Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 - Michael Jackson's cover version of "Rockin' Robin" was released as the second single from his 1972 first solo album titled Got to Be There.

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The song hadn't originally been scheduled as a single, and it was only after radio djs started playing the song from Michael's first LP, Got to Be There, that Motown decided to release it as the second single, instead of of "I Wanna Be Where You Are." The djs who has originally played the album cut in the first place probably chose it because it was a familiar song to them, having first been released as a single back by Bobby Day back in 1958, the year Michael was born. Also on the B-side was "Love Is Here and Now You're Gone", another cover from The Supremes' #1 smash.

It was the biggest hit from the album, peaking at number two on the Hot 100 and R&B charts.

1979 – The Jacksons perform their Destiny Tour in Manchester, UK.

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Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) hits the Billboard Pop singles chart peaking at #7 and remains on the charts for 22 weeks.

Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) co-written by Michael and Randy, was released as the second single from the Jacksons 12th studio album, Destiny, and became a signature tune of the disco age. It was the most successful single from Destiny, which helped to re-established them as a top-selling group. This infectious dance tune peaked at #3 on the black singles chart.

Michael, in a rare interview for a radio program, recalled writing the song with Randy. "Randy was going around the house humming a tune and I liked it. I asked him what it was and he said, 'It's nothing.' I said, 'No, it's something.'" Michael went on to write the melody and lyrics for "Shake Tour Body". "I don't know where it came from. God, I say."
1983 - Michael is on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine, with the main article Michael Jackson Life As a Man, who they dub as 'The Prince of Pop' in an interview by Gerri Hirchey.

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1992 - Michael Jackson is one the cover of Jet magazine. The main article in three pages is entitled:”Michael Jackson`s new video “Remember The Time” when blacks were kings and queens.

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1997 - Michael Jackson is on Tele Loisirs Magazine, from France. The main article is entitled: "Michael Jackson nouveau drame divorce juste avant la naissance de son enfant".

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 – The Jackson 5ive concert at Saint Louis, Kiel Auditorium.

1979 - The Jacksons perform a concert in Wakefield, UK on Destiny tour.

1983 - Billie Jean topped Billboard RnB Chart.

1984 - Michael Jackson`s Thriller is for three weeks on top of Number-one albums chart in Australia.

1996 - Michael Jackson continues the filming of his video "They Don't Care About Us" in Rio de Janeiro, with a view of the city as background.

2008 - The Thriller 25th Anniversary Special Edition is released in the US.

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1971 - The Jackson 5ive performed a concert in Dayton, Ohio.

1972 - Jackson 5ive performed a concert Baltimore, Maryland.

1974 - The Jackson 5 start their one-week tour in Dakar, Senegal for their first African tour.

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On January 29, 1974, the Jackson 5 boarded a plane headed for Dakar, Senegal, in the early evening hours.

They were scheduled to play their first concerts there and for the Jackson brothers, this would be their very first trip to the African continent. They landed in Dakar, Senegal, early the next morning, just before sunrise, with an entourage of about two-dozen associates and members of the press.

They were greeted by dignitaries, government officials, traditional dancers, and crowds of fans as they deplaned, and they were quickly led into a VIP lounge inside the airport for a quick press conference. After meeting with the press, they spent more time watching the dancers, and eventually joined them, trying to learn their steps.

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They visit the humble dwelling places of some inhabitants there, and also pose for pictures with and sign autographs for them, among sightseeing and shopping experiences. They also hold a press conference with a Senegalese radio, and visit Goree Island.

Although the trip was billed as an "African Tour," in truth the Jackson 5 performed only three concerts, all in Dakar. Originally there had been talk of them traveling to Ghana, Zambia, and Ethiopia for some additional concerts, but the tour was cut short and they never made it past Senegal. Reports vary as to why the additional dates were cut. Some say it was due to "technicalities" and others say that it proved too hard for the Jackson brothers to adjust to the changes in food and water.

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Instead of traveling elsewhere to perform, the Jackson family got the chance to explore Senegal a bit. They went to Joal, a traditional fishing village, shopped in the markets of Dakar for souvenirs, and traveled to Goree Island, the departure point for many African captives who had been sent to the United States as slaves in earlier centuries. According to all reports, the brothers were deeply affected by the visit to Goree, so much so that their second and third concerts were much less exuberant than their first one had been.

Over the next week we'll take a closer look at the Jackson 5's momentous trip to Africa by looking at the press coverage, photos, the documentary film that was made about their trip, and even a show-and-tell day they did after they returned to the U.S. Bientôt!
Source: j5collector

During their stay, they receive an award for the Organisation for African Unity and they visit Goree Island and they shoot a film called Isomin Cross And Son which tells of a family crossing the in 1860 and the problems they encounter.

