage is exceedingly high for any human being,” said CNN’s Sanjay Gupta, and that’s almost an understatement.

Authorities are buzzing about possibly considering Jackson’s death a homicide, but they’re waiting on the results of the toxicology tests from the autopsy. “And based on those, we will have an idea of what it is we are dealing (with): are we dealing with a homicide or are we dealing with an accidental overdose?” said LA Police Chief William Bratton.

Michael Jackson’s dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein continued his media tour yesterday, appearing on CNN’s Larry King Live. 

Obviously, he was asked again if he was the parent of any of MJ’s children, and again he gave a total non-answer.  In this interview, Dr. Klein admitted that he once donated sperm to a sperm bank but notto Michael Jackson directly.  He won’t just say “No, I’m not the father.”  And the reason for that?  Well, nothing has been announced yet, but I suspect a book deal is in the works.

Jump, to confirm that Dr. Arnold Klein is actually the gatekeeper of The Wizard of Oz. (more…)