Michael Jackson's Odd Life of Beet Juice, Phone Phobia and Urinary Catheters

Oct. 10, 2011— -- Dr. Conrad Murray's manslaughter trial has given Michael Jackson fans a peek at the often eccentric details of the king of pop's life including skin bleaching cream that he has denied using, sleeping with a urinary catheter, and the presidential style preparations needed for a trip to the store.

Murray is on trial for involuntary manslaughter in the overdosing death of Jackson, who died at age 50 on June 25, 2009 of an overdose of the powerful anesthetic, propofol.

Testimony by people who were present at the house when Jackson died includes bodyguards, a cook and other aides who have described for the court elements of life in the Jackson mansion.

Urinary Catheters

Among the oddest routines was the revelation that Jackson wore a urninary catheter while sleeping.

"I recall seeing what appeared to be a plastic bag or some sort of medical device and it was on his penis," said bodyguard Alberto Alvarez who ran into Jackson's room when summoned on the day Jackson died.

PHOTOS: Michael Jackson Death Trial Evidence Photos

A coroner investigator also retrieved a jug of Jackson's urine from the scene.

A witness from a pharmaceutical and medical supply company testified that Murray's staff ordered numerous catheters and urine bags from them in the months before the singer died.

Emergency room attendantDr. Richelle Cooper told jurors that Murray said that the only regular medications that Jackson took were Valium and Flomax. Flomax is typically used to treat someone suffering from a kidney stone or an enlarged prostate.

Skin Bleaching Creams

The manager and pharmacist at a specialty pharmacy told jurors that Murray called him in the months before the singer's death to ask about making a cream to treat people suffering from vitiligo.

"He was looking for a specific dermatological agent that is used for whitening of the skin...He mentioned that a lot of his patients were African American and they could use the medication," said Tim Lopez of Applied Pharmacy Services.

Vitiligo is a condition where one's skin loses pigmentation. Jackson told Oprah Winfrey in 1993 that he suffered from the condition, but denied that he bleached his skin.

In a police interview, Murray said that he would often rub Jackson's body with cream to treat his vitiligo.

Travel Like a President

Protecting the notoriously reclusive Jackson's privacy meant that his security team had to case routes and locations before the singer would leave the house. If Jackson wanted to go shopping, his bodyguard would visit the stores beforehand.

"He would usually give me instructions as to what he wanted to buy or what he wanted to go shopping for. He would ask me to go look for certain stores...look for the stores that had the items that he would look for," Alvarez said.

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Even getting to rehearsal at the Staples Center for his "This Is It" tour required three cars and a lot of preparation, witnesses testified.

"We would have an advanced vehicle who would go before us, make sure...we take the proper route...make sure everything is set up, make sure there's a safe entrance," said Michael Amir Williams, Jackson's personal assistant. "Mr. Jackson would be in the principal vehicle with a trail vehicle behind it."

The advanced team would make certain a golf cart was ready to greet Jackson in the underground parking lot and that his dressing room was as he liked it, including having the thermostat set high.

"I would make sure that everything that he is accustomed to is in place," Alvarez said. "He liked a warm setting."

Almond Milk and Beet Juice For Breakfast

Even matters as mundane as Jackson's daily diet, has been a part of the trial's testimony. Kai Chase, the personal chef for Jackson and his three children, said that the singer insisted that healthy food be served. He also wanted lunch served promptly at 12:30 p.m., Chase testified.

"Typically, his breakfast would consist sometimes of granola with almond milk...beet juice or carrot orange juice or sometimes he would have an omelette, spinach or something with a lot of vegetables in it," said Chase.

On the day Jackson died of a drug overdose, Chase had prepared granola and almond milk for the singer and had made some of his favorite juices. When she arrived to work that day, she'd noticed that a Tuscan white bean soup she'd made for him the night before to eat after he finished rehearsing for his grueling comeback tour, "This Is It," was still in the fridge uneaten.

In the months before he died, Jackson had begun coming down less frequently for breakfast. Murray increasingly took Jackson's breakfast to him, Chase told jurors.

Despite his emphasis on healthy food, Jackson's frame was so thin, paramedic Richard Senneff said he could see Jackson's ribs and his thin frame made him at first think the singer was suffering from a chronic illness.

Michael Jackson's Many Aliases

Jackson was called MJ and the king of pop by his fans. He was taunted in the press as Wacko Jacko and toyed publicly with the persona of being a modern day Peter Pan, famously calling his home Neverland.

In death, the world has learned that when it came to getting prescription drugs, Jackson went by several aliases.

Stephen Marx, a forensic computer examiner with the Drug Enforcement Agency, testified that emails from a Murray staffer included medical records for an "Omar Arnold" and a MRI for a patient called "Paul Farance." Prescriptions bottles found in Jackson's bedroom were also made for a "Mick Jackson."

Oxygen Tanks in the Bedroom

Other clues about Jackson's health revealed during the trial include his use of oxygen tanks.

Several witnesses have testified about the presence of oxygen tanks in Jackson's rented mansion. An empty oxygen tank was in Jackson's bedroom when he died.

Two members of Jackson's security team testified that Murray would roll empty tanks to the security trailer adjacent to the home and await the delivery of full tanks.

Alvarez told jurors that a sign on the tanks read, "please remember to take the oxygen tanks every Friday as soon as place opens."

Phone Phobia

Jackson had a cell phone, but few knew the number and there was no landline in the Jackson home. When people wanted to get in touch with the singer, they often went through Williams. Those who worked with Jackson often said they would meet with Jackson personally rather than call him.

Jackson was so private that his staff rarely ventured into his second floor living quarters. Even Michael Amir Williams, his personal assistant, only went upstairs if summoned.

"He liked his privacy and we respected that... I went upstairs when asked. He may ask me to help set something up," Williams said.

A security trailer was adjacent to the home where the pop icon's security guards stayed unless called into the house. His assistant often hung in the trailer too.