11,000 tickets + downtown L.A. @ 10 AM on a weekday = "Clusterfuck of Biblical Proportions"

[Amerigo Vespucci]

At 10 AM on Tuesday, I will be giving thanks that I am not a cop in Los Angeles.

Jackson memorial planned for Tuesday at Staples Center
A spokesman for the singer's family said 11,000 tickets will be distributed for the 10 a.m. event, which will be free. City officials are concerned about security and logistics.
By Maria Elena Fernandez, Maura Dolan and David Zahniser
7:51 PM PDT, July 2, 2009

Staples Center will be the site of a public memorial service on Tuesday for Michael Jackson, a publicist for the Jackson family said Thursday, but it is unclear who will pay for the massive law enforcement deployment necessary for the event.

Ken Sunshine, a Jackson family representative, said the service will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the downtown arena, site of the singer's final rehearsal.

Further details will be announced at a news conference Friday morning, including how people may register for the 11,000 tickets that will be distributed to the public. All tickets to the event will be free, according to a news release from Sunshine's firm.

Earlier in the day, Sunshine had asked for the public's patience as the family sorted through details of the service. "There's a lot of sensitivities, and everyone should respect that," Sunshine said.

[AlphaCentauri]

1. Hope people don't turned in to a laker like celebration n/t

[Amerigo Vespucci]

3. The rest of the article clearly states that the city has not planned ahead for this

Let's hope that they get it together between now and Tuesday, and that taxpayers do NOT shoulder the financial burden for this.

[Mari333]

2. isnt California in the middle of a fiscal crisis?

this is a really bad idea.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

5. This thing SHOULD NOT HAPPEN

If the Jackson family and / or Michael's record label wants to foot the bill, by all means, go tight ahead.

But I don;t get that from the article, and at a time when the state is paying its debts with IOUs, this is an unconscionable act.

[lindisfarne]

6. Write to the mayor and ask who's paying (copy to the local newspapers inc. LA Times)

Couldn't the city charge $10 per person to go into Staples Center to cover their costs?

[Tangerine LaBamba]

18. This is about as ridiculous an idea

as anyone could have. They ditched the Neverland wake because of logistics. How is this Tuesday deal any different?

Good taste would dictate a family funeral, and a respectful burial.

But, good taste doesn't seem to be a burden on the Jackson camp. Somewhere, someone is making $$$ with this one. The company that was backing his tour owns the Staples Center.

Surprise.

It's always "Follow the money," and the Jackson camp is happy to oblige.

Repugnant.

And you know every channel is gonna carry this, right?

Oy....................

[XemaSab]

61. You ever been to Neverland?

It's on a one-lane road in the back of beyond.

Downtown LA is a MUCH better place.

[lindisfarne]

4. 11,000? are they nuts? Could they not have used the Rose Bowl? They've given people time to drive

from Argentina. (or whatever stadium in SoCal is largest)

[Mari333]

7. it will get ugly

really ugly

[lindisfarne]

8. People will be selling their seats for tens of thousands of dollars.Someone's going to make a profit

unless they're checking IDs for the person who the ticket was issued to.

[latebloomer]

10. Scalping?

You'd think that MJ was going to make a comeback from the Great Beyond!

(He's not going to BE there, kids!)

[lindisfarne]

14. His fans are not logical. Think Elvis x 100 - in part because people will travel further these days.

Airplanes I am sure are booked solid into LA, Burbank, Long Beach, Orange Cty, San Diego from everywhere.

Rental cars are likely sold out.

[latebloomer]

20. Bizarro!!!

[rainbow4321]

27. I'm thinking we will start to see crowds gather, oh, like five minutes from NOW

This is not going to be pretty. At all. Like the outside-the-hospital-crowd multiplied 100 fold.
He deserves the biggest send off ever...but not to a point where public/crowd safety is going to be an issue.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

31. There are STILL people in the Santa Barbara area,

betting that something will happen at Neverland.

Where do these people come from?

Don't they have JOBS?

Well, that might have been a stupid question..............................

