Latest Gossip From Around the World

Matthew McConaughey travels out of LA with Camila, Levi, and baby Vida. Lindsay Lohan is suing E-Trade for using her name in an ad. Heidi Montag gets in on the joke about the perils of too much plastic . . . surgery and credit cards. Check it all out on PopSugar Rush!

Michael Jackson may have passed away over seven months ago, but there’s still a criminal case and surely dozens of lawsuits involving his estate pending. Jackson’s live-in doctor, Conrad Murray, plead innocent to charges, leveled in court yesterday, of involuntary manslaughter. His bail was set at $75,000, which he met. Along with being officially charged in his famous patient’s death, Murray’s license was restricted and he is no longer able to prescribe or administer anesthetics. Jackson’s family, including his parents and brothers and sisters, attended the hearing.
Jackson died from an overdose of Propofol, a powerful anesthetic that is only intended for use in hospital settings. He was being given the drug at home without the use of monitoring devices, like an EKG, that could have saved his life.
The official coroner’s report on Jackson’s death was released yesterday. His death was ruled a homicide caused by Propofol. The reports also contained details of the scene at Jackson’s home, and it’s a sad reminder of all the stories we heard at the time about how the King of Pop lived out his last days.
There are a lot of sordid details, but the one that stuck out for me was that there wasn’t even basic safety equipment in place, like dosage monitoring and resuscitation equipment. I don’t want to recount everything else, and if you’d like to read it you can. (There’s more information, including the report, on TMZ.) It just makes me sad to think about how this world renowned entertainer died. His doctor should definitely be held culpable in his death.

Watch Britney Spears, Beyonce Knowles, and Jessica Simpson star in some of our favorite Super Bowl commercials of all time. Plus, Lindsay talks about her clutter problem, and check out our Dear John review on the weekend edition of PopSugar Rush!
Michael Jackson’s children, Prince and Paris Jackson, accepted their father’s lifetime achievement award at the Grammy Awards on Sunday. The two were on stage with their cousins, Tarryl, TJ and Taj Jackson, of the band 3T. There may have been a very good reason why Prince and Paris were at the Grammys with their cousins instead of their aunts and uncles. Uncle Tito Jackson tweeted that he and his family were not invited to the Grammys and he sounded pretty bitter about it:
“So proud, my brother being honored tonight with the Lifetime Achievement Award,” Michael’s brother and former bandmate Randy wrote on his Twitter page. “My family would love to be there but, truth is, we weren’t invited.
“Do you want more truth? Let me be clear. When I said ‘my family’ I meant my brothers, sisters and parents.”
Michael’s three children — Paris, 11; Prince Michael I, 12; and seven-year-old Prince Michael II — aka Blanket — were there to honor their father but Randy is convinced the children were only invited as an afterthought.
“Randy was incandescent,” a source told Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper. “He believed the Grammys only thought of including Michael’s children at the 11th hour as dad Joe Jackson complained there was no family representation.
“The brothers were hoping to attend and wear their silver gloves and matching suits to honor their brother. They feel insulted and hurt that they have been snubbed in this way. Michael would’ve wanted them there.
“The Jackson 5 was where the magic began. They’re a huge part of his story and felt they had been horribly overlooked.”
The eldest children took to the stage wearing black suits with red armbands to accept Michae’s award — which he was given for his contribution to the music industry, while Blanket remained backstage with his grandmother Katherine Jackson.
“Michael’s children themselves decided just Prince Michael I and Paris would speak on stage and accept the award on behalf of their dad,” the source said.
[From Showbizspy]
While I understand that Tito and his immediate family felt snubbed by the Grammys, it’s so typical of him and his father to make a big deal out of something instead of quietly sucking it up. If Prince and Paris made an appearance it was obviously approved by their guardian and grandmother Katherine Jackson. Plus the band 3T is made up of Tito’s three sons, who were on stage with their cousins! Maybe the Grammy officials wanted to honor Michael without turning the Grammys into a big Jackson family circus. I also doubt that Tito would have been content to sit on the sidelines and he probably would have made a stink out of not being invited to perform in the tribute.
There’s also the whole issue of the Jackson brothers trying to cash in on his brother’s death with shady business dealings, like a huge memorial concert that was promoted for a certain date, only to be postponed and moved to another venue. Jermaine announced in a press conference that certain artists would appear, after which some of those artists issued statements to the contrary. Tito now faces a potential lawsuit for another aborted memorial concert in Michigan. He was allegedly paid $7,500 for a concert that never materialized. I don’t blame the Grammy officials for trying to shut out Tito and his family. They’ve only shown that they’re only interested in self promotion. After all, Michael’s dad Joe plugged his own record company several times during interviews immediately following his son’s death.
Earth Song, Michael Jackson’s children are in the video below.
A star studded cast consisting of Celine Dion, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, Smokey Robinson, and Carrie Underwood paid musical tribute to Michael Jackson at last night’s Grammy Awards. The five did a virtual duet to Jackson’s hit “Earth Song” accompanied by a 3-D background video made for Jackson’s tour featuring beautiful nature imagery. The thing is, the live audience could view the video in 3-D as they were given special glasses, but the effect was lost on the home viewers, who saw blurry and kind of blueish images. It didn’t matter though, because the song was so incredible. It was a very touching tribute and I found myself getting a little misty-eyed toward the end. Not for Jackson necessarily, but because of the moving lyrics and the powerful way they were sung by so many talented artists.
Michael Jackson’s two older children, Prince and Paris, accepted the Lifetime Achievement Awards on behalf of their father. Like the musical tribute to their dad, they received a standing ovation. Prince and Paris looked so grown up on stage! Prince, 12, did most of the talking and vowed to continue his father’s charity work. Paris came on briefly afterwards and said a very heartfelt few words:
Michael Jackson’s 2 eldest children accepted his posthumous lifetime achievement award at the 52nd Grammy Awards.
Prince and Paris Jackson were accompanied by their cousins Tarryl, TJ and Taj Jackson of music group 3T when they accepted the award from presenter Lionel Richie.
Prince and Paris wore black suits and red armbands, reminiscent of their father’s style. They were greeted by a standing ovation as they walked hand-in-hand onstage.
“Thank you. We are proud to be here to accept this award on behalf of our father, Michael Jackson,” the 12-year-old Prince said. “First of all we’d like to thank God for watching over us for these past 7 months and our grandma and grandpa for their love and support. We’d also like to thank the fans. Our father loved you so much because you were always there for him.”
“Our father was always concerned about the planet and humanity. Through all his hard work and dedication, he has helped many charities and donated to all of them. Through all his songs, his message was simple: love. We will continue to spread his message and help the world. Thank you. We love you daddy.”
Paris, 11, added: “Daddy was supposed to be here. Daddy was gonna perform this year but he couldn’t perform last year. Thank you. We love you daddy.”
Jackson’s third child, 7-year-old Prince Michael II also known as “Blanket,” did not go onstage.
[From ABS-CBN News]
I just wanted to give Paris a hug after that. I really admire these children and hope that they continue to live their lives out of the spotlight. It’s nice to see them at a special event for their dad, but I really hope they don’t end up having careers in show business - especially if their grandfather has anything to do with it.