LEMON: From his fans, an outpouring of love, grief, and fond remembrance. And he's not breathing. How Michael Jackson Fans Almost Got Oprah Winfrey Canceled - TheThings (I should note that for the record, Leaving Neverland was in production long before Surviving R. Kelly aired.). And, as unconventional as it is, if you really look at it, it's sort of surrogate motherhood. ", Michael's relationship with his father, Joe Jackson, has made plenty of headlines throughout the years. Not to mention the timing; Leaving Neverland just so happens to be coming out months after an explosive Lifetime documentary that may have played a part in R&B singerR. LEMON (voice-over): It was June 13, 2005. LEMON: A life and legend cut short. (COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) (CROSS TALK) LEMON: The very public trials of Michael Jackson eventually took their toll. And it also broke barriers. LEMON: Even though Jackson couldn't replace his earlier success, he never stops innovating. Britain Braces for Fallout as Meghan and Harry's Interview Airs After the second half airs on Monday, March 4, Oprah Winfrey Presents: After Neverland" will air simultaneously on HBO and OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network on at 10:00 PM EST. I mean, you couldn't stop them. he looks soo mad wen the alarm goes offits soo cute. His cheeks were sunken in. I'm going to miss him. SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS TODAY AND ENJOY THE BENEFITS. JACKSON: Yes. The Michael Jackson Interview: Oprah Reflects On February 10, 1993, Oprah sat down with Michael Jackson for what would be the most-watched interview in television history. Would you trade it in for a normal childhood with the celebrity? LEMON: The case was eventually settled for nearly $20 million, and the suit was dropped in 1994. I knew it wasn't appropriate. Success at such a cost left Jackson with conflicted feelings for his father. This is a UK airing of the famous interview of Michael Jackson by Oprah Winfrey in 1993. TOURE: When he dangled the baby, it's just here's Michael again being the class clown who doesn't even realize that he's the class clown. A decade later, Jackson was so dependent on prescription drugs that he had to interrupt a world tour to go into a drug treatment program. He felt betrayed. LEMON: His long-time choreographer, Kenny Ortega, was at that last rehearsal, as he had been each night for three months. JERMAINE JACKSON, MICHAEL JACKSON'S BROTHER: You know, you have to say to yourself, who hasn't? Michael Jackson Oprah Interview Transcript Pdf UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The record flew out of stores. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have a doctor there? I'm Don Lemon. 1979, "Off the Wall." LEMON: The king of pop. And I was -- and I kept saying, I just hope he gets a physical trainer, someone to really work him out, to make sure he's healthy and prepared. The cost -- $19 million. And then he would dance, you know. The interview aired on February 10, 1993, and it coincided with a crucial moment in Jacksons life. Media mogul Suzanne de Passe was there at the beginning. Nobody ever talks about that, but it takes you aback at first. Michael Jackson, left, will be played in the film by his nephew Jaafar Jackson, right. LIONEL RICHIE, MUSICIAN: That soul was huge. Have you ever had suicidal tendencies? Whats a 36-year-old man doing sleeping with a 12-year-old boy? Have you ever had sexual intercourse with a child? The rest of the story is familiar: Bashirs 2003 interview, in which Jackson again claimed to share his bed with children, prompted an investigation and then a trial for the sexual abuse of a young boy who appeared with him on the show (Jackson was found not guilty). "I had no understanding of it being abuseI loved Michael," he told Oprah. Simply titled "Bad." After the sex. Oprah also mentioned the criticisms she had been receiving on social media, with commenters asking why she would do this interview when Jackson can't defend himselfand also accusing her of "trying to bring the Black man down.". He defended himself somewhat crazily, but it did make some sense: What about the millions of people who put themselves in the sun to make their skin darker, to become someone else? I was always crying from loneliness. With that, live in front of 62 million viewers, Jackson established the first great myth that would surround him from that moment on (and which his most diehard fans would use to justify his most outlandish behaviors): the kid whose childhood was stolen from him. Filled mostly with past hits and some new angry songs like "Scream," 1995's "History: Past, Present, and Future" could not revive Jackson's success in the studio. Since the mid-1980s, people had speculated that Jackson wanted to become white, that he wanted to become a woman, that he had bought the Elephant Mans remains, that he slept in an oxygen chamber, that he had married Elizabeth Taylor, that he suffered from anorexia, that his best friend was a monkey, that the monkey was telepathic, that Michael was a homosexual and that he was a virgin. In 1993, Oprah Winfrey made history by conducting the most-watched interview in television history. The Jackson 5 exploded on the charts. Why? