[00:00.00](MUSIC)
[00:03.87]This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.
[00:08.14](MUSIC)
[00:27.38]Fans around the world are remembering the man 
[00:30.34]who called himself the King of Pop.
[00:33.27]Michael Jackson died Thursday in Los Angeles.
[00:37.44]This was the emergency call from the house 
[00:40.83]where he was living.
[00:42.18]"We have a gentleman here 
[00:44.58]that needs help and he's not breathing.
[00:46.71]He's not breathing and we're trying 
[00:48.92]to pump him but he's not -- "
[00:49.94]"OK,OK.How old is he?"
[00:51.08]"He's fifty years old,sir."
[00:53.26]"Fifty,OK."
[00:54.53]A personal doctor was with him at the house.
[00:58.70]Michael Jackson would have celebrated 
[01:01.51]his fifty-first birthday in August.
[01:04.77]He was just days from launching 
[01:07.46]what he hoped would be a comeback 
[01:09.85]a series of fifty concerts in London.
[01:13.27]More than seven hundred fifty thousand 
[01:16.86]tickets sold out 
[01:18.54]within hours of going on sale in March.
[01:22.20]The shows were set to begin 
[01:25.04]July thirteenth.
[01:26.51]There were questions,though,
[01:28.83]about whether his health 
[01:30.72]could handle the extended tour.
[01:33.25]And after he died there were more questions 
[01:37.26]this time about his use of painkillers.
[01:40.68]Medical examiners did an autopsy on Friday,
[01:44.73]but tests for drugs in the body 
[01:47.97]normally take weeks.
[01:49.89]Around the world,
[01:51.72]fans like this one 
[01:53.33]reacted to news of his death.
[01:55.97]"Somebody like Michael Jackson 
[01:58.56]who's done so much for the world and stuff,
[02:00.20]you think almost like he's invincible."
[02:02.00](MUSIC)
[02:11.54]"Thriller," his nineteen eighty-two album,
[02:14.50]earned a place in Guinness World Records 
[02:17.04]as the best selling album of all time.
[02:20.23]It produced hits like "Beat It" 
[02:22.97]and "Billie Jean."
[02:24.43](MUSIC)
[02:36.92]Michael Jackson was born 
[02:38.47]in Gary,Indiana,
[02:40.15]the seventh of nine children.
[02:42.29]He was five years old 
[02:44.38]when he and his brothers began performing 
[02:47.37]in the Jackson 5.
[02:49.16]He was elevenwhen they had their first album.
[02:52.59]"Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5" 
[02:56.08]was released in nineteen sixty-nine.
[02:58.52]Their album "ABC" followed 
[03:01.64]less than a year later.
[03:03.23](MUSIC)
[03:11.98]In nineteen seventy-one,
[03:13.59]Michael Jackson began his solo career.
[03:17.04]He went on to sell an estimated 
[03:19.57]seven hundred fifty million albums.
[03:22.84]He was inducted into 
[03:24.80]the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -- twice.
[03:27.60]But as talented and successful as he was,
[03:31.55]he was also deeply troubled.
[03:34.21]His behavior and appearance 
[03:36.85]grew increasingly strange.
[03:39.11]He was heavily in debt.
[03:41.35]He was childlike.
[03:43.38]But in nineteen ninety-three,
[03:46.07]a thirteen-year-old boy 
[03:47.52]accused him of child molestation.
[03:50.31]The case was settled out of court.
[03:54.07]Later,another accusation 
[03:57.07]led to a criminal trial.
[03:59.60]But four years ago this month 
[04:02.35]a jury cleared him of all charges.
[04:05.51]Michael Jackson left his mark 
[04:08.27]on popular culture.
[04:10.11]His music,his videos.
[04:12.48]His dance moves and moonwalking.
[04:15.47]The hand in a sequined white glove.
[04:18.76]The father of three was even married 
[04:22.07]for a time to Elvis Presley's daughter.
[04:25.25]Now,he leaves behind family,
[04:28.52]friends and fans to mourn his death.
[04:32.40]In a sad way he did make a comeback.
[04:36.13]His death has pushed sales of his music 
[04:40.03]back to the top of the charts again.
[04:42.87]And that's IN THE NEWS 
[04:45.63]in VOA Special English,
[04:48.58]written by June Simms.
[04:50.33]I'm Steve Ember.