[lindisfarne]

37. Got iPhone for getting ticket? Check. sleeping bag? 5 days worth of food? Shower curtain (for riggin

up around toilet bucket)? Wipes? Ipod filled with everything MJ? Check.

Off to Staples Center I go.

[shanti]

45. exactly.

incoming flights to la and vicinity will definitely be booked, as will rental cars.

[Mari333]

11. people will fight over tickets

Im not kidding..have you ever seen people show up for free anything? its like a zoo..its going to be a mess..
They will have to send in a lot of cops to control this crowd...

[Tangerine LaBamba]

32. In the article in the OP,

it said that about half of the people who'd already paid for tickets for the now-cancelled shows on the comeback tour are opting for commemorative tickets in lieu of getting a refund.

HALF! The company, AEG, thinks they might not lose anything they've put out so far.

Unbelievable......................

[cherokeeprogressive]

54. No it won't. I'll bet you a dollar to a donut that It'll go off without a hitch. n/t

[Iggo]

65. Ya ever been to the Rose Bowl?

If there's more than one road in and out of there, I ain't found it.

[Catherine Vincent]

9. I think it should be a private memorial for invites only

But that's just me.

[emilyg]

13. Not just you. Agree.

Friggin' circus.

[SouthPasadenaDem]

46. Oh, but wait, it gets better ...

When you say "Circus" you're not engaging in unwarranted hyperbole.

The LA Times reports today:

The Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus has long been scheduled to appear at Staples next Wednesday through Sunday, July 12. Traditionally, the Parade of the Elephants - in which the circus' elephants walk, trunk to tail, through downtown to Staples -- is held as circus performers arrive in town.

This year, that parade was scheduled for Tuesday morning - followed by a visit by local elementary school children who were to aid in the animals' feeding. One source familiar with the planning process said that the parade would continue but that the schoolchildren would have to wait.

Yes, really.

(Edited to fix link.)

[lindisfarne]

63. Well, animals in circuses don't live good lives. Elephants need acres - even zoos don't give them

enough space (lots of documentation showing that elephants in zoos live shortened lives).

Of course, depriving the elephants of the parade means they get even less exercise.

Large animals in particular need to be removed from circuses. I won't go to the ones that have them.

[DaveinJapan]

12. Didn't L.A. just say they couldn't afford a Lakers parade?

This is, predictably, bizarre.

Here's another thing, the Staples center is owned by entertainment promotion company AEG, the very SAME company that was promoting the London shows (and supposedly duped Jackson into 50 gigs when he only wanted 10).

I found it interesting that I checked out various sites that were "associated" with Jackson, and they all had a tribute on the front page (Sony, Motown, Epic, etc...). But AEG? Nothin.

Classy bunch.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

16. Yes, that's mentioned in the article.

A lot of things can happen between now and Tuesday. This thing not happening should be one of them.

[thecrow]

17. Here's an idea....

Have a coffin that allegedly contains the remains weave its way through the streets of L.A.
so everybody gets to view it, but in smaller crowds, or start in NY and go coast to coast....
Kinda like they did with Diana.

The coffin wouldn't ACTUALLY have to contain anything, just something to whizz past people so they could get their cry on for 10 minutes and go home.

I bet he's already buried somewhere near Gary, Indiana. I would hope so.
Or else in a concrete chunk in Neverland.
Poor guy. He would die again of embarrassment if he saw all this.

[rainbow4321]

19. Oh it gets worse: AEG chief: Rehearsal footage may become motion pic

Just saw this:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_MICHAEL_JACKS...

A 30-second snippet of Michael Jackson rehearsing two days before his death was released Thursday, part of more than 100 hours of footage that could be turned into live albums, a movie and a pay-per-view special, the promoter said.


"He was our partner in life and now he's our partner in death," Randy Phillips, president and CEO of concert promoter AEG Live, said in an interview at Staples Center.

(snip)
"We have enough audio to make two live albums, and he's never done a live album," Phillips said. "This is really the last great work of a 21st century genius."