1979 - The Jacksons perform a concert in Madrid, Spain on Destiny tour.

1996 - Michael won the Favorite Male Artist (Pop/Rock) award at the 23rd Annual American Music Awards.

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 - The Jackson 5 headline the first annual Martin Luther King Birthday Commemoration Concert in Atlanta, Georgia.

1994 - Michael wins the trial for The Girl Is MIne, Thriller & We Are The World

2003 - Martin Bashir meets with Michael Jackson in his Miami Hotel for the final interview for Living with Michael Jackson documentary.

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When Bashir brings up the subject of his face, a visibly upset Jackson says that he has only had two operations on his nose in order to facilitate his singing, to which Bashir tries to ask how he looks so much different from when he was an adolescent. After the singer states that there is nothing wrong with plastic surgery, and that it was "not invented for Michael Jackson," Bashir comes to the conclusion that Jackson wanted to change his appearance as a result of his troubled youth and father's insults.

When he asks about a comment Jackson's son Prince made that "I haven't got a mother," Jackson tells him that Deborah Rowe bore his two children as a gift for him, because he wanted to be a father so badly. On the subject of Blanket's mother, Jackson contradicts his earlier statement that he had Blanket with a woman with whom he had a relationship by stating that Blanket's mother was a surrogate mother and that they didn't know each other.

Bashir also repeatedly questions Jackson why he invites children into his room. Jackson defended himself stating that such activity is natural when the children are of close friends or family, and that "many children," including the Culkin family children (including Macaulay and Kieran) have slept in the same bed as him. Jackson strongly denied that there was any sexual motivation for this. During these defensive comments he also stated that he would allow his children to stay with his friends including Barry Gibb, saying that they are "sweet people" and are not "Jack the Ripper". Due to the confidentiality agreement, he refuses to talk about the 1993 allegations, but he reveals that he paid the accuser a settlement, since he "didn't want to go through a long, drawn-out affair, like O.J."

The same day, he hears that Maurice Gibb has died from an heart attack.

2008 - Michael and his 3 children attended the 'Tournament Of Kings' at the Excalibur hotel ans casino in Las Vegas (USA). 'Tournament Of Kings' is a famous dinner show. It features invading armies, dancing maidens, fireworks, and eating with your fingers.

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1970 - The Jackson 5 perform a concert at the Mobile Municipal Auditorium in Mobile, Alabama, which closed out the Holiday Tour. Tickets were priced at $4.00, $5.00, and $6.00.

1972 - Michael Jackson's first solo single "Got to Be There" was released in UK following its successful tenure in US (released: October 7, 1971). The single, written by Elliot Willensky and produced by longtime Jackson 5 producer Hal Davis, was an immediate success. It reached #5 position in the UK Singles Chart, where it landed #4 on both the Billboard pop and R&B charts and #1 on the Cashbox singles chart.

1997 - As part of his HIStory world tour, Michael Jackson performed at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, US attending 35,000 fans. It was Michael's first U.S. performance since the BAD world tour of 1989.

2001 - News broke that Michael will attend a debate at New York City's Carnegie Hall on Valentines Day '01 - benefiting his newly founded charity "Heal The Kids" - what a great start into the new year for Michael Jackson fans!!

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1970 - The Jackson 5 perform a concert in Miami Beach, Florida during the winter tour

1972 - Jackson 5 in concert in Greenville, South Carolina

1988 - A U.K. TV compilation, "Love Songs," hit #15 in the U.K. The work was credited to Michael Jackson and Diana Ross.

Michael Jackson and Bono shared first place in an American poll of "The Most Beautiful Lips"

1989 - Leave Me Alone, the 7th video from BAD premiered on MTV.

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The music video for Leave Me Alone, was directed by Jim Blashfield and Paul Diener and also featured in the 1988 film Moonwalker. Leave Me Alone, a unique blend of live action and animation, combined a small animated carnival setting with Michael cruising around in a small plane. With the use of special effects and humor, Michael confronts the press and the ridiculous stories that has been printed about him.

The amusement park in the video, consists of stylistically crude images based around Jackson's successful career since 1982's Thriller, with emphasis on the tabloid view of Jackson's personal life and public image, referring to the nickname "Wacko Jacko" given to him by the press, and the various headlines associated with him in the 1980s. Lampooning rumours that he tried to purchase Joseph Merrick's bones, Jackson dances with stop motion "Elephant Man" bones in the video. This particular segment (without the image of the bones) was used for the single's cover art, and the boneless video segment was featured in Moonwalker trailer.