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the greatest moment that disco has in its entire history. He didn't exchange words with his lawyers very often. CASTRO: It showed him to be quite abnormal. And the Jacksons began their rocket rise to stardom. Nobody says anything about that!, His physical appearance remained the focus of the conversation. In March, 1988, Jackson finalized the purchase of a 2,600 acre ranch. 3 takeaways from Oprah Winfrey's interview after 'Leaving Neverland' ", In 1993, controversy about Michael's skin color was at an all-time high. It was an exclusive talk with Michael Jackson who had refused to be interviewed for 14 years. LEMON: De Passe was just starting out at Motown, working with founder Berry Gordy. More "CNN Presents: The Man in The Mirror" in just a moment. Almost all of the most watched TV interviews are from the United States, except one from BBC One. He's unconscious? USHER: If it wasn't music, it was obviously dance that influenced us. LEMON: Jackson and his brothers would become preteen idols, appearing in commercials and on magazine covers. There wouldn't even be the MTV that is now without Michael Jackson's influence. There are no reviews yet. He's not the person to do this. Jackson, he said, once asked him for a prescription. His appearance had changed so much since he was a child star that there was much speculation about the work he'd had done. So Jackson was almost doomed to implode somewhat anyway. Cicely Tyson passed away on January 28, 2021. For more stories from OprahMag.com, sign up for our newsletter. LEMON: It is Chopra's belief that prescription drug abuse was Jackson's downfall. BROCKMAN: I recognized that, you know, this is Michael Jackson. With all of the pieces and details put together chronologically across four hours, Leaving Neverland brings to life a man who groomed his victims psychologically into simultaneously loving him and fearing him so steadfastly that they never accepted that they were abused themselvesmuch less wanted to tell anyone about it. It was in the same league as David Frosts interview with Richard Nixon in 1977, Barbara Walters interview with Monica Lewinsky in 1999 and, outside the United States, Martin Bashirs interview with Princess Diana in 1995. And I called Mr. Gordy and I said, I've just seen the most fantastic act. Information from IMDB:Oprah interviews Michael Jackson, broadcast live around the world from his home at the Neverland Ranch. LEMON: The transformation was complete. DE PASSE: I went back one more time, mustered up all my courage. Concerned about hunger in Africa, Richie and Jackson wrote the song "We are the World" and assembled a super group of 200 artists to perform it. BROCKMAN: I feared for Michael Jackson. Spawning iconic music videos and a sold-out world tour, "Bad" went on to sell 8 million copies, and Jackson went on to change his image once again. I was like, "What do you mean?" And there's kinda buttery smell and a fragrance. And with that historic piece of vinyl, a phenomenon was born. Ellen: Oh, thank you. this is SOOO funny. My father made me into a performance machine. In the Michael Jackson interview, this is quite noticeable: she describes the artists disturbing environment with a naivet that makes Michael himself not feel attacked. LEMON: Despite his creativity, record sales dwindled as Jackson's appearance grew stranger with whiter skin and a severely altered nose and chin. He pleaded not guilty. "He kept getting whiter and whiter and whiter, and nobody understood why," Oprah says. xD Someone created a piano. viewers (millions) Series Air date Network Ref(s) 1: Michael Jackson: Oprah Winfrey: 62.30 "Michael Jackson Talks . DR. HAROLD, BURSZTAJN, HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL: The fact that he has spent as much time as he has changing his face, changing his appearance, it's reminiscent of patients who suffer from body dysmorphic disorder, which is the condition where when a patient looks at themselves in the mirror, they just hate what they see. Like what are we doing? JOHN NORRIS, FORMER CORRESPONDENT, MTV NEWS: They are songs that still hold up today. TARABORELLI: Nothing was the same after "Thriller." Have you ever been in love? Oprah pressed on. In fact, you know, there were nights where you looked up