What do you think?
Rate this book
Michael Jackson: The King of Pop's Darkest Hour
"Michael The King of Pop" follows the path of the amazing of Michael Jackson from his beginning as lead singer of the Jackson 5 to becoming the undisputed King of Pop. Being helped, encouraged, and at times forced and abused by their father, the Jacksons became The Jackson 5 and went on to enjoy phenomenal success at Motown Records. They became the first artists ever to have their first four singles all become number one hits. "Michael The King of Pop" contains all of the record setting feats accomplished by this shy yet extraordinarily gifted singer and dancer. Since moving from Motown to CBS Records, Michael Jackson has recorded one record setting album after another. His first solo album for CBS Records was "Off The Wall," which became the first album ever to yield four top ten hit singles. Its follow up, "Thriller," became the biggest selling album in music history, yielding seven top ten hits. "Bad" went to number one in a record breaking 25 countries and has surpassed all other albums in sales with the exception of one, "Thriller." "Dangerous" when first released sold faster than "Bad" in its first few months of release, and more incredibly, it also surpassed the initial sales of "Thriller." "Michael The King of Pop" describes in detail how Michael Jackson went from singing with his older brothers in their cramped living room in Gary, Indiana to become the greatest entertainer of the world, The King of Pop.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1922
39 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 25, 2024
A FIRM DEFENSE OF MICHAEL JACKSON OF THE CHARGES AGAINST HIM
Author Lisa D. Campbell (who also wrote the book, ‘Michael Jackson, the King of Pop’) wrote in an introductory section of this 1994 book, “While 1993 started out to be banner year for Michael Jackson, it later turned out to be a very painful and immediately difficult period for him. Many seemed to turn away from him when he needed them most. Some of his closest friends were conspicuously silent, the media wouldn’t let up in their relentless search for scandal, former employees, and even a certain member of his family, were eager to turn on him for a quick buck. There were those however that stood steadfastly by Michael Jackson throughout this whole ugly mess, his millions of devoted fans.
The LAPD opened an investigation of Michael Jackson on August 17, 1993, after a 13-year old boy accused him of molestation. Campbell notes, “It was learned that the boy’s father, let’s call him Evan Chandler, was a Beverly Hills dentist who wished he was a screenwriter. He had recently had one screenplay made into a movie that was based on an idea of his son’s. The boy’s parents… divorced in 1985… and were involved in a bitter custody battle for the boy. It was also learned that Chandler was delinquent in his child support payments by $68,000. Michael first met the young boy one day in May 1992… Michael then began inviting Jordy [the boy accuser], his stepsister and his mother to visits at Neverland… or take trips together to Las Vegas and Florida… When Jordy preferred to go to Neverland for the weekend instead of spending time with his father, Chandler became furious.” (Pg. 49-50)
She asks, “This raises an important question. If Michael Jackson were actually molesting the boy, why would he ever choose to visit Neverland over a scheduled visit with his father? He certainly was old enough to decide for himself whether he would spend the weekend with his father, or with Michael Jackson.” (Pg. 50)
She comments, “Michael Jackson is very different from ‘normal’ thirty five year old men… When Michael Jackson is surrounded by children, he becomes one of them, playing games, laughing, and playing practical jokes. So, while he is certainly not like other thirty five year old men, that does not make him a weirdo, let alone a criminal.” (Pg. 59)
She recounts, “One of the guards, Leroy Thomas, alleged he was ordered by Michael to go to his private bathroom and destroy a nude photo of a young boy… Assuming there ever was any such picture, if Michael had something so potentially damaging to hide and was worried these guards were too well informed about his personal life, he would have certainly destroyed it himself. There was no need at all to let a soul know the photo ever existed.” (Pg. 112-113)
She states, “Branca Francia worked as a maid at Neverland Valley from 1988 to 1991… she had … been fired… Francia’s story has more holes in it than that of the five guards. Among her claims were instances of her entering Michael’s bedroom to find him in the shower with a young boy. And, according to the interview that was aired on TV, she suspected there was possible molestation of her own son. Again the question is raised of why, upon witnessing these things, did she not go directly to the police? Why would she wait two years to speak out, especially if she suspected abuse of HER OWN SON?” (Pg. 114-115)
She observes, “Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Michael Montagna in his announcement noted that trying to settle a civil suit out of court is not a crime and in fact is encouraged by the law. An important point here is that at the beginning of his negotiations with Jackson, Chandler wanted money to keep from making allegations of child abuse public, not to settle a civil suit. There was no civil suit at the time. Chandler only filed a civil action after he was unable to secure his film deals privately.” (Pg. 159)
