Michael Jackson‘s father is blaming his wife for the King of Pop’s death.
In a video interview with London’s News of the World, Joe claims his wife could have saved her son’s life if she had mothered him more.
Prior to MJ’s death, his dad told Katherine that their son was “looking kinda funny and frail,” but says his wife refused to approach her son about his deterioration.
“She didn’t want to do that because she was afraid she was invading his privacy,” he claims.
When Jackson died last June, Joe apparently took it out on his wife.
“I said this would have never happened if you had went and been with him,” the 80-year-old told the British tabloid.
Katherine’s lawyers immediately hit back at Joe, denying their client was anything but the picture perfect mother.
“The world knows that Mrs. Jackson has always been a loving mother and grandmother, and that she and Michael had a very special relationship,” her lawyer, Adam Streisand, told TMZ.com. “The world also knows who Joe Jackson is and he seems bent on never letting us forget.”
Larry King reportedly wants to start his life over in New York, and CNN may have moving plans for him as well.
The Brooklyn-born talk-show host for CNN is planning to leave Los Angeles and possibly his life with wife Shawn Southwick, the New York Post reports.
He reportedly has told friends he wants to put the drama over his marriage to Southwick behind him and escape L.A.
A source close to King told the Post, “Larry says he’s had enough of L.A., the paparazzi attention and the scrutiny over his marriage. When he comes to New York he can walk around and people don’t bother him . . . While he insists his marriage is still intact, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s a mess.”
But a spokesman for King said, “He is not leaving LA, he loves LA and his kids are deeply embedded there. As for his contract, CNN has assured him they want him to stay.
CNN sources said King’s contract for his nightly show is up next May, and network bosses, fearing that fallout from the problems over his marriage could be a further turn-off for viewers, plan to let it expire.
CNN sources say King’s contract may not be renewed in light of his falling ratings and reports that he allegedly had an affair with his own wife’s sister. A source told the Post, “CNN has been a huge supporter of King and was going to let him sit in that chair for as long as he wanted. But things seem to have changed . . . he is in trouble.”
CNN may sign British journalist and TV star Piers Morgan to host a panel show in the hour leading up to King’s show. Morgan could be King’s replacement if his contract is not renewed.
A CNN rep said: “Larry has been part of CNN’s past and will be part of CNN’s future,” but declined to comment further, saying, “We never discuss contracts.”
According to Chicago Sun Times, salary has even been negotiated with Moran, with a paycheck of $7 million for him to take on King’s weeknight time slot.
The newspaper said that CNN hopes to maintain a relationship with the 76-year-old broadcaster — perhaps moving him to a weekend interview show.
Sir Paul McCartney performed a sensational set in front of tens of thousands of fans Sunday night as he closed the Isle of Wight Festival.
After he was introduced by James Corden over a pre-recorded video link, he went on to belt out some of Britain’s favorite Beatles songs, along with some of his solo hits.
McCartney closed the Isle Of Wight Festival with a tribute to Jimi Hendrix to mark his 40th anniversary of the rocker’s legendary performance at the festival, which was his last major event before he died
McCartney first kicked off his gig with ‘Venus And Mars Rockshow’ before getting straight into ‘Jet’.
He told fans: ‘We’re going to have fun tonight’, before diving into the Beatles’ track ‘All My Loving’ and the 67-year-old also paid tribute to Jimi Hendrix to mark the 40th anniversary of his legendary performance at the festival – the last major event before he died.
To honor Hendrix, McCartney sang a few bars from ‘Purple Haze’ at the end of ‘Let Me Roll It’.
Pink also put on a spectacular show on Sunday by bringing her Funhouse stage show to the festival, which mimicked an acrobatic performance just as much as a vocal one.
While Shakira, the Black Eyed Peas and other top musicians are in Africa to help kick off the World Cup, singer Jason Mraz was on the continent for another reason: to help free slaves.
The 31-year-old Grammy winner was in Ghana this week with Free the Slaves, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to “end slavery worldwide.” Mraz spent five days in the country, traveling with James Kofi Annan, a former child slave who used to work on fishing boats and had been enslaved for seven years.
Annan founded Challenging Heights, a school in Winneba where many of its students are former slaves. The children performed songs for Mraz.
The singer also traveled to a rescue shelter for slaves in the town of Atebubu and to Lake Volta, where many child slaves are working, said Peggy Callahan, the organization’s co-founder and executive producer.
Callahan says she met Mraz through a mutual friend and she suggested he go to Ghana with her.
“The movement to end slavery really needs more voices, but they really need to be authentic voices, people who really do care about an issue,” she said. “And Jason’s one of those people, and he’s willing to take the time to find out.” Mraz is the first celebrity to participate on the ground with the organization.
The pop singer is also busy working on the follow-up to his platinum-selling CD, 2008’s “We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.”
— The Associated Press also contributed to this report
lsmith@denverpost.com
