Jacko, His Rise and Fall: The Social and Sexual History of Michael Jackson
I'd have thought that there wasn't one single gossipy rock yet to be overturned in the microscopically scrutinized life of Michael Jackson.  But Darwin Porter's exhaustive (but always zippy) hybrid of celebrity bio and solid reporting proves me quite wrong.  It's all here: The abuse Jackson suffered as a boy from the fists of his father; rough early years on the "chitlin' circuit; his rocky relationship with Diana Ross and his quirky relationship with Liz Taylor; his sham marriages and his oddly conceived three children; unflagging rumors of his homosexuality; and his scandalous affection for generations of adolescent boys.  Definitely a page-turner.  But don't turn the pages too quickly: Almost every one holds a fascinating revelation. --Richard Labonte, Books to Watch Out ForDespite Michael Jackson's spectacular fame, no one has ever published a fully inclusive and comprehensive biography with inside information about his highly dramatic life.   All of that changed with the release of this book.       Meticulously researched over several tumultuous decades, it explores and explains many of the secrets that Michael Jackson wanted to keep hidden from the world.  It explores the man behind the myth, a public figure whose eyes are often hidden behind dark glasses, his face obscured by an even darker mask.     It s peppered with quotes from the subject himself.  But for deeper insights, author Darwin Porter turned to the hundreds of Jackson associates who were linked to the growth, maintenance, and/or decline of his spectacular career and severely bruised public image.     Ironically, long after the headlines died, thousands of celebrity watchers and pop music fans continued their obsession with this charismatic star, wildly celebrating his acquittal from child molestation charges in California.  But after restless wanderings in Bahrain, Ireland, England, and France, where Michael will go next is a question the author tries to answer.     Ironically, everyone knows Michael's music, but despite its commercial and artistic success, the world is more concerned with what he does whenever he's not onstage.   His saga is unique in the American entertainment industry, moving from the poverty of America's Rust Belt (Gary, Indiana) to the oil-enriched desert sands of Bahrain, with detours en route to Neverland, Michael's private Land of Oz.     The most talked-about and written-about megastar in history, Michael Jackson is stranger than we ever knew, as will be revealed within the pages of this page-turner.       This is the story of a brown-skinned boy with a big nose who moonwalked his way into  the world of white,  with a re-sculpted face and financial assets that the rest of the world seemingly felt free to pillage.  Michael's talent was and is t --Georgia Literary AssociationA new biography of Michael Jackson contains stories that are eyebrow-raising even for his weird life. "Jacko: His Rise and Fall" recounts an encounter between Truman Capote, Jackson and a teenage John F. Kennedy Jr. that the author claims Capote told him about. "Jackie [Kennedy] invited Michael to accompany her to the Robert Kennedy Tennis Tournament, where she introduced him to her children," Darwin Porter writes. Jackson and Capote were then invited by JFK Jr. to the locker room after he played a match. "At the time, I didn't know John-John was an exhibitionist," Porter reports Capote said. "Before both Michael and me, John-John peeled off." Later, Jackie - sensing something was off with her son's new buddy - "intervened and nipped Michael's friendship with John-John in the bud." There's also a hilarious account of a dinner party at the home of Liberace ("Just call me Cuddles, dear boy"), where Mae West told the young Jackson: "Let me give you some advice, kid. You should develop a distinctive walk on the stage." Porter said that story was told to him by Liberace's former boyfriend, who was present. --Ben Widdicombe, in the New York Daily News--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.