昨儿个从网路上得知Michael 突发心脏病猝死于洛杉矶，惊讶得自己差点儿下巴掉地。 而后受一则财经新闻吸引赶忙点击，这新闻是这样的标题“Jackson lived like king but died awash in debt"，进去一看又吃了一惊，他生前居然欠款将近四亿美金。 我不禁多管闲事帮他算了一算，他的五十岁人生从出生时起到生命终点，每一年至少价值八百万。一年抵得上凡夫俗子三五辈子的家当，值了，虽然五十岁真的有些短暂。 美国的银行绝不是省油的灯，瞧得起你才会借你钱，借你多少还要看你是佛面僧面还是泡面。换句话说，银行当时是认定Michael 能解决这样庞大的债务，乐得释放银行的债权。没成想他就这么撒手回天，人死债烂，看来某些美国银行的账面上又要多几笔隐藏的呆账。我得想想是不是要把手上攒着的银行股放放，落袋为安。 切~~~ 拍拍自己的脑袋，这不恰恰是杞人忧天，市场是会有一只看不见的手，但不会是Michael 伸出的那只手，着急什么？
Michael 走红的八零年代是我的前青春年代，他的歌不是我的菜，实话说自己一直对蹦蹦跳跳超快节奏的曲风动心不来。当年最刚开始喜欢的是美国爵士或乡村歌谣，这些爵士或乡村歌手都是几个志同道合的同好，组成几人乐团或是个人单挑，乐器大多是简单的吉他，电子琴，电音鼓，吉它弹奏着挑动灵魂的慢悠曲调，常让自己不自觉地披上梦的衣裳，带着醉眼浑身是劲地学唱干嚎。后来慢慢接受Rock & Roll，想来是源于大学参加舞会被热闹气氛挑逗，渐渐释出年轻奔放的狂热。再后来就见Michael独领风骚并引领时代，表弟妹们开始跟着他的CD，MTV学唱学舞学酷学着摇摆。Michael 红得发紫的时候，我还一度怀疑Sun Microsystems 所创的Java ，创始人团队中也许有他的粉丝，要不怎会有Java Swing technology？ 这个命名没准儿灵感来自New Jack Swing。
创业容易守业难，Michael的庄园如同他的负债一般，让人感慨万千。Michael 建造了他的梦幻庄园，在庄园里让他的幻想落实成为每天的日常。不曾想，人的一生就像他庄园游乐场里的云霄飞车一样，起起落落穿山入洞看似规律却十分无常，他是他的庄园设计者， 他的庄园他作庄， 然而，在庄园之外，命运的云霄飞车无论贫富贵贱，每个人都得乖乖坐上，幸也不幸的只有上帝能为命运作庄。于是他的传奇就随着命运的云霄飞车上下震荡，忽焉疾驰须臾到了终站，所有伴随旅程的惊悚尖叫鼓掌欢笑，都如飞过的大雁，雁过留声，却音稀声残。
冷眼旁观的我，是庄园栏杆外的路客，驻足张望过，并且还无聊地撅起屁股看了庄园风景。天呢！ 四个亿的欠款，我不禁喷嚏连连，揩揩鼻涕，当下决定，赶明儿我也要出些妖蛾子到银行骗骗，设法让我的人生辉煌辉煌，欠钱的是大爷，我不是大爷还不让我当大娘么？
Michael Jackson the singer was also Michael Jackson the billion-dollar business.
Yet after selling more than 61 million albums in the U.S. and having a decade-long attraction open at Disney theme parks, the "King of Pop" died Thursday at age 50 reportedly awash in about $400 million in debt, on the cusp of a final comeback after well over a decade of scandal.
The moonwalking pop star drove the growth of music videos, vaulting cable channel MTV into the popular mainstream after its launch in 1981. His 1982 hit "Thriller," still the second best-selling U.S. album of all time, spawned a John Landis-directed music video that MTV played every hour on the hour.
AP
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"The ratings were three or four times what they were normally every time the video came on," said Judy McGrath, the chairman and CEO of Viacom's [VIA 23.71 -0.04 (-0.17%) ] MTV Networks. "He was inextricably tied to the so-called MTV generation."
Five years later, "Bad" sold 22 million copies. In 1991, he signed a $65 million recording deal with Sony.
