bboy87 said:

this thread should've died 5 pages ago
btw love the george michaels avy

You gotta have faith!
*Wiggles ass*

:bump:

marnifrances said:

You're a person with a Michael Jackson avatar trying to rationalize MJ's lifestyle as somehow "normal" -- so we know where your head is. Even among the excesses associated with those with ample money and fame, MJ's lifestyle is considered freakish.

LittleAmy said:

I am a fan, yes, but that doesn't mean I am an apologist. And I never apologized for (or rationalized) anything he does. Nor did I ever once say he was normal. You do not know where anyone's head is, let alone mine.

In fact I do think he's highly unusual. Again, stop generalizing and assuming all fans are the same.

so what happened? Did Michael lose Neverland?

SoulAlive said:

Michael Jackson Seeks to Keep Neverland Ranch

February 27, 2008

(CNN) -- Pop star Michael Jackson will avoid foreclosure on his Neverland Ranch property with a new loan, a Jackson insider told CNN Wednesday.

Michael Jackson owes millions of dollars on his sprawling property in the Santa Ynez Valley in California.

Documents show that Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, California, is scheduled for a public auction on March 19 at Santa Barbara's downtown courthouse.

But the Jackson source said that won't happen.

"Michael Jackson's ranch is not going to be auctioned off at the courthouse," the Jackson insider said. "The financing is all being worked out."

"There are plenty of lenders willing to work with him. The real estate market is very bad right now and Jackson is being affected just like many other Americans," the source said.

The Santa Barbara County Recorder's Web site lists a "notice of trustees sale" by Jackson and his property lenders, Financial Title Company, filed Monday.

In California, title companies typically represent lenders in foreclosure cases.

A notice of trustees sale cannot be posted earlier than 90 days after a notice of default is filed. That notice is not filed unless a loan is in substantial default, sometimes six months or more past due.

A real estate source inside Santa Barbara County said the trustees filing is only the first step in a long process that could drag on for months.

The real estate source said other options are available to Jackson, including selling the ranch directly to another party or making a payment on his $24.5 million Neverland debt that would satisfy the trustee.

The recorder's Web site also reveals there was a release of lien on Jackson on February 4, showing he paid off all or part of delinquent taxes to the state of California.

"It seems unlikely that someone would pay off back taxes, only to let the ranch go up for auction a few weeks later," said the real estate source.

Jackson has not lived at Neverland since June 2005, after a Santa Barbara County jury found him not guilty of child molestation charges.

Source: CNN.

I guessed he might just get another loan. This guy's been living off of loans now for over a decade. Of course it's all just delaying the inevitable. The only question is how long he can sustain this way of living before he finally gets a job.
[Edited 3/11/08 14:13pm]

Bit of an old article and information from a "source". Michael still hasn't resolved it and he's got about 8 days to do so. He's already had 2 weeks to do something and 3 months before THAT.

You guys REALLY believe this will get sorted? lmao

Doesn't look like a lender has "worked" with him so far.

Does Michael even have managers and advisors? It seems like they would encourage him to get back to work and make some money! He wouldn't be in this mess if we would get his ass on the road and tour.

marnifrances said:

Oh, there's no doubt he's gonna lose Neverland, but given his track record of paying debts with loans, it's possible he might delay it. Really though, he should just let it go, because if he doesn't lose it now, he'll lose it later.

SoulAlive said:

He fires anyone that tells him the truth.

Michael doesn't want to perform because he knows he can't cut it anymore. If he'd looked after his finances then he'd be in a position to retire from the stage with dignity and not ruin people's memories by going out there and giving lame performances. That would be the best scenario. To just walk away; leave the memories in people's minds and build a new life. But then the question comes up, what the hell else can he do? Raising kids is not enough. Millions of people do that and still have full time jobs. Sadly, I don't think anything will ever give him the same focus his musical career gave him. Somehow I can't see Mike running a farm or taking up golf.
[Edited 3/11/08 7:35am]

What Neverland looks like today...

