LOS ANGELES — Michael Jackson was one of the most famous people on Earth and also one of the most famously broke.
But the reality, people familiar with his finances say, can be summed up by the title of a Beatles’ song he counted among his possessions: “Baby, You’re a Rich Man.” Jackson’s assets outweigh his debt by at least $100 million, after taxes, according to people knowledgeable about his business holdings.
Determining a precise figure is difficult, they said, given the complexities of his finances. Additionally, those calculations do not include his posthumous earning potential, which seems immense judging by the enormous public appetite for his music and memorabilia in recent days. Moreover, his death removed the biggest drain on Jackson’s finances: his legendary impulse spending.
Who will control his estate’s great existing wealth and the even more massive fortune that licensing his name, recordings and likeness may bring is at the heart of a hearing today in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom. Lawyers for Jackson’s mother, Katherine, filed papers a week ago asking that she oversee the estate, but 48 hours later, two longtime Jackson associates filed a will the performer signed in 2002 naming them as executors.
Meanwhile, more than 1.6 million fans waited to learn Sunday whether they were among the lucky few to win access to Michael Jackson’s memorial service Tuesday at Staples Center.
Fans registered online for free in the random drawing of only 8,750 names. Each person selected will receive two tickets. The odds of getting a ticket were about 1 in 183.
The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Center plus 6,500 in the Nokia Theater overflow section next door. The streets around the stadium will be closed to prevent those without tickets from trying to attend, police said Sunday.
Assistant Police Chief Jim McDonnell warned people without tickets to stay away: “You’ll be standing in the hot sun on a city street with a lot of other people . . . but not within eyeshot of Staples.”
Also Sunday, a judge signed search warrants connected to the investigation of Jackson’s death, Los Angeles County Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini said. The warrants were sealed, and Parachini would not discuss any details.
Authorities are investigating allegations that Jackson had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and antidepressants. The powerful sedative Diprivan, which is usually administered by anesthesiologists in hospitals, was found in his home.
It was not known what drugs, if any, Jackson obtained from doctors.
Jackson’s family was planning a private ceremony at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills, McDonnell said. He did not provide further details.
The memorial service will be broadcast on five television networks, after NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to air the service live. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
