LEMON: In July, 1984, the Jackson 5 reunited in a flurry of publicity. LEMON: Ben Brockman was one of Jackson's attorneys. 3 takeaways from Oprah Winfrey's interview after 'Leaving Neverland' Of course, the idea that Michael Jackson may have been not just an abuser, but a pedophile, was not new to me or the rest of the world before news broke about the upcoming Leaving Neverland, which documentary filmmaker Reed began production on last year. Uploaded by 1979, "Off the Wall." LEMON: Motown gave the group a record deal. Get updates on your favorite shows, the latest from Oprah's world and more! (COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) (CROSS TALK) LEMON: The very public trials of Michael Jackson eventually took their toll. LEMON: That album was 1982's "Thriller." I knew it wouldn't look right. My father didn't love me enough. In 1993, Oprah helmed what would become the most-watched TV interview of all time a title which the show still proudly holds. He said he urged the singer to keep children out of his bedroom. JACKSON: This one, this one -- CASTRO: Almost pathological in his spending ways. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a gentleman here that needs help. Throughout the film, we hear from both men (in, yes, graphic, explicit detail) about exactly what they say transpired between each of them and Jacksonand across four hours, we hear why neither of them came forward about what purportedly happened to them until adulthood. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Iran's response to U.S. criticism of its presidential election will be crushing and remorseful. RODNEY JENKINS, MUSIC PRODUCER: He created things that we've never seen before, visually, in music. It was an exclusive talk with Michael Jackson who had refused to be interviewed for 14 years. And Michael was God to me.". Oprah Winfrey's intense interview with Michael Jackson accusers from SMITH: He backed out of the auction. Jackson Interview High in Ratings - The New York Times No word on where they were taken. The King of Pop was now a king in debt; a lavish lifestyle, and legal woes led him into near financial ruin. LEMON: Three years later, in the fall of 1991, "Dangerous" was released. There he continued to surround himself with children in a make-believe paradise where he could relive his childhood. LEMON: His long-time choreographer, Kenny Ortega, was at that last rehearsal, as he had been each night for three months. It's a very complicated cultural dynamic with roots in slavery and beyond that would take me an entire separate article to unpack. My "CNN Presents: Man in The Mirror" continues. Interviews. . LEMON: Family members came to Jackson's defense. In an exclusive interview, Murray's attorney tells CNN his client is upset over Jackson's death and that he plans to cooperate fully. It was the kind of attention and screams he was accustomed to. QUINCY JONES, MUSIC PRODUCER: I said, you know what? SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS TODAY AND ENJOY THE BENEFITS. But their victory tour reviews were mixed. Michael, a fiercely private entertainer, had refused to give an interview for 14 years. There are no reviews yet. A child's understanding of "abuse". He wasn't touring. He pleaded not guilty. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The record flew out of stores. According to Winfrey, the conversation was unscripted and uncensored. After nearly a decade of being suspected of child molestation, the King of Pop was about to face the music. His next saying on the I won't grow up, I'm a lost boy, I'm Peter Pan. WINFREY: He did? But I think it was about '85, '86, and I was like, wow. He is later joined by his sister and guest star, LaToya Jackson (1983/1984): . The circus surrounding the trial seemed more than Jackson could bear. Record producer Ronnie Jerkins worked with Jackson. JACKSON: It's not sexual. Interview of young Michael Jackson at his parents' home in Encino, California. And in 1999, they divorced. TARABORELLI: The thing about Michael is that he does want what he wants, and he will find a way to get it. The Michael Jackson Interview: Oprah Reflects On February 10, 1993, Oprah sat down with Michael Jackson for what would be the most-watched interview in television history. How Michael Jackson Fans Almost Got Oprah Winfrey Canceled - TheThings BEN BROCKMAN, ATTORNEY FOR MICHAEL JACKSON: I was trying my best to get him down. When Michael spoke with Oprah, he was extremely open about the sensitive subject, saying his father called him ugly, beat him and frightened him. "My mother's wonderful. It was the last time the public viewed the artist not mired in disturbing allegations. It's sort of like the anti- King Midas, like everything he wants to do just gets screwed up. Tern notes that he believes that Michael thought the interview would clean up his image, but instead it showed the grandiloquence of his fame, of having no childhood, which knocks a person off kilter forever.. The interview would be Jackson's last. LEMON: Michael had another money-making trick up his sleeve. In 1993, Oprah Winfrey made history by conducting the most-watched interview in television history. THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. URI GELLER, AUTHOR: I was the only person who had the chutzpah to scream