In those pics, I don't see any llamas. I sure hope they're okay.
As anyone been feeding 'em?
Cuz if they haven't,
they definitely must've gone feral by now.
Goin' around, fending for theyselves by hunting raccoons, squirrels 'n' shit.
I mean,
if I was llama on Neverland,
that's what I'd do.

TheMightyCelestial said:

All the animals were put into a different place.

midnightmover said:

And how do you know he can't cut it? lol. (I know he probably wouldn't have the same level of energy any more, but no one has seen him perform properly since like 2002 or 2003) He doesn't tour simply because he doesn't like touring. he's said that on more than one occasion. It doesn't really matter tho- he doesn't really have to do shit ever again. It would be nice to have one more album tho. In any case, i really find it hard to believe he's in 'financial trouble' with all the money he'd be making from his mijac and sony/atv catalogues alone. I think he just has poor advice or no advice and just doesn't know what he's doing any more. He used to have a staff that ran everything- his finances, legal stuff, neverland and so on. Now it seems he's got one spokesperson / manager and a body guard. he needs some decent people around him to help him handle his shit.

marnifrances said:

I saw the History tour. I saw MSG '01. Michael lost it dance-wise over a decade ago. He's now years older than he was even then, so he's only gonna be slower now. Now, if he could still sing then he could just restructure his show to focus on that, but the problem is he can't sing live. He hasn't done a truly "live" concert in 21 years. There's a reason for that, and no, it's not because he dances (he mimes ballads too). The reason is simply because he doesn't have the vocal stamina anymore. Singing in the studio is one thing. You can always overdub. Singing live is another thing. Michael knows that better than anyone.

So without the singing or the dancing what is there left?
[Edited 3/12/08 10:29am]

Vanilli said:

who gives fuck about that child molester

midnightmover said:

Just out of curiosity, what makes you so certain of this that you can state it as a fact?

The fact that he hasn't done a live concert in a couple of decades is not enough IMHO. There are other arguable reasons for this, the most obvious one being the accute stage fright certain columnists would have us believe he suffers from.

Marrysharronsluvchild said:

You evidently give enough of a fuck to follow this thread and take the time to post in it.

If you really don't care, why not take the time you would otherwise waste on this and go enjoy some fresh air?

Annika said:

Tries not to laugh

Dude, not only has your man done less and less live singing since 1988, but the quality of the live singing he does do on stage has also got worse and worse. Some of the vocals on the History tour were unlistenable. Even on the Dangerous tour, he originally planned to do it all live, but was clearly struggling and so started miming half the show. You only had to listen to the live singing he was doing to hear that his voice was in decline. His voice always got worse as the tours progressed and the lip synching always increased. Is it just a coincidence that his increased miming coincided with a decrease in the quality of singing? Of course not.
[Edited 3/12/08 10:26am]

midnightmover said:

Thanks for your reply, though it could have done without being marinated in condescension.

I just wanted you to back things up for me. Just stating your opinion as a fact and leaving it at that pisses me off no end, especially when it comes to Michael. With the amount of shit that gets thrown around him, I at least expect people to be able to provide a bit of support for their criticisms. I don't think that's asking much, do you?

Annika said:

Sorry to condescend, but there are so many MJ fans who blind themselves to this point even when it's explained logically to them. With that avatar of yours it's only natural to presume you belong with the crazies.
[Edited 3/12/08 10:40am]

midnightmover said:

I resent that. I pride myself on being both crazy and able to recognise that my chosen idol is off his rocker (and love him nevertheless).

Annika said:

no offense or anything are you a prince fan and why are you here?

ehuffnsd said:

Yes I am a Prince fan, but I'm here because I like the OT music section. It's nice and full of intelligent people with interesting opinions.

I STFU for the most part, since I rarely have anything useful to add myself, and only post if something gets me really riled up (usually MJ related, as you can see from my post history).

I try not to bother anyone.

I had a llama-burger yesterday.
And I gotta be honest with y'all.....
they're pretty goddamn tasty.

TheMightyCelestial said:

Burger King is adding them to their value meal along with Llama Tenders

bboy87 said:

@ the both of you.

The Associated Press just reported that Michael has saved Neverland from being foreclosed.