Jacko, His Rise and Fall: The Social and Sexual History of Michael Jackson (104 page)

Early in 2004, when Brando ventured out of
his house for the last time, it was to visit Michael
at Neverland and to sympathize with his plight.
Reportedly, Brando warned Michael not to press the charge of police brutality too strongly because if he couldn't prove it, it
might hurt his credibility later on as a witness in his own defense.

Apparently he said nothing to Michael about child molestation, but later
expressed misgivings about Michael's relationships with young boys.

Whatever "misgivings" Brando might have had about Michael might have
been revealed to confidants, but they were never revealed to California's legal
authorities.

As part of what was referred to as "the biggest witch hunt since the
Spanish Inquisition," the Los Angeles D.A.'s office called in Marlon Brando
for questioning about what he knew of the sexual abuse charges leveled
against Michael. Officers questioned the corpulent star for an astonishing
seven hours before letting him go.

Michael was known to place long late-night calls to Brando, from whom
he sought advice on personal matters. An officer in the D.A.'s office claimed,
"We wanted to know just how personal those matters were and did they concern boy love." Reportedly, Brando denied knowing anything about Michael's
sex life and claimed that the pop star had never confided "anything pertinent
in the abuse case."

While at the D.A.'s office, Brando learned that Brooke Shields, who had
"dated" Michael, had also been subpoenaed. Why she was called was not
made clear, but she duly appeared without counsel, although there was no
information that she had that was pertinent to the Arvizo case.

The final conversation between Brando and Michael was strictly private,
but sources close to Brando reported that the actor made Michael a final promise. "If any of those child molestation charges ever stick to you, I'll get you
out of the country and get you a safe refuge in Tahiti. Don't worry. I can do
it!"

This was no idle promise on Brando's part. On June 5, 2003, the actor
granted Michael sanctuary on one of the Pacific islands he owned "for the rest
of Jackson's natural life." Brando transferred unrestricted use of a half-acre on
the islet of Onetahi in the French Polynesian atoll of Tetiaroa to Michael.

Brando died of lung failure at the age of 80 on July 1, 2004. Some of the
star's ashes, along with those of his long-time lover, Wally Cox, who had died
in 1973, were scattered in Death Valley. The rest of Brando's ashes were
spread in Tahiti where he maintained several real estate investments and a private island.

Michael was reported to have "cried for three days and nights" upon
learning of the death of his beloved mentor.

After the actor's death, when news of Brando's "misgivings" about
Michael's involvement with young boys was leaked to the press, some friends
wondered if Brando's criticism of Michael wasn't a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

A former business manager for Brando, Joan Corrales, weighed in with an
opinion. She'd been fired by "The Godfather" as co-executor of his will only
12 days before he died. Subsequently, she filed a $5 million wrongful termination suit in Los Angeles. She not only charged him with sexual harassment
for exposing his genitals to her, but she claimed that he had a "disturbing"
attraction to underage girls and vividly described his "terrible fixation" on
minors.

"Brando derived pleasure from sharing his stories of sexual exploitation-including his sexual escapades with minors," Corrales charged.

In her testimony, she confirmed that the rotund recluse had deeded a
Polynesian island sanctuary to Michael.

"Brando and Jackson were birds of a feather," said a source close to both
men. "Both of them had an unnatural fixation on minors."

Michael kept his promise not to live at Neverland. In January of 2004, he
moved out of the ranch and rented a nine-bedroom mansion built in 1991 in
Beverly Hills, complete with a 36,000-square-foot ballroom and theater and
two regulation-size bowling lanes. Owned by a Chinese painter, it was on the
market for $20 million. When there were no takers, Michael rented the property for $70,000 a month as part of a one-year lease. The mansion was allegedly secured for him by Leonard Muhammad, the advisor of the Nation of Islam.
Reporters couldn't help but note that the rented mansion overlooked a children's park and playground.

A few days later, on January 16, 2004, Michael, aged 45, arrived late for
his arraignment in Santa Maria, California on child molestation charges. In a
whispery voice, he pleaded "Not Guilty."
Inside, the courtroom was packed, and outside,
some 3000 people, including hundreds of hysterical fans, waited shoulder-to-shoulder with
news media from as far away as Norway and
Japan. Some fans had crossed the deserts of
Nevada in cars called the "Caravan of Love."

Jermaine

When Michael had arrived in a black sports
utility vehicle, a roar had gone up for him. A
huge black umbrella shielded his white skin
from the California sun. One news reporter said
he looked "like a cross between Mary Poppins
and Mary Tyler Moore." He wore a silk armband and rhinestone-studded boots for his
arraignment. Making a surprise appearance
was his superstar sister, Janet, who only smiled as Michael repeatedly claimed, "I love my
fans!" Brother Jermaine, Joe Jackson, and
mother Katherine were part of his entourage.

Upon Michael's arrival, stern men in dark
suits with walkie talkies were posted every few
feet, forming a wall around Michael. These radical Muslims were from Louis Farrakhan's
Nation of Islam.

Mark Geragos

Reporters worked overtime, investigating
and subsequently filing stories about Michael's
new link with the Nation of Islam and Louis
Farrakhan.