In the video, there are images of shrines to actress Elizabeth Taylor, a real life close friend of Jackson. Throughout the video newspaper headlines, published by "National Intruder", with bizarre titles are shown, such as "Michael's Space-Age Diet" and "Michael Proposes to Liz". Another notable scene in the music video was a nose being chased by a surgical scalpel, which was reference to Jackson's plastic surgery being criticized by the media. At the end of the video, it is revealed that a gigantic Jackson himself is the amusement park. He breaks free, tearing the park to pieces. That scene is a somewhat reminiscent of Gulliver's Travels, where Gulliver eventually breaks free from the Lilliputians' grasp from Lilliput.

Leave Me Alone was the recipient of multiple nominations for its music video. The video won a Grammy Award in 1990 for Best Short Form Music Video at the 32nd Grammy Awards. The video also received 6 nominations at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards for Video of the Year, Viewers' Choice, Breakthrough Video, Best Editing and Best Art Direction; the video won Best Special Effects.

1997 - Michael arrives in Hawaii where he is welcomed by 150 local dancers + 200 fans. He soons joins Joe & Katherine who came especially for him.

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Michael is greeted with what the local people there call "The Aloha Spirit", at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki, where he stayed for four nights. witnessing hula dancers, smiling, watching village guards, children performers speaking, including father Joe Jackson and publicist, Bob Jones.

"His plane came in for he and his immediate party then there was a plane just for his crew, then there were two -- those he Russian cargo planes, biggest planes in the world. Carrying his equipment" said Concert Promoter Tom Moffatt.

"He brought in a tank.... an army tank that came on stage that was part of the show (laugh)"

Jackson spent most of his time in his hotel suite on the 14th floor, *Alii* tower suite 1402. Fans camped out underneath his room day and night.

Wherever Jackson went while in the islands he created frenzy, with the crowds being star-struck. "He came out on the lanai and waved," Lani Bjork is the head of hotel security said. "You could hear that wave of 'Michael! Michael!' throughout the evening."

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More than 60,000 people packed into Aloha Stadium those two nights with long lines of fans standing in the rain to see one of the best shows ever staged in the islands.
Wherever Jackson went while in the islands he created frenzy, with the crowds being star-struck.

2004 - CBS aired the special "Michael Jackson Number Ones" featuring many young artists speaking about Michael's influence.

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 - Jackson 5 in Concert in Nashville, Tennessee

1974 - The Jackson 5 attend The Tournament of Roses Parade in 1974. Better known as the Rose Parade, it is "America's New Year Celebration", a festival of flower-covered floats, marching bands, equestrians and a college football game on New Year's Day, produced by the non-profit 'Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association'.

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1994 - Michael attends a Barbara Streisand's concert at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas with friend Mike Milken.

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Today in MJJ HIStory

1970 - The Jackson 5 are on the cover of Jet magazine, Jackson Five Hits Awards Jackpot.

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1972 - The Jackson 5 played a 45 minute benefit concert at the "Foundation for the Junior Blind" in Los Angeles, California, for 1000 visually impaired children, 400 of which attending the benefit party. The concert included, for the first time, some of the Jackson 5ive's Christmas songs. On his thoughts about the event, Michael Jackson declares: "You know, really, this is what Christmas is all about - giving."

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1988 - Michael perform 7th of 9 dates at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo during the Japanese leg of Bad tour.

1992 - Michael perform 6th of 8 dates at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo during the Japanese leg of Dangerous tour attending 45,000 fans.

2007 - Michael appears on the cover of Jet magazine. Thrills to Come - King of Pop teams up with Kayne, Akon, Will.I.Am for remix of wold's best-selling album; Is new CD coming next?

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Michael told JET he put his heart and soul into the creative process for Thriller, his 6th solo album and 2nd with producer Quincey Jones.
"Even though it all came together some kind of way, consciously, it was created in this universe, but once the right chemistry gets in the room, magic has to happen. It has to.
It's like putting certain elements in one hemisphere and it produce this magic in the other. It's science. And getting in there with some of the great people, it's just wonderful."

These days Jackson is busy writing and working on his brand new album, and says he may do a short tou. And although he's in the studio daily, Jackson says, there's been no release date announced for either the new album or the tour his fans have been demanding.
"I feel grateful, all those record-breaking things, to the biggest albums, to those number ones, I still feel grateful," he says.

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Filed under  //   1970   1972   1988   1992   2007  

Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 - In Los Angeles, California, the 13-year old Michael and the Jackson 5, dressed as Santas, make their appearance at Motown Records' Christmas party held at the Pacific Townclub. J5 and Mary Wilson of the Supremes offer presents - on behalf of their record company, Motown - to 700 (according to some sources, others reporting a number of 400) underprivileged children.
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Lots of little tots were super-delighted to receive gifts and love from not one but five Santas at Motown Records' Christmas party Thursday. The Santas' identities were kept secret until they'd finished distributing presents to the youngsters.

In an article, titled "The Jackson 5 Really Changed!", the writer points out that "the first time the J5 did a benefit at a children’s hospital, Michael came home and cried all night at the memory of all those sick children lying in beds, some not even able to move their hands to clap. That is when he became actively involved in communicating with these kids. He corresponds with youngsters his own age in hospital all over the country. These are not letters dictated to a secretary by a superstar, but letters written in Michael’s own hand during breaks in recording or rehearsing or even in school."

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1989 - The December 23, 1989 issue of Billboard recapped both the year and the decade passing. Overview of the decade in charts began with mentioning the biggest selling album of the decade: Michael Jackson was bothe the hottest and most immediately influential artist of the 80's. The Gloved One was far and away the top artist of 1983 in pop, black, and dance music, and also had the top album in all three formats, Thriller.

The recap of pop music in the 80's began: Michael was the hottest pop artist of the 80's, though, Prince, Madonna, Whitney Houston, and Geroge Michael gave him a run for his money in the second half of the decade.

Filed under  //   1972   1989  

Today in MJJ HIStory

1972 - Michael and the Jackson 5 make an appearance in the Watts Christmas Parade in Los Angeles, California, and they serve as honorary chairmen. The parade is televised the following day on KTLA.

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1979 - The Jacksons perform Destiny tour in Vancouver, Canada.

1984 - The Victory tour end in Los Angeles, California at Dodger Stadium on December 9 in front of 55,000 fans, and be Michael’s last tour with the brothers.

On July 6, 1984, The Jacksons' "Victory" tour's opening concert was performed at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Reunited with Jermaine, The Jacksons did 55 shows over the course of 5 months, criss-crossing America and Canada with the most ambitious design and execution ever created for the concert stage. It took 4 months to construct it.

On December 9, 1984 the group performed the last concert of the "Victory" tour. During "Shake Your Body [Down To The Ground]", Michael announced his split from The Jacksons.

The Victory tour wrapped up with six sold-out shows at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. A grueling task, Michael was traveling separately from his brothers and had minimal contact with any of them offstage.

Still, they were apparently caught off guard when Michael announced at the final show, on December 9, 1984, that it was his last performance with the Jacksons. This time, he really meant it.

The tour grossed a record of US$ 75 million and was the biggest tour any group had ever done, in huge outdoor stadiums. Over 2 million people came to see The Jacksons. And thanks to Michael Jackson, for the first time Pepsi-Cola overtook their arch-rivals, Coca-Cola.

Michael donated all his performance money from this tour to charity. "For me, that was what the 'Victory' tour was all about - giving back", he says later.

1988 - Michael perform first of 9 dates at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo during the Japanese leg of Bad tour.

After a few weeks of rest and recuperation, the tour headed back to Japan, where it all started over one year earlier. 9 concerts were scheduled between December 9 and 26 in the Tokyo dome. All 405,000 seats sold out months in advance. Michael returned to Japan to end his tour because, "I appreciate the support that my Japanese friends and fans have shown me." The 405,000 fans who attended Michael's 2nd set of concerts in Japan, combined with the 450,000 who saw his first set of shows there, makes Michael Jackson's 1987-1988 World Tour the largest tour ever in Japan. The total attendance of 855,000 fans is said to be 4 times greater than that of any other Japanese tour.

1992 - Michael Jackson receives 1992 Billboard Awards for #1 worldwide single and #1 worldwide album, the first time an artist has ever achieved both in the same year. Michael accepts two awards through a video presentation filmed earlier with Phil Collins at Neverland.



Michael Jackson delivers a brief discourse on being honored with the Billboard Artist Award for "Number One World Single" ("Black Or White") and Album ("Dangerous") on occasion of the Billboard Awards: In a taped presentation from his Neverland Ranch, Jackson declares: "I am honored to be recognized by "Billboard", which is considered to be the bible of the industry. Nothing would have prevented me from sharing this special occasion other than "Heal The World" and my commitment to tour on its behalf. My heartfelt thanks to "Billboard", to the children, and to my fans in general. Your support over the years has been an inspiration. Thank you so much." Jackson also wins a special award commemorating 10 years since "Thriller" was released: "Wow... Thank you", he says. "I'm further touched by your saluting my efforts and, more importantly, that 'Thriller' is remembered after a decade. I love you all." Jackson then announces "a special performance of 'Black Or White'" in his absence - taped and edited - from the Wembley Stadium in London, England.

Michael arrives in Tokyo and checks in the Capitol Hotel.

1996 - Michael Jackson's Earth Song debuted at #1 in UK, it remains Jackson's best-selling single and was the UK's 1995 Christmas number-one single.

Earth Song was Michael's second instant #1 in the UK, following Black Or White in 1991. It logged six weeks at the top, easily the best showing for a MJ single, and became his first single to shift a million copies in the UK alone, earning a BPI Platinum sales award. Despite the massive success of You Are Not Alone, Michael's previous single, Earth Song wasn't issued as a single in the States – nor, curiously, was any other song until June 1996, when They Don’t Care About Us was released.

2002 - The "Annual Billboard Awards" awarded Michael with a special Billboard award for his 1982 album "Thriller" [Epic], which spent more weeks at No. 1 [37] than any other.

Actor/comedian Chris Tucker was on hand at Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch to present the King of Pop with his award. "I'm very honored, very happy," Jackson said. "I thank my fans around the world. I couldn't be me without you."

After much speculation, Michael Jackson did indeed appear at the 2002 Billboard Music Awards via a satellite feed from his Neverland Valley Ranch. Michael received a special award to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of his best-selling recording, 'Thriller,' which spent more weeks at No. 1 (37 weeks) than any other album in the history of The Billboard 200.

Comedian Chris Tucker, who appeared via satellite with Michael, was on hand to present Michael with this prestigious award.

Cedric: All right everybody, it's that time. We're about to take a trip to the Neverland Ranch with my friend, Chris Tucker-y'all.

[goes to Neverland Theater]

Chris Tucker: Twenty years ago Michael Jackson was already a successful artist with seven number one hits to his name, four with the Jackson 5 and three on his own. But nobody was prepared for what would come next ... [in Michael's voice] 'cause this is Thriller, Thriller ... [vocal sound effects]

Michael Jackson: [laughing]

Chris Tucker: Sorry. 'Thriller' stayed on the Billboard 200 for nearly two years, spending a record 37 weeks at number one. It won dozens of awards including a record 8 Grammies. He gave me one of them. It set another Billboard record when seven of his nine tracks reached the top ten and Michael became the first artist at Billboard chart history to simultaneously and single handily album charts both on black and pop charts. I messed that up, I know y'all seen it but that's all right.
[shows parts of 'Thriller' video and live, 'Beat It' video and live, 'Billie Jean' video and live and back to 'Thriller' video]

Chris Tucker: Quite simply, 'Thriller' still remains the biggest selling album in the history of the world, period. That's why I'm thrilled to present this award to the King Of Pop, Michael Jackson.

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Michael Jackson: Thank you so much. I'm very honored. I'm very happy. I thank all of the people that appreciate my work. I thank the Billboard Awards. I've always admired you. And to the fans around the world, I love you. I couldn't be me without you. Thank to God. Chris Tucker your my favorite.

Chris Tucker: Could I keep the award for a couple days?

Michael Jackson: Yeah, we gotta share it.

Chris Tucker: At my house?

Michael Jackson: No, we have to share it.

Chris Tucker: Where can I stay at Neverland?

Michael Jackson: Anywhere you wanna stay.

Chris Tucker: All right, I'm in cabin three.

Michael Jackson: [laughing] Okay. Thank you so much!

Chris Tucker: Thanks y'all.

[commercial break]

Cedric: Hey, what's up y'all? They told me they still have Michael Jackson on the wire. Where Mike at? What's up, Michael?

Michael Jackson: I'm here.

Cedric: Hey what's up, Michael?

Michael Jackson: Hey, how are you?

Cedric: That's the King right there, bro. How you doin' man? Mike, I just wanna ask a question that's been on everybody's mind I'm sure, I know it's on mine. Mike, where's Bubbles at Mike? How the monkey doin'? Ain't nobody heard from the monkey in a while Mike. How the monkey doin' Mike?

Michael Jackson: [laughing] He's at Chris Tucker's house.

Cedric: Chris Tucker got the monkey. Man, right on man.

Chris Tucker: What's up brother?

Michael Jackson: I'm a big fan of yours by the way.

Cedric: Right on Mike, big fan here too Mike. I know all the songs.

Chris Tucker: [talking like Michael] Me too Cedric, I love you!

Cedric: You know this maaaaaaan.

Michael Jackson: [laughing quietly] You know this man.

Cedric: Right on, Chris Tucker and Michael Jackson, the new 'Rush Hour'.

Chris Tucker: Let's do it! Forget Jackie!!

Michael Jackson: [laughing]

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