She argues, “Michael Jackson absolutely did not buy himself out of any trouble. If Michael was interested in buying himself out of trouble, why did he not give the money to Chandler seven months ago and avoid the allegations being made public, and the subsequent media fiasco…?” (Pg. 169-170)
She points out, “As an indication of how very weak the case against Michael Jackson was, a source told Reuters News Service on January 27, that the photos taken of Michael Jackson’s genitals did not match the description his accuser had given to the police. As an indication of how fair and objective the coverage of the ‘Michael Jackson Scandal’ was handled by the media, the report that the photos of Michael’s body did not match the boy’s description was buried in the back pages of newspapers and ignored by the tabloid TV shows.” (Pg. 173)
She notes, “Janet [Jackson, Michael’s sister] also addressed the remarks made in the press by LaToya that she believes the allegations made against Michael: ‘That’s when people feel it’s true, when it comes from your own flesh and blood. To me, it’s just her way of jumping on something to get attention. Maybe it’s because she never had the success she wanted…’ Janet’s remarks are significant because those few reports that did put any credibility to LaToya’s comments were because she is a member of Michael’s family. Her comments were considered more damaging because she is related to Michael. With these certainly more lucid and more credible statements by Janet refuting LaToya’s claims, it seemed to cast an even bigger question mark on La Toya’s credibility.” (Pg. 191)
She concludes, “Michael Jackson has displayed dignity, strength of moral character and integrity that should be an inspiration to all. Michael Jackson is unquestionably the greatest entertainer in the world. He is also the world’s finest humanitarian. He has only ever wanted to make people happy and help make the world a better place, and he has done that time and time again. He is the King of Pop.” (Pg. 217-218)
This book will be of great interest to supporters of Michael Jackson.
Author Lisa D. Campbell (who also wrote the book, ‘Michael Jackson, the King of Pop’) wrote in an introductory section of this 1994 book, “While 1993 started out to be banner year for Michael Jackson, it later turned out to be a very painful and immediately difficult period for him. Many seemed to turn away from him when he needed them most. Some of his closest friends were conspicuously silent, the media wouldn’t let up in their relentless search for scandal, former employees, and even a certain member of his family, were eager to turn on him for a quick buck. There were those however that stood steadfastly by Michael Jackson throughout this whole ugly mess, his millions of devoted fans.
The LAPD opened an investigation of Michael Jackson on August 17, 1993, after a 13-year old boy accused him of molestation. Campbell notes, “It was learned that the boy’s father, let’s call him Evan Chandler, was a Beverly Hills dentist who wished he was a screenwriter. He had recently had one screenplay made into a movie that was based on an idea of his son’s. The boy’s parents… divorced in 1985… and were involved in a bitter custody battle for the boy. It was also learned that Chandler was delinquent in his child support payments by $68,000. Michael first met the young boy one day in May 1992… Michael then began inviting Jordy [the boy accuser], his stepsister and his mother to visits at Neverland… or take trips together to Las Vegas and Florida… When Jordy preferred to go to Neverland for the weekend instead of spending time with his father, Chandler became furious.” (Pg. 49-50)
She asks, “This raises an important question. If Michael Jackson were actually molesting the boy, why would he ever choose to visit Neverland over a scheduled visit with his father? He certainly was old enough to decide for himself whether he would spend the weekend with his father, or with Michael Jackson.” (Pg. 50)
She comments, “Michael Jackson is very different from ‘normal’ thirty five year old men… When Michael Jackson is surrounded by children, he becomes one of them, playing games, laughing, and playing practical jokes. So, while he is certainly not like other thirty five year old men, that does not make him a weirdo, let alone a criminal.” (Pg. 59)
She recounts, “One of the guards, Leroy Thomas, alleged he was ordered by Michael to go to his private bathroom and destroy a nude photo of a young boy… Assuming there ever was any such picture, if Michael had something so potentially damaging to hide and was worried these guards were too well informed about his personal life, he would have certainly destroyed it himself. There was no need at all to let a soul know the photo ever existed.” (Pg. 112-113)
She states, “Branca Francia worked as a maid at Neverland Valley from 1988 to 1991… she had … been fired… Francia’s story has more holes in it than that of the five guards. Among her claims were instances of her entering Michael’s bedroom to find him in the shower with a young boy. And, according to the interview that was aired on TV, she suspected there was possible molestation of her own son. Again the question is raised of why, upon witnessing these things, did she not go directly to the police? Why would she wait two years to speak out, especially if she suspected abuse of HER OWN SON?” (Pg. 114-115)