During its turbulent history, the controversial black militant group has issued statements
claiming that "whites are devils who must be
destroyed." The group, whose membership is
estimated at 20,000, has referred to Jews as
"bloodsuckers" and campaigned aggressively for a separate African-American
state.

Journalist Geoffrey Wansell asked, "So has the androgynous former child
star from Gary, Indiana, who spent years undergoing plastic surgery apparently designed to make him look white, suddenly decided to return to his roots?
Or is it a final, desperate effort to stave off the long arm of the law? Michael
will do anything-anything-that will keep him out of prison, one former colleague told me this week. He clearly hopes the Nation can help him do that."

Unlike his brother Jermaine, Michael had not become a Muslim. It was
reported that he was still a Jehovah's Witness, but despite that detail,
Farrakhan had stationed Leonard Muhammad, his son-in-law and chief of
staff, within the Los Angeles office of Michael's lawyer, Mark Geragos.

In reaction to this, a member of Michael's staff, who refused to be named,
resigned in protest at the Nation's increasing control over Michael. "These
people are basically brainwashing him," the former employee charged. "They
tried to do the same thing with Whitney Houston. They offer a false sense that
they can control everything. Everybody is afraid of them. They pretty much
keep Jackson semi-captive."

It has been suggested by Michael's worst critics that he wanted to align
himself with Farrakhan-sometimes called "the black man's Hitler"-as a
politically correct anti-racism stance, perhaps a last-minute attempt to win the
support of black Americans, whom he'd frequently shunned. O.J. Simpson,
who had courted white women throughout most of his life, had also solicited
the Nation for support when he faced criminal charges of murder.

Michael was said to have prayed with Farrakhan and to have been fascinated by his story of being swept up into a UFO and taken to the larger mother ship. Michael wanted to know if these extraterrestrials looked like E.T.
Farrakhan reportedly told Michael that the UFO "mother wheel" was piloted
by a dozen young men who were in perpetual orbit above the Earth, prepared
for a signal from Elijah Muhammad to unleash total destruction on all the
"white devils" of Earth, but rescuing all people with black skin. The question
is, does Michael still believe the words of his former hit single where he
famously sang, "It don't matter if you're black or white"?

"With friends like Farrakhan and those boys from the Nation of Islam,
Michael Jackson doesn't need enemies," or so claimed reporter David Keller,
reportedly writing a book on the black militant group.

Back at the courthouse, as members of the Nation of Islam guard gazed
ominously at the proceedings, Judge Rodney Melville fumed at the sight of
Michael buzzing theatrically into the courtroom 21 minutes late. "Mr.
Jackson, you have started out on the wrong foot with me," the judge said. "I
will not put up with that. It's an insult to the court."

After leaving the courtroom, Michael headed for his SUV, hoisting himself up onto its roof. In doing so, he gave no indication of the shoulder injury
he'd claimed to have received from police "manhandling." In the background, music blared from boom boxes. From his perch on top of the SUV and
from under an umbrella, he blew kisses into the air and even performed a few
dance moves, whipping the crowd into a frenzy.

Members of the Nation of Islam distributed invitations to fans, inviting
them on the following day to a bash at Neverland "in a spirit of love and
togetherness." Hundreds of fans showed up
the next day for fried chicken, turkey dogs,
and ice cream, but Michael was a no-show.
His fans rode the Ferris wheel and stared in
awe at the snakes. But their hope that
Michael would appear was never realized.

MJ on top of the SUV

At the arraignment, news leaked that
Gavin Arvizo, the accuser, was in poor
health. He'd lost a kidney, his spleen, and an
adrenal gland in surgery to remove a large,
cancerous tumor. Gavin was reported to "be
in hiding." A spokesperson claimed, "The
boy and his family are very private people."

Even though Judge Melville had
imposed a gag order, news still leaked from
the courtyard to the press. It was learned that Gavin had supplied police with drawings of Michael's genitals, just as Jordie
Chandler had done in 1993. The boy also claimed that Michael stole his
underwear during his visits to Neverland. It was also rumored that the star
kept the underwear of many of his overnight guests, presumably as souvenirs,
especially if they were urine- stained.

At the end of January, some details about Maureen Orth's upcoming piece
in Vanity Fair was released to the press. In the article, she revealed that
Michael allegedly seduced boys by giving them a Coca Cola can filled with
white wine, calling it "Jesus Juice." Red wine was named "Jesus Blood."

In March, 2004 the grand jury convened to hear the child molestation
charges against Michael. The key witness was, of course, 14-year-old Gavin
Arvizo. The proceedings were secret, but many of the details of Gavin's testimony were revealed. The boy told the grand jury that he had been molested
by Michael at least seven times early in 2003. Gavin said that Michael "loosened me up with Jesus Juice and showed me pictures of naked women before
sexually molesting me at Neverland." Obviously this was a different Gavin
from the boy who had appeared on the Bashir TV documentary cuddling with
and praising Michael. The accuser's psychologist, Stan J. Katz, was also
brought forward to testify.