at him and tell him that this business of inviting children to his bedroom is wrong. It is bigger than Michael Jackson's fans, bigger than me defending the soundtrack to my childhood. I didnt even want to look in the mirror, my father would tell me I was ugly and I would cry all the time, he said of his adolescence. And sadly, he really internalized that message. BOTEACH: He repudiated the adult world. Leaving Neverland and Oprah's interview helped me come to terms with the fact that by continuing to defend Michael Jackson in the name of his talent, I was contributing to our society's habit of victim shaming. Michael, a fiercely private entertainer, had refused to give an interview for 14 years. LEMON: In 1986, a photograph of Michael asleep in an anti-aging chamber rocked the tabloids. LEMON: The case was eventually settled for nearly $20 million, and the suit was dropped in 1994. Kim Kardashian Back in 2012, Kim did a tell-all interview with Oprah about her leaked sex tape with former partner Ray J. He announced his farewell tour, This Is it, in a brief press conference on March 5, 2009, in London. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody like it anywhere in the world. Michael Jackson and Oprah Winfrey during the high-profile interview at Neverland Ranch on February 10, 1993; according to some estimates, the broadcast drew nearly 100 million viewers worldwide. His steelworker father, Joe, turned five of his boys into a band with five-year-old Michael out front. Interviews :: True Michael Jackson I had go-to lines about being able to separate the art from the man; about how Jackson was certainly an oddball with an affinity for children because of his own troubled upbringing, but that didn't make him a criminal; about how there was never any real proof that he had abused children. LEMON: Fan clubs, trading cards, Michael Jackson dolls. NORRIS: Michael had begun to exhibit a certain, I think aloofness, and a tendency to kind of withdraw from the world. Jackson vehemently denied the accusation on national TV. me with them and I will put them on here. And they were expected to meet with L.A. police today. CRAIG MARKS, FORMER EDITOR, "BLENDER" MAGAZINE: Hysterical adulation does play tricks with your mind. There wouldn't even be the MTV that is now without Michael Jackson's influence. Long-awaited, the buzz was big. I said that Michael is over-medicating and that I did not want to see this kind of a case develop. Of course, in all other meetings there were a whole entourage present. The special featured an interview between musician Michael Jackson and Oprah Winfrey, filmed at his Neverland Ranch in California. 10 best Oprah celebrity interviews of all time 1. LEMON: Millions in mourning. There would be no other form, honestly. LEMON: Legendary music producer Quincy Jones would produce Jackson's first adult solo album. This Controversial Interview Is The Most Watched In TV - TheThings Before Oprah's interview with Robson, 36, and Safechuck, 40, HBO screened all four hours of Leaving Neverland. So off he went to the island nation of Bahrain. Michael Jackson Talks to Oprah - Wikipedia LEMON: With each not guilty verdict, the crowd outside cheered. MJ: You're welcome anytime. There's a lot of mysterious phases of Michael Jackson's career, but the last three are particularly mysterious. Someone created a piano. (SINGING) (END VIDEOTAPE). The craze reached a fever pitch in 1984 when a Pepsi commercial gone awry sparked even more frenzy. MONROE: The trial hurt him to the core. Oprah is the queen of this format (her 2021 conversation with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is the most recent great example of the show-interview). I'm Don Lemon. Several items were taken away. LEMON: R&B superstar Usher. LEMON: But in 1993, disturbing allegations surfaced concerning Jackson's association with children. LEMON: And with Neverland came the children. He felt betrayed. This was recorded on VHS in the 90's. Show more Show more I would see kids on the monkey bars and I would cry because I couldn't have a childhood. 1993 Michael Jackson interview (Oprah) - YouTube JACKSON: I ask all of you to wait and hear the truth before you label or condemn me. "He kept getting whiter and whiter and whiter, and nobody understood why," Oprah says. OPRAH IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF HARPO, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2023 HARPO PRODUCTIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. He only comes along once. He also sang and danced. He had the discipline at such a young age, originality, willing to try everything, a work ethic, all of it. Oprahs 1993 interview closed with one of the last candid images we would see of Michael Jackson: Oprah and he walking toward the Neverland amusement park, as the camera pans up and music plays. JACKSON: My friends and doctors advise me to seek professional guidance in order to eliminate what has become an addiction. Michael entered the shot walking downstairs as Thriller played in the background, but no one was applauding. Like what are we doing? I mean, you couldn't stop them. "After the attention is no longer on this film, this is something I will be dealing with for the rest of my life," Safechuck told Oprah. OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: So he would tease you, make fun of you? This content is imported from poll. He also raised eyebrows with his red carpet companions Brooke Shields and Emmanuel Lewis. Michael showed Oprah his Neverland Ranch, and once they settled in the theater, he talked about his social work and his interest in helping children. Do you go out and have fun, do you date? Yes, Michael replied. In the show, 44-year-old Jackson admitted to letting children sleep with him in his bed at Neverland. I was always crying from loneliness. With that, live in front of 62 million viewers, Jackson established the first great myth that would surround him from that moment on (and which his most diehard fans would use to justify his most outlandish behaviors): the kid whose childhood was stolen from him. And he just didn't look like anyone else you'd ever met. Leaving Neverland is about the childrenand adultswho are silenced by people like me who are quick to defend accusers simply because of their statusor the people who choose to live in silence because they are afraid of exactly that happening. LEMON: But Brockman says the superstar was terrified. He's not breathing and we need -- we're trying to pump him but he's not -- UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, OK. How old is he? An aerial view of Jackson's Neverland theme park taken in 2011. that interview Jackson did with Martin Bashir, a study by the Census Bureau and Stanford University, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. As a result, its lead single "Black or White" shot to number one. (In 1993, after 13-year-old Jordan Chandler and his father accused Jackson of child sexual abuse, a police investigation was inconclusive, and Jackson settled with the family out of court. He sat there on a daily basis, watching accusations hurled at him, suggesting that he was an insensitive monster. So as a community, when we do see our people succeed, we want to cheer them on. And, worst of all, a potentially terrible father. The Oprah Winfrey-Michael Jackson interview 30 years later In February 1993, the talk show host landed the first live, televised talk with the singer in 14 years. "You said on my show, 'Yes, this was a real marriage,'" Oprah says, referring to her 2005 interview with Lisa Marie. More "CNN Presents: The Man in The Mirror" in just a moment. The interview was one of those must-watch television events that stop everyone in their tracks; it presaged the massive viral video before the popularization of the internet: if one didnt see the interview, there was nothing to talk about the next day. And his brothers were on stage with him. This is the final curtain call. And all you had to do was to look in his eyes and to know that was the truth. And I would record for hours and hours until it was time to go to sleep. Sometimes he would come to see me, and I would throw up. As an adult too? Yes., Then Oprah started to fire away. I try not to look in the mirror too much, Im never happy with what I see., The interview was visually powerful; one could almost enjoy watching it on mute. JACKSON: Yes. Then in 1996, Jackson sent shock waves around the world when it was announced he had married Debbie Rowe, his dermatologist nurse. I'd like to take a shot at producing your record. Im going to ask you something and its embarrassing for me, but Im going to ask it anyway. ORTEGA: It was awesome to watch him. Capture a web page as it appears now for use as a trusted citation in the future. CNN.com - Transcripts After the second half airs on Monday, March 4, Oprah Winfrey Presents: After Neverland" will air simultaneously on HBO and OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network on at 10:00 PM EST. he looks soo mad wen the alarm goes offits soo cute. Michael Jackson's House - Michael Jackson Fan Page - www.mjshouse.com Media mogul Suzanne de Passe was there at the beginning. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Love you, Mike! Did he ever hit you? Yes. Why? He was very strict; just his look alone terrified me. LEMON: The shadow of drug abuse would follow him even into death. This is the first time I really had an opportunity to be completely alone with him. She was referencing the naysayers on social media who were alreadybefore even watching the two-part documentarydiscrediting Robson and Safechuck, calling them liars because neither of them had spoken up when they were younger about what they say happened to them. It was in the same league as David Frosts interview with Richard Nixon in 1977, Barbara Walters interview with Monica Lewinsky in 1999 and, outside the United States, Martin Bashirs interview with Princess Diana in 1995. BROCKMAN: I recognized that, you know, this is Michael Jackson. He was the seventh of nine children. Michael had turned down interviews for 14 years, until allowing Oprah access to Neverland. powerspyin1 ", If there's one dance move for which Michael will forever be remembered, it's unquestionably the moonwalk. Later, he added: "Michael told me it was love, that God brought us together. The interview with Jackson took place at his huge Neverland Ranch, complete with its own amusement park and zoo. Are you a virgin? Michael sighed, laughed and replied, How could you ask me that question? Ultimately, he sidestepped a direct answer with an odd response. They performed as if they had been performing for years. ", Michael's relationship with his father, Joe Jackson, has made plenty of headlines throughout the years. Meantime, the Reverend Jesse Jackson tells CNN the Jackson family wants answers. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. THOMAS MESEREAU, LAWYER FOR MICHAEL JACKSON: It took a terrible toll. Oprah's interview with Michael is one of the most-watched TV events in history, with 90 million people tuning in to watch and more than 7.8million catching up on the interview on YouTube since . You know? All the questioning that we have reviewed to this point occurred in just 30 minutes. Information from IMDB:Oprah interviews Michael Jackson, broadcast live around the world from his home at the Neverland Ranch. LOS ANGELES (AP) _ The buzz over Michael Jackson's interview with Oprah Winfrey continued on several fronts Friday and included a statement from the pop star's dermatologist about Jackson's much-discussed skin condition. on July 25, 2021. RODNEY JERKINS, MUSIC PRODUCER: Michael called me, and he says, "Why can't we create new sounds?" LEMON: But Jackson was born to perform, and the show must go on. "You can count them on two fingers," he said. Oprah also mentioned the criticisms she had been receiving on social media, with commenters asking why she would do this interview when Jackson can't defend himselfand also accusing her of "trying to bring the Black man down.". And then there are all the gatherings, from weddings to birthdays, where the only songs that would get everyone in my mixed, multicultural family on the dance floor to attempt their best moonwalks were "Billie Jean" and "Thriller.". In 1993, Winfrey was personally invited to Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch for an interview with the notoriously private star. LEMON: Can you sing it a bit please? I think he was responding to his fans by, at least showing them his face. There are many people in the past who have done many things to themselves and they're not talked about like my brother is. There is not a single thing or person in popular culture that is worth not protecting and believing our children. In 1993, Ms. Winfrey's prime-time interview of Michael Jackson at his Neverland Ranch, . In 1993, Jackson spoke about both in this interview with Oprah Winfrey. But Jackson's reputation was seriously damaged. LEMON: The transformation was complete. LEMON: The Los Angeles Coroner's Office said they would need toxicology tests before determining the cause of death. But in January of that year, Michael had just headlined the Super Bowl halftime show (the staging and format of which provided the template for todays artists performing at the years biggest football game) and won three American Music Awards. I was never able to enjoy the simplest things that a child takes for granted in his life. JOANN SAMS, SECRETARY, ROOSEVELT HIGH SCHOOL: Oh, it was just unbelievable, because they were so young, but yet they were so talented. That's a lot of dates. Tern claims the visual aspect very subtly [drew] Michael Jacksons personality, that outdated mogul thing. An Objective View of Michael Jackson Interview Transcripts Michael Jackson, Lisa Marie Presley interview with Diane Sawyer Transcript 22nd January 1995 Diane Sawyer: And with me of course, Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley. So we started listening to tracks, like De, de, de, de, de, de. The author claims that Oprah promised not to ask him if he was gay. She kept her promise. And so Michael and his managers fought them and said Quincy's doing the record. LEMON: It worked. And I remember going to the recording studio, and there was park across the street. Oprah Reflects on Her Interview with Michael Jackson A lot of people from the Mideast love Michael Jackson. I have loved Michael Jackson the artist for several decades. On verdict day, he looked like death warmed over. LEMON: Pain that dated back at least a quarter of a century. You can count them on two fingers. It doesnt take a surgeon to know that Michael was lying; he maintained that falsehood in 2003, in his interview with Martin Bashir, when he responded sardonically to the same question: Ive had two operationsthat I can remember., But Oprah pressed the point, Youve had a nose job, thats obvious. Yes, like a lot of people I know, Michael responded But Ive never had my cheeks, eyes or lips done. Do you like the way you look now? Oprah probed further. Oprah's interview with Michael Jackson in February 1993 is the most-watched television interview in television history, with a staggering 90 million viewers. He looked horrible. Michael went from reacting to Oprahs questions with some trepidation to carrying most of the conversation. Stay up to date with the latest trends that matter to you most. But she's clearly like, whoa, what are you doing? SMOKEY ROBINSON, SINGER: Oh, in tribute to him -- how I feel about him, I would probably sing "Never Can Say Good-Bye." To no -- he's not responding to CPR or anything. USHER, SINGER: Michael had an unseen magic to influence people, the music and the culture. LEMON: The marriage collapsed less than two years after the wedding. CASTRO: If you believe the fact that he, you know -- that he has this congenital skin condition, that's