Jackson was so popular that Walt Disney [DIS 23.41 -0.14 (-0.59%) ] hitched its wagon to his star in 1986, opening a 3-D movie at its parks called "Captain EO," executive produced by George Lucas and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The last attraction in Paris closed 12 years later.
One of Jackson's shrewdest deals at the height of his fame in 1985 was the $47.5 million acquisition of ATV Music, which owned the copyright to songs written by the Beatles' John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The catalog provided Jackson a steady stream of income and the ability to afford a lavish lifestyle.
He bought the sprawling Neverland ranch in 1988 for $14.6 million, a fantasy-like 2,500-acre property nestled in the hills of Santa Barbara County's wine country.
But the bombshell hit in 1993 when he was accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy.
"That kind of represents the beginning of the walk down a tragic path, financially, emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, legally," said Michael Levine, his publicist at the time.
He settled with the boy's family, but other accounts of his alleged pedophilia began to emerge.
Slideshow: Selling Neverland -- the Auction that Never Was
When he ran into further financial problems, he agreed to a deal with Sony in 1995 to merge ATV with Sony's library of songs and sold Sony music publishing rights for $95 million. Then in 2001, he used his half of the ATV assets as collateral to secure $200 million in loans from Bank of America [BAC 12.76 0.41 (+3.32%) ].
As his financial problems continued, Jackson began to borrow large sums of money, according to a 2002 lawsuit by Union Finance & Investment that sought $12 million in unpaid fees and expenses.
In 2003, Jackson was arrested on charges that he molested another 13-year-old boy. The 2005 trial, which ultimately ended in an acquittal, brought to light more details of Jackson's strained finances.
One forensic accountant testified that the singer had an "ongoing cash crisis" and was spending $20 million to $30 million more per year than he earned.
Facing Foreclosure
In March of last year, the singer faced foreclosure on Neverland. He also repeatedly failed to make mortgage payments on a house in Los Angeles that had been used for years by his family.
In addition, Jackson was forced to defend himself against a slew of lawsuits in recent years, including a $7 million claim from Sheik Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the second son of the king of Bahrain.
Memorabilia auctions were frequently announced but became the subject of legal wrangling and were often canceled.
Time and again, however, Jackson found a way to wring cash out of high-value assets, borrowing tens of millions at a time or leaning on wealthy friends for advice, if not for money.
Al Khalifa, 33, took Jackson under his wing after his acquittal, moving him to the small Gulf estate and showering him with money.
In his lawsuit, Al Khalifa claimed he gave Jackson millions of dollars to help shore up his finances, cut an album, write an autobiography and subsidize his lifestyle -- including more than $300,000 for a "motivational guru." The lawsuit was settled last year for an undisclosed amount. Neither the album nor book was ever produced.
Another wealthy benefactor came to Jackson's aid last year as he faced the prospect of losing Neverland in a public auction.
Billionaire Thomas Barrack, chairman and CEO of Los Angeles-based real estate investment firm Colony Capital, agreed to bail out the singer and set up a joint venture with Jackson that took ownership of the vast estate.
Barrack was unavailable for comment Thursday, but referred to the singer in a statement as a "gentle, talented and compassionate man."
Sold-Out London Shows
Sharon Lorimer
The 02 Arena in London on Jun. 26, where Jackson was to perform in a series of sold-out summer shows.
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A final piece of the financial jigsaw puzzle fell into place in March, when billionaire Philip Anschutz' concert promotion company AEG Live announced it would promote 50 shows in London's O2 arena. Tickets sold out, and the first show of the "This is It" tour was set for July 8.
Jackson, who has won 13 Grammys, hadn't toured since 1997. His last studio album, "Invincible," was released in 2001.
Slideshow: Celebrity Auction -- Elvis and Marilyn
But the opening date was later postponed to July 13 and some shows moved back to March 2010, fueling speculation that Jackson was suffering from health ailments that could curtail his comeback bid.
His death, caused by cardiac arrest according to his brother Jermaine, raised the question whether an insurer would refund money to ticketholders. AEG Live did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Jackson was practicing for the concert in Los Angeles at the Staples Center with Kenny Ortega, a choreographer and director of the "High School Musical" movies, who has worked on previous Jackson videos like "Dangerous" in 1993.
"We had a 25-year friendship. This is all too much to comprehend," Ortega said in a statement. "This was the world's greatest performer and the world will miss him."
也为 Michael Jackson 打个喷嚏
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