there and it was like he was timeless, ageless. Michael entered the shot walking downstairs as Thriller played in the background, but no one was applauding. "All I did was enhance the dance.". UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, he's not breathing, sir. Jackson Interview High in Ratings - The New York Times JACKSON: Yes. Jackson vehemently denied the accusation on national TV. Fun fact: I got my start in journalism as an intern at _O, The Oprah Magazine, so my role overseeing Oprah Daily's website is a major full-circle moment! Music would not be what it is without Michael Jackson. Months later, Jackson partnered with Lionel Richie on an effort that was more warmly received. QUINCY JONES, MUSIC PRODUCER: Michael had it all. My "CNN Presents: Man in The Mirror" continues. But their victory tour reviews were mixed. Taking a cue from "Bad's" title, he became a crotch-grabbing tough guy, a far cry from his gentle, offstage personae. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This man was the greatest recording artist of our time. Welcome to Prime Time. LEMON: Thomas Mesereau was Jackson's lead defense attorney, walking Jackson into the courtroom nearly every day. And sadly, he really internalized that message. Yesterday, President Barack Obama called the recent violence in Iran outrageous. Beginning at a place called Motown------ Time said, Part soap opera, part show, the Michael Jackson interview was vivid, reckless and emotionally naked. Life opined that Oprah delivered as promised and accomplished something nearly impossible: bringing Peter Pan down from the clouds.. I guess what none of us could have anticipated was the album they would then produce after "Off the Wall." Special effects? But in this case, there is no separating the artist from the man. "It certainly was going to be the most watched interview I had ever done. The Oprah Winfrey-Michael Jackson interview 30 years later In February 1993, the talk show host landed the first live, televised talk with the singer in 14 years. Interview Transcripts Archives - MJ Facts Interviews :: True Michael Jackson These are not men who are fame hungry, or chasing money, or seeking to bring down a dead man. Followed by news helicopters and a convoy of cars, Jackson rushed from Neverland Ranch to the courthouse. Several items were taken away. Tickets sold out within hours. He was very placid. Just nine months after the show aired, the 13-year-old cancer patient featured in the documentary accused Jackson of sexual abuse. But first an update on the Michael Jackson death investigation. But in January of that year, Michael had just headlined the Super Bowl halftime show (the staging and format of which provided the template for todays artists performing at the years biggest football game) and won three American Music Awards. An aerial view of Jackson's Neverland theme park taken in 2011. that interview Jackson did with Martin Bashir, a study by the Census Bureau and Stanford University, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. But his face was expressionless. One of the last photographs that was taken of Michael Jackson while he was alive. Oprah immediately connected with the artist and the audience by asking Michael if he was nervous. "Forgiveness is not a line that you crossit's a road that you take.". And the record company said, no, Quincy's too jazzy. At the heart of this film are the stories of Robson and Safechuck, whowith appearances from their mothers, wives and siblingsdiscuss how they were discovered and mentored by Jackson from the ages of 6 and 9, respectively. She was 96-years-old. USHER, SINGER: Michael had an unseen magic to influence people, the music and the culture. Every day, Michael Jackson showed up in one of his Captain Crunch outfits. CNN.com - Transcripts LEMON: But Jackson was born to perform, and the show must go on. I don't know him the way I'd like to know him," he said. In February, he received the Living Legend Award at the Grammys, an honor bestowed intermittently on the likes of Frank Sinatra and Aretha Franklin, which Jackson received at the age of 34. Sometimes I do get angry. JACKSON: Yes. Curiously, there was no mention of her personal connection to Jackson in particular, the famous 1993 live interview with him at Neverland Ranch, which took place just months before the first . In the most awkward part of the interview, Oprah took up the topic of the singers love life and asked him a strange, nave question that seemed more suited for a child than a 34-year-old man. An extended version of the special will also be available on Oprahs SuperSoul Conversations podcast starting Sunday, March 10. MJ: You're welcome anytime. I mean, everybody wants immortality. This content is imported from poll. Jackson Interview Transcript - CBS News Disfrute de nuestras lecciones personalizadas, breves y divertidas. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) (MUSIC PLAYING, "I'LL BE THERE") UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I first saw him I was amazed at his talent that just continued on. Beating, Joe maintained, is something you do with a stick. "After the attention is no longer on this film, this is something I will be dealing with for the rest of my life," Safechuck told Oprah. Tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, we'll talk to a member of Amnesty International about what is going on in Iran and how bad it has gotten. I mean, within six months, every 10-year-old in Dallas could do it. She offered to have a child for him. Michael Jackson and Oprah Winfrey during the high-profile interview at Neverland Ranch on February 10, 1993; according to some estimates, the broadcast drew nearly 100 million viewers worldwide. LEMON: When we return, Michael on-stage the night before he died. Oprah's most iconic celeb interviews as Harry and Meghan set - mirror Oprahs assumed naivet achieves complicity with both Michael and the viewer, and on television complicity allows for everything. LEMON: Michael Jackson had probably drawn his last breath by the time this 911 phone call was made from a rented home in the Los Angeles hills. CASTRO: If you believe the fact that he, you know -- that he has this congenital skin condition, that's why he's so white, then fine. LEMON: On the very next morning, Jackson was found unresponsive in his own bed. Oprah interviews Michael Jackson, broadcast live around the world from his home at the Neverland Ranch. He looked horrible. on July 25, 2021. MESEREAU: I just looked at him and hugged him and he just said, thank you, thank you. Eight minutes into the show, Oprah posed the question that would allow her to get to the meatier questions. Are you a virgin? Michael sighed, laughed and replied, How could you ask me that question? Ultimately, he sidestepped a direct answer with an odd response. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody like it anywhere in the world. So an auction of his most personal items seemed like the answer. They are mourning in Gary, Indiana, too, Michael's hometown. When I think about my childhood, some of my earliest memories are lying on my living room floor watching Michael Jackson's .css-9cezh6{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#E61957;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-9cezh6:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}Moonwalker film over and over, and Sundays on the way to my grandparents' house, bellowing the lyrics to "Remember the Time" from the backseat of my Dad's cherry red Jeep. RODNEY JENKINS, MUSIC PRODUCER: He created things that we've never seen before, visually, in music. (COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: By the early 1990s, Michael Jackson's new music, even fresh R&B hits like "Remember the Time," couldn't come close to the phenomenon he had created with "Thriller." Michael Jackson, in 1993 in a hospital for sick children. Then two years later, I was like, I was wrong. At the end, he talked about his mortality. He was like, "Someone created the drum, right? Interviews. Be the first one to, Advanced embedding details, examples, and help, Terms of Service (last updated 12/31/2014). "All the times that I testified and the many, many times that I gushed over him publicly in interviewsthat was from a real place. "It was the most exciting interview I had ever done," Oprah says. I said that Michael is over-medicating and that I did not want to see this kind of a case develop. DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): From child prodigy to cultural icon. Oprah's interview with Michael Jackson in February 1993 is the most-watched television interview in television history, with a staggering 90 million viewers. It is bigger than Michael Jackson's fans, bigger than me defending the soundtrack to my childhood. So as a community, when we do see our people succeed, we want to cheer them on. LEMON: But in 1993, disturbing allegations surfaced concerning Jackson's association with children. And he said -- and even then he said to me, well, it was more like he says a razzle-dazzle kind of thing. Uploaded by LEMON: By 1985, the pop star began looking different. BRIAN HIATT, "ROLLING STONE": Michael Jackson all but disappeared. Some say the Jackson's turned to music the day their television set broke down, but from the day they started performing, they were destined for stardom. LEMON: Legendary music producer Quincy Jones would produce Jackson's first adult solo album. USHER: Being the first black artist to ever have a video played on MTV was pivotal for all of us.