why he's so white, then fine. She began by asking softball questions. And he said -- and even then he said to me, well, it was more like he says a razzle-dazzle kind of thing. Tickets sold out within hours. LEMON: On the last night of his life, Michael Jackson was rehearsing for his London show, due to open in just three weeks. They come up with these dances," Michael said. On February 10, 1993, Oprah sat down with Michael Jackson for what would be the most-watched interview in television history. But this time, Jackson's stage was the roof of an SUV, outside the Santa Barbara County courthouse. During the interview, Oprah got a private lesson in the signature move. JACKSON: Let's face it. The marriage lasted only two years, but when Michael talked with Oprah a year before his nuptials, everyone was wondering ifand whohe dated. LEMON: And his beloved Neverland was toxic asset number one. But Reed cleared up one important thing: Neither Robson nor Safechuck were paid to be a part of Leaving Neverland. ETHAN SMITH, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": After the trial, he had spent a lot of money on lawyers, and had very little coming in. RODNEY JENKINS, MUSIC PRODUCER: Wow, 50 dates; 50 dates at 50 years old? The interview shattered records with an audience of 90 million. LEMON: Jackson needed to put distance between him and the taint of Neverland. I tried to enhance the quality of. Sign up for the oprah.com live your best life newsletter, Get more stories like this delivered to your inbox. Rick: Thank you so much. This is a UK airing of the famous interview of Michael Jackson by Oprah Winfrey in 1993. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the greatest moment that disco has in its entire history. One of the first venues, the auditorium of Roosevelt High. Success at such a cost left Jackson with conflicted feelings for his father. Watching the two interviews back to back reveals an undeniable and astonishing fact: the biggest pop star the world had ever seen had become a completely different person in the intervening 14 years. The pop star's eccentric behavior hardly deterred the album's record-breaking five number ones. So, how do you write a song called "We are the World"? Pop icon Michael Jackson sat down for an intimate chat with. TOURE: Every few months you would see him, and you'd go, whoa, you're looking weird, dude. Thats why Im always surrounded by children now., After addressing how Michael felt going from an adorable child prodigy to a teenager, Winfrey laid the groundwork to address the singers controversial physical appearance; by then, the grown man had a pale complexion, a narrow, pointed nose, a Kirk Douglas-like dimple in his chin and he wore copious white makeup on his face. Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley: The 20-month marriage of the strangest couple in pop, Michael Jacksons nephew to star in King of Pop biopic, In Cuba with no sugar, spotty internet, and frustrated Kardashians, Christina Applegate attends probably last award show after multiple sclerosis diagnosis, Released audio suggests Greek train driver told to ignore red light, Ukraine outgunned 10 to 1 in massive artillery battle with Russia, Maestra en Big Data y Analytics 100% en lnea, MBA Administracin y Direccin de Empresas en lnea, Programa en lnea en 'Project Finance' Internacional, Maestra en lnea en Direccin de Recursos Humanos y Gestin del Talento, Maestra en Comercio Internacional presencial en Madrid, Espaa, Maestra en Marketing Digital & E-Commerce. I'm ashamed to admit it in writing, but, here goes: I was one of those critics. Robson told Oprah of his decision to speak out: "If anything that I say is going to help any other survivors, then I should be able to speak the truth.". After, Robsonnow a famed choreographer known for his work with singers like Britney Spears and *NSYNCexplained why he lied to the public for years. He didn't exchange words with his lawyers very often. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fifty, OK. 'Are you a virgin?': The Oprah Winfrey-Michael Jackson interview 30 Oprahs assumed naivet achieves complicity with both Michael and the viewer, and on television complicity allows for everything. Also, two moving vans showed up today at the rented L.A. home where Jackson apparently collapsed. GORDY: Suzanne de Passe insisted I meet with these kids and audition them. Don't treat me like a criminal, because I am innocent. Or at least that was how it went until February 10, 1993, when, sitting across from Oprah Winfrey in an ABC live special, he responded. SMITH: Neverland, which cost him around 19 million dollars in 1987, had a staff of about 150 at its peak, and all these carnival rides, exotic animals which required full-time veterinary care. 90 million people tuned in for the sit-down chat at the King of Pop's Neverland Valley Ranch in Los Olivos, California. You think about what the it factor is, that's what he had. He wasn't making new records. The Winfrey-Jackson interview was the 101st highest-rated show in television history. With Michael Jackson, you never know what the truth is. Michael Jackson, Oprah, Elizabeth Taylor, Debbie Rowe and many other people watching MJ talking to Oprah on TV in a bedroom: Link: The Mexico Deposition in 1993 and "Dangerous .