Insurance will help cover any losses on the London shows if the coroner's autopsy shows that Jackson died accidentally - including of a drug overdose - but not if he died of natural causes, Phillips said.
AEG Live took out $17.5 million in insurance coverage through Lloyd's of London.


-----------------------

Ok, a few things jump out at me...to be considered a "live album" doesn't there normally have to be an AUDIENCE..you know where you can hear people cheering and reacting to the singer. The stuff this guy is talking about is from **rehearsals**. No audience except the the crew and AEG people most likely.

"Partner in death". Creepy. He needs to STFU.


and... If the cause of death is shown to be OD, AEG is covered. Natural causes, not covered. Soooo, by releasing these rehearsal snippits and saying how wonderful and healthy he looked..is this really a self serving statement trying to convince people MJ was JUST FINE healthwise so it couldn't have been natural causes, his death had to be drug related.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

28. AEG knows it's a drug-related death,

and the insurance company isn't going to have to pay up. The article is off on the insurance paying up - they'll pay off it it's shown that he died of something other than a drug overdose, but the insurance company will argue that Jacko assumed the risk when he decided to take so many drugs, regardless of the fact that legitimate MDs prescribed them - he abused them, got scrips by doctor-shopping, and all those things will work against the payout.

So, with a lot of skillful editing, there will be any number of "rehearsal" DVDs, albums, theater-length movie, ringtones, t-shirts, who the hell knows what else, with minimal Jackson on it, and maximum filler. But, the cultists will buy it all, and then they'll buy the Volume II DVD. And Volume III. And Volume IV.

At fifty, his voice could not have been what it when he was younger, but the snippet I saw earlier on MSNBC had a soundtrack - obviously pre-recorded - that was the young Jacko. So, he was going to lip-synch his show. That's no crime - lots of entertainers do it. In rehearsal, he was doing "Thriller" and other old songs. His voice was gone, it would appear.

But, if he was doing all those drugs, who said he couldn't indulge in some amphetamine to get it up for rehearsal, and, as soon as he got home, he got hit with his favorite downers? Weighing 125 pounds, not eating, you can't keep doing that kind of stuff to your body before it shuts down.

So his shut down.........................................

[MichiganVote]

15. Its the Jackson family folks...with scalping company in tow..these people WANT a mess for publicity

[JI7]

21. the people from out of town may help our economy

[lindisfarne]

25. Yes, that's true. Hotels & restaurants are happy. n/t

[Mari333]

22. OH oh this doesnt sound good either......

'A Jackson memorial would potentially attract tens of thousands. Phillips says AEG will issue tickets to Staples and provide a simulcast on big screens outside the arena.

Overflow crowds would likely be permitted to gather at Nokia Plaza, with the service broadcast on large video screens.'




http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-jackson-neverland...

[lindisfarne]

23. I predict 50,000 without tickets will be swarming around the Staples Center. n/t

[Mari333]

24. fistfights, pickpockets, vendors, hawkers, hookers, crazies....

going to be a mess.

[firedupdem]

43. Curious as to why there would be fistfights, pickpockets and hookers

etc?

[lindisfarne]

47. They're a regular part of the LA scene.n/t

[shanti]

48. they always come with crowds like this

like moths to a flame.

[nomaco-10]

26. So. the nimwads are out in mass numbers for MJ....

Where were they in 2000, when the election was stolen, or when genocide was going on in Rwanda and Darfur? Another shameful display of murikans showing up when it doesn't mean a damn, like let's tear down a city over a NBA basketball victory, all the while, people are being slaughtered in the streets of Tehran for protesting for fair elections and basic human rights. It's typical, but none the less over the top murikan values at this point. Shameful.

My only concern is for the poor, pathetic, innocent children, sold to the highest bidder from a so called mother (paid for hire incubator), for a horse ranch and an apartment in Paris, bought and paid for by a completely, utterly, mentally ill, enabled adult, to screw up. The children look like deer in headlights, pale and thin and forced to spend their formative years living in countries where they have no grasp of the language or culture and "home schooled" by illiterate sychophants.

My sympathies go out to these poor, innocent children.

[lindisfarne]

29. Actually, it's been reported the children speak multiple languages. Expose kids young and it's easy

to pick up three.
Monolingualism is actually the exception across the world. More kids grow up speaking two or more languages than grow up speaking only one.

[JI7]

34. yup, Education in the United States could improve if we required

kids to learn at least 1 other language from an early age. and preferably 2 or 3 other languages.

[nomaco-10]

35. Ok. So they've had a priveledged and wonderful life...

because they may or not be, according to you, bi-lingual. Whatever.

[JI7]

30. a large number of these people will be foreigners

[Tangerine LaBamba]

39. Yesterday, an American soldier

in Afghanistan was captured by the Taliban and is being held as a prisoner.

Which person is more important - Jacko or the soldier?

The American media has decided, and it's wrong, wrong, wrong ...................................

[lindisfarne]

40. Maybe not. With the last reporter that was released, the media kept quiet. They learned from the

Daniel Pearl situation.

See
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20...

[Tangerine LaBamba]

41. You know, I never even thought of that -

and you're probably right.

Good catch, and thank you..........

[LSK]

51. well said n/t

[RB TexLa]

33. The police do not have to provide any "deployment" for the event. If the city choses to do so they

pay for it.

[Mari333]

36. they may end up calling out the National Guard

[JVS]

53. "The National Guard unit you are calling is in Iraqistan, please leave a message at the beep"

[lindisfarne]

38. Do the police take IOUs? n/t

[Codeine]

52. Do you not understand

the necessity for traffic and crowd control in a situation like this? Human being are generally idiotic in crowds, especially the sort of mouthbreathers this event will attract.

[shanti]

42. ohhhh lord

i bet there's not a plane ticket to be had from now till then. people will be coming in from all over the world for this.

[eilen]

44. I heard on tv --interview with family member that there is another huge memorial planned

at around the same time somewhere else and that there will be more memorials all across the country and globally after that. They are going to milk this for every drop.

[DBoon]

49. We had over 100,00 for West Hollywood gay pride

and no incidents.

What is wrong with heterosexuals?

[cherokeeprogressive]

55. Are you not putting the cart before the horse? There has been no memorial, and now crowd.

But yet, you're saying that 100,000 gays are more respectful than 11,000 Michael Jackson fans.

Can you hold your broad brush for a few more days? See what happens maybe?

[excess_3]

50. have any other cities/dates been announced? .n/t

[RandySF]

56. Years ago in Flint, Michigan

A Bob Segar concert sold out quickly and people left in line started a mini-riot. I can only imagine what happens in LA.

[earth mom]

57. Clusterfuck is right!

[Nailzberg]

58. Why anyone would go to this is beyond me. But I'll still try to get tix so I can scalp them.

Hey, everyone else is lining up to make money off this clown's death.

[Bucky]

59. I just checked my Concordance. The word "clusterfuck" isn't in the Bible

Of course I'm using RSV--could be the revised King James has it.

[Dorian Gray]

60. So glad that I will be NOWHERE

near that venue.

[Iggo]

66. I work in L.A.

But I live in Whittier, and thank C'thulu, no freeways needed to get there.

[Stevenmarc]

62. Can't they just push the Easy Button and make the whole damn thing go away

[spanone]

64. doesn't staples center hold 20,000 ?

[Mari333]

67. okay, here is how crazy these people are

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20090629/ten-grieving-jackso...

[Amerigo Vespucci]

68. I saw that...

...it's the kind of tragic act that makes you ask "Why the HELL would someone DO that?" I understand how people can be clinically, mentally ill...whether through circumstance or chemical imbalances in the brain or a combination of the two...but there's no possible way to intellectualize how or why someone would do that beyond pure mental illness. No way.

[Mari333]

69. UH OHHHH

'Michael Jackson's PR firm says StaplesCenter.com has received more than 500 million hits since 11.30 PDT, an average of 120,000 per second.1 minute ago from BNO Headquarters '