On the solemn 15th anniversary of Michael Jackson 's untimely departure, the family attorney suggests the pop legend might still be with us if his father hadn't faced obstacles in reaching him during those critical final weeks.
Joe Jackson, fraught with worry, confided a harrowing premonition to the King of Pop's attorney and confidant, Brian Oxman, fearing his son was on the brink of an overdose just one month before the world reeled from news of his staggering death on June 25, 2009.
The music dynasty's head shared his alarming concerns for his fragile son with Brian, particularly as Michael geared up for a high-profile revival with his This Is It shows in London.
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As we commemorate a decade and a half since the cultural icon's premature passing, it's revealed that Joe had suspicions about Michael's medicinal and recreational substance use, questioning the star's capacity to take on the strenuous performances awaiting him in the UK capital.
Michael Jackson, primed for his thrilling return to the spotlight at London's O2 Arena, was tragically discovered lifeless at his LA residence on that fateful summer day. Less than a month shy of his first packed performance, he succumbed to acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication, ending his life at a mere half-century mark.
In the frenzied run-up to what was intended to be a monumental comeback, there were attempts by Jackson's kin, including his dad, to engage with the pop sensation for an urgent "heart-to-heart" regarding their spiraling worries. Nevertheless, Michael distanced himself, especially from those he suspected would try to pull off an intervention, throughout his closing days in Los Angeles.
Brian, who has been the Jackson family's go-to legal eagle since the '80s, is convinced that "Joe would have been the only one to have got through to Michael and saved his life. I still believe that".
In a shocking twist, Jacko's own dad confessed about his superstar son's untimely demise: "This is the way the story had to end. It was almost as if it was written in the stars."
Brian laments: "He hated it. I hated it, but this is the legacy and what we have to live with."
Joe Jackson, the mastermind behind The Jackson 5's rise from small-town Indiana to global stardom in the late '60s, along with matriarch Katherine, confronted MJ at the Beverly Hills Hotel in mid-May 2009.
Michael's kids, Prince, Paris, and Blanket, were there when Joe voiced his fears, telling Michael point-blank: "Michael, you're in trouble."
After the tense encounter, Brian shares: "Joe left that meeting, and he called me afterwards and said, 'Brian, he ain't going to make it. They are killing him. I know what my son is like. He is screaming for help Brian... he's going to die. I just know it. He's not doing well, Brian. He's going to die'."
Tragically, Joe's paternal instincts were spot on, as Michael had been relying on his personal doctor, Conrad Murray, to manage his chronic insomnia with potent sedatives and hospital-grade anesthesia.
"Vacant" Michael even lied to his beloved mother. Brian explains: "When she asked him about doctors, Michael said, 'I have it under control'. She begged him, 'You cannot do this. You need to go and get medical help'."
Joe's fears centered on Michael, who'd been in rehab clinics since the 1980s, self-medicating. The singer had battled addictions to heavy-duty painkillers, anxiety meds, and sedatives since burning his scalp during an ill-fated 1984 Pepsi commercial.
He stopped the 1993 Dangerous Tour for a rehab stint after getting hooked on Valium and Ativan, and authorities discovered a multitude of narcotics and benzodiazepines during the 2003 Neverland raid.
Joe, who died aged 89 in June 2018, feared his son was battling severe drug dependency again, self-medicating while "being pushed too hard" by concert bosses.
Executives at AEG had always denied they knew Murray was giving the star hospital-use-only anesthesia IVs of propofol nightly along with benzodiazepines.
He was also getting jabs of narcotic analgesic Demerol during regular visits to dermatologist Arnold Klein.
The family's fears heightened when Michael didn't attend rehearsals at the Staples Center in LA, and staff spoke of him often slurring his speech or being unable to walk properly.
When they called his Holmby Hills mansion or reached out through aides, MJ refused to respond. He fobbed off efforts for a reunion by having aides say he was too busy or would get back to them on times and dates.
Brian reveals: "Michael knew he was in trouble. He was contractually committed to London and afraid because he had been advanced millions of dollars."
Despite Joe's awareness that Michael couldn't handle the tour due to his issues, it seemed his concerns fell on deaf ears.
"No matter what his dad did, he could not get through all the layers of the craziness and the so-called protectors," Brian discloses. "It was only Joe who knew how to protect his son, but yet he was excluded. He knew how to talk with Michael and negotiate for him to get better."
Randy, who cherished his brother deeply, believed he could reach out to him effectively. Brian notes: "Had Michael allowed his family in, Joe would have saved him. Joe knew how to communicate with his son and deal with the business problems, too. 'He would've got Michael to do the shows when he was ready but wouldn't have permitted this drug crap. He knew it had to be 'No more Murray or Klein.'"
Joe frequently showed up at Michael's residence, only to be informed by security that Michael wasn't there or that he didn't have permission to visit. The attorney shares that the family contemplated staging an intervention at MJ's Carolwood home.
Yet, on Michael's instructions, security personnel barred all visitors, and previous attempts at intervention over the last two years had been unsuccessful. Joe even threatened to "drive his truck through the gates", but there were concerns that the police might intervene, especially since Randy had faced legal threats after trying to contact Michael back in 2007.
Jacko's confidante, Brian, sheds new light on the pop icon's relationship with his father Joe, dispelling the myth of fear: "We heard so much of this 'Michael was afraid of his father' nonsense. Michael looked to his dad for protection and wisdom. At his 2005 molestation trial, Joe stood by his side every day. There was huge love between them."
Brian shared intimate details from Jacko himself regarding his discipline under Joe's watch: "Michael told me, 'My father used to make us rehearse and I never wanted to. He would take his belt off, and he would chase me'. When I asked if he ever hit him, Michael replied, 'No. I was too fast for him'.
"When I said:, 'Everybody thinks he beat the crap out of you', he just changed the subject, saying, 'Don't use that word. That's a nasty word'. Joe loved his son and was protective over him for years."
Expressing his heartache, Brian said: "I get upset every single day thinking about Michael passing. He had so much more to offer the world. There really was no one like him, and the world has never seen a performer like him in ten lifetimes."
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