Michael Jackson: AEG Lawyers May Ask Court for Sanctions over Leaked Emails
The lawyers for AEGLive, the company being sued by Michael Jackson’s family for his alleged wrongful death, are fuming. I am told they may ask the court for sanctions against the Jackson family and their attorneys as early as Tuesday over emails that were leaked to the Los Angeles Times last week. The emails, which the Times published, were sealed as part of the wrongful death suit as evidence. The court case won’t be heard until next year.
But my sources say that the Jacksons, desperate for money after their failed attempt to snatch Katherine Jackson this summer, are looking for sympathy in the court of public opinion. I’m told they selectively pulled a few emails from hundreds and turned them over to the Los Angeles Times in an effort to make AEGLive look guilty of somehow forcing Michael to perform 50 concerts in London.
The truth when the totality of the emails is uncovered in court will be quite different. Michael Jackson was in deep debt when AEG first proposed he do 10 shows at the O2 Arena. That was in the fall of 2008. Jackson waffled. But eventually he was persuaded to agree simply because he had no choice. In practical terms, he was broke. AEG offered him an easy way to make some decent money and get back on his feet.
One thing is true: on the way to the O2 Arena announcement in March 2009, Jackson freaked out. He got ripping drunk. The result can be seen in the video of the announcement. Michael is grinning from ear to ear, laughing, and has no idea what to say other than “This is it.” On the way to the announcement from London, he was petrified. He was very late arriving at the Arena, as well, making everyone wait.
What the LA Times has discounted is the documentary, “This Is It.” For as much as Michael was petulant, stubborn, lazy, scared, etc, he was also a perfectionist with certain specific abilities. The latter are seen in the film at the rehearsals that he did show up for. And no one at AEG Live was trying to kill him, or overwork him to the point of exhaustion. AEG wanted Michael to succeed. They let him handpick everyone from Dr. Conrad Murray to his chef to trainers etc.
Let’s not forget: on May 5th, 2009 Kevin Spacey’s former manager Joanne Horowitz ran into Michael at Dr. Arnold Klein’s office. Michael was in great shape and looking forward to the tour. (Link follows.) Jackson’s mental and physical status changed on a daily basis as the London shows loomed. Like any performer, there were days when he was excited and others when he was apprehensive.
read: http://www.showbiz411.com/2009/07/01/20090701jacko-michael-jackson-joanne-horowitz-studio-54-arnold-klein
I am so sorry but you are completely deluded. Michael had a very bad problem with alcohol and substances. He frequently drank wine from Coke cans. It’s been chronicled endlessly. In 2005, in court, we watched a video of the taping of the Martin Bashir special where he was smashed. A great musician, a humanitarian, but a human–don’t forget that.
Michael Jackson NEVER drank FYI and in the press conference he talked normally. Another BS article FULL of craps. Geez.. some media are really disgusting. oh.. don’t matter you do not publish my comment, just you to know it ASSHOLE
Sheesh, with siblings like Randy, Tito, Jermaine, Janet and whoever else signed that letter, who needs enemies? Michael didn’t do anything to deserve the wretched family he has.
And while it sure looks like the Jacksons are leaking these emails, I don’t think it’s going to garner them loads of sympathy. On the contrary, they are getting a reputation for having no clue what should remain private family business and this is another example. They shamefully expose their famous brother and drag his rep through the gutter for the sake of a few (they hope million) bucks to mooch off. It’s disgusting.
“Lazy” is not a term that could ever describe Michael Jackson. I agree he must have been apprehensive as well as excited. The perfectionist would have shown up in the end–it seems likely, based on the footage from TII, that he would have been stunningly brilliant at reminding us exactly who he was and why he was the best.
Jackson was sabotaged by lack of sleep, pure and simple. Sleep deprivation will make even mundane tasks and ordinary stresses appear insurmountable. If ONLY he could sleep…I believe lifelong, debilitating insomnia was turning a consummate perfectionist to mush, and that opened the path for Murray to inappropriately give him the Propofol that ultimately killed him.
its sick and perverted that for a reason some media have an obsessive thing in revealing strictly private affairs about Michael Jackson who always wanted to protect his privacy, the only limited area of his very public life.
Its disgusting, what else do we need to know or see? Is there such demand?
Wasnt his naked dead body enough? The autopsy report? The audio of seemingly drugged out Michael Jackson?
The idea that AEG somehow wanted Michael Jackson to fail, or die, is absolutely ridiculous! So ridiculous that it should be no surprise that it comes from the obscene collective known as the Jackson family.
They’re looking for their big payday, courtesy of AEG, but they will fail at that, just as they failed to overturn MJ’s Will and later, kidnap Katherine Jackson and estrange her from her grandchildren.
All they’ll be stuck with at the end of the day (if MJ’s estate doesn’t pick it up) are the attorney’s fees.
Before you write things like “he wanted him to succeed” go and read their so-called contract first.
Please hold it right there. Michael was known for many things, but he was not lazy. Read Jennifer Batten’s story about the tours she partook in – hard work, rehearsals of the FULL show one or twice a day at the end of the rehearsal period – and he couldn’t wait to get on stage, the place where he felt most at home. The key to this: He was of course younger, but he was also in total control.
AEG did not “offer” him “an easy way out”: They wanted to make money, which is what companies do. But they went about it in a crazy way, not taking into account who and where Michael was at this point. He was not shown respect (the contempt shines through in the leaked e-mails, and even in the movie where he is not even allowed to decide about the hearing pieces in his ear), he didn’t get to pick the costume artist (he wanted to use other clothes, designed by his old team). And he was, obviously, yelled at.
Phillips wrote that if Michael did not deliver, he would be hit by financial ruin in accordance with their contract. So he was trapped. Part of him wanted to get on stage, that is true, but being trapped and haunted by bad memories from the concerts in 2001, he stopped sleeping and Murray (who was NOT vetted by AEG) entered the scene with Lorazepam, Vailum and propofol. He saw no other way, because he was told that if he canceled, he would be dirt poor.
Michael was in shackles and Murray’s insane “treatment”, with medication that among other things causes forgetfulness, brought him down physically.
It doesn’t matter if you think the Jackson family is nuts and greedy, AEG was on the wrong track with their hardhandedness and Ortega (vaguely trying to do something, though alas not enough, and he didn’t take the necessary fight ) knew it. So the emails reflects badly on AEG, and the chain of events and tragic outcome prove it.
Some media outlets are reporting the emails tie into the Lloyd’s of London insurance lawsuit. There was a protective order listing all confidential documents including emails in this case.
The Jackson family will not receive any public sympathy from MJ fans except the groups that have blamed AEG for MJ’s death since July 2009. One thing the emails do prove and that is promotor’s will lie and not care about the the people they promote.