In an interview recorded two weeks ago that will air Saturday at 10 p.m. ET on the FOX News Channel's "At Large With Geraldo Rivera," Michael Jackson says, "The bigger the star, the bigger the target. I'm not trying to say I'm the super-duper star, I'm not saying that. I'm saying the fact that people come at celebrities, we're targets. But truth always prevails. I believe in that."
He also talks about Neverland. "I created Neverland as a home for myself and my children. It gave me a chance to do what I couldn't do when I was little. We couldn't go to movie theaters. We couldn't go to Disneyland. We couldn't do all those fun things. We were on tour. We were working hard.
"And we did enjoy it, but this allowed me to have a place behind the gates where the entire world I love is there. Other men have their Ferraris and their airplanes or helicopter or wherever they find their bliss. My bliss is in giving and sharing and having simple innocent fun."
Jackson says Neverland also provides a happy place for inner-city children "who haven't seen the mountains, who haven't been on a carousel, who haven't pet a horse or a llama. So if I can open my gates and see that bliss, an explosion of screaming laughter from the children and they run on the rides, I say thank you God. I feel I won God's smile of approval, because I'm doing something that brings joy and happiness to other people."
I have no doubt he means it and has done a lot of good in this world, but ...
Meanwhile — and there is always a "meanwhile" — the Smoking Gun got its grubby little hands on court documents relating to the confidentiality agreement Jackson's second wife, Debbie Rowe, signed in exchange for a multi-million dollar settlement barring her from talking publicly about "paternity, Michael's mental or physical condition, purported drug use, sexual behavior" or the lifestyle of her children. Hmm.
Article comments
1 - DrPat
Poor Jacko! Whether you believe him to be a pederast or a Lost Boy, his wierd non-adult approach toward children (his own and others') makes him unfit to fill a parental role.
So whether he "finds his bliss" by being with children or not, only parents with extremely poor judgement, or those looking for black-mail opportunities, would consider sending their children to Neverland for a "play-date". Let alone, an over-night.
2 - Eric Olsen
He has been doing these group visits, often when he isn't even around, for years, and I'm sure they are very nice for those who get to participate, especially the underprivileged. But you are certainly correct about any more intimate gatherings.
And give th epoor kid back to their mother, or at least share custody like a normal human being.
3 - Temple Stark
Eric,
I put this up on Advance.net for Saturday.