She observes, “Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Michael Montagna in his announcement noted that trying to settle a civil suit out of court is not a crime and in fact is encouraged by the law. An important point here is that at the beginning of his negotiations with Jackson, Chandler wanted money to keep from making allegations of child abuse public, not to settle a civil suit. There was no civil suit at the time. Chandler only filed a civil action after he was unable to secure his film deals privately.” (Pg. 159)
She argues, “Michael Jackson absolutely did not buy himself out of any trouble. If Michael was interested in buying himself out of trouble, why did he not give the money to Chandler seven months ago and avoid the allegations being made public, and the subsequent media fiasco…?” (Pg. 169-170)
She points out, “As an indication of how very weak the case against Michael Jackson was, a source told Reuters News Service on January 27, that the photos taken of Michael Jackson’s genitals did not match the description his accuser had given to the police. As an indication of how fair and objective the coverage of the ‘Michael Jackson Scandal’ was handled by the media, the report that the photos of Michael’s body did not match the boy’s description was buried in the back pages of newspapers and ignored by the tabloid TV shows.” (Pg. 173)
She notes, “Janet [Jackson, Michael’s sister] also addressed the remarks made in the press by LaToya that she believes the allegations made against Michael: ‘That’s when people feel it’s true, when it comes from your own flesh and blood. To me, it’s just her way of jumping on something to get attention. Maybe it’s because she never had the success she wanted…’ Janet’s remarks are significant because those few reports that did put any credibility to LaToya’s comments were because she is a member of Michael’s family. Her comments were considered more damaging because she is related to Michael. With these certainly more lucid and more credible statements by Janet refuting LaToya’s claims, it seemed to cast an even bigger question mark on La Toya’s credibility.” (Pg. 191)
She concludes, “Michael Jackson has displayed dignity, strength of moral character and integrity that should be an inspiration to all. Michael Jackson is unquestionably the greatest entertainer in the world. He is also the world’s finest humanitarian. He has only ever wanted to make people happy and help make the world a better place, and he has done that time and time again. He is the King of Pop.” (Pg. 217-218)
This book will be of great interest to supporters of Michael Jackson.
September 27, 2020
I will start my review from words of Bob Johns director of Michael Jackson production:
"Michael Jackson first become aware of Lisa Campbell`s work with the publication of Michael Jackson: The King of Pop, in 1993, when he received the copy of the book at my office. He is impressed with her work and greatly appreciates the painstaking measures for accuracy. We are equally pleased to now have opportunity to contribute this Foreword for this new volume. Lisa has presented here a fair overview of the events that took place when Michael became the victim of false and cruel allegation, and the irresponsible persecution he suffers in the hands of media."
This words looks to me as admission that Lisa is payed by team of Jackson to write a book of Michel can do wrong type. The book is far from objective and I could not escape this feeling wile reading it.
"Michael Jackson first become aware of Lisa Campbell`s work with the publication of Michael Jackson: The King of Pop, in 1993, when he received the copy of the book at my office. He is impressed with her work and greatly appreciates the painstaking measures for accuracy. We are equally pleased to now have opportunity to contribute this Foreword for this new volume. Lisa has presented here a fair overview of the events that took place when Michael became the victim of false and cruel allegation, and the irresponsible persecution he suffers in the hands of media."
This words looks to me as admission that Lisa is payed by team of Jackson to write a book of Michel can do wrong type. The book is far from objective and I could not escape this feeling wile reading it.
January 31, 2017
After reading Vol.1 by the same author, I continued on to read Vol.2. I borrowed the hard copy novels from friends, and have really enjoyed reading this series. I have always liked Michael Jackson’s music, but I was also interested in learning more about his life and background, hence why I was drawn to read this series. The cover of the novel is very representative of the styling of this novel, as it deals with the story of Jackson without unnecessary embellishment and delivers his story in an easy-to-read, informative manner. The novel was written about 2 decades ago, but I appreciated this as it means you get a look into Jackson’s earlier life before all the scandal surrounding his death, and his entire life isn’t completely crammed into one or two books only. The novel is really fairly well written despite some editing and grammatical errors, but if you really have an interest in learning more about Michael Jackson’s life this series of books does provide readers with a lot of informative facts and stories. This book is ideal for those readers who love Michael Jackson, or for those people who are intrigued to learn more about his life.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews