Michael Jackson's Memorial: Who Bailed and Why
Some of the King of Pop's most famous friends didn't show up at his memorial.
July 8, 2009 — -- It was expected to be the who's who of everyone in the entertainment industry, bigger than President Obama's inauguration, more star-studded than Princess Diana's funeral.
A number of them came, like Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson and Lionel Richie. But many of the most famous people in the music world didn't show up to Michael Jackson's memorial Tuesday.
Among the stars expected to attend who did not: Quincy Jones, who produced some of Jackson's biggest hits, Beyonce Knowles, who paid tribute to Jackson at June 28's BET awards, and Macaulay Culkin, who spent time at Jackson's Neverland ranch as a boy.
Some of Jackson's closest friends also shunned the service. Diana Ross, the soul legend Jackson emulated and the potential guardian of his three children, declined to attend and instead issued a statement to the media as the memorial began.
"I am trying to find closure," Ross said in her statement. "I want you to know that even though I am not there at the Staples Center, I am there in my heart. I have decided to pause and be silent. This feels right for me. Michael was a personal love of mine, a treasured part of my world, part of the fabric of my life in a way that I can't seem to find words to express."
"Michael wanted me to be there for his children, and I will be there if they ever they need me," she continued. "I hope, today brings closure for all those who loved him. Thank you, Katherine and Joe, for sharing your son with the world and with me. I send my love and condolences to the Jackson family."
Dame Elizabeth Taylor announced via her Twitter page Monday that though she's mourning Jackson's passing, she had no desire to participate in or attend his memorial.
"I just don't believe that Michael would want me to share my grief with millions of others. How I feel is between us. Not a public event," she said. "I said I wouldn't go to the Staples Center and I certainly don't want to become a part of it. I love him too much."
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