Cherubic

Michael Jackson left one of the biggest fortunes in music. His father, the man who built the Jackson 5, got $0. Michael’s 2002 will left everything to his mother, his three children and charity. His father wasn’t even mentioned. Joe Jackson was the man who had pushed his sons from Gary, Indiana to Motown. He managed the Jackson 5. He was there before anyone knew Michael’s name. Five months after Michael died, Joe went to court. His lawyers asked the estate for a monthly allowance. His expenses, they said, exceeded $15,000 a month. His only other income was $1,700 a month in Social Security. At the same time, the court had approved more than $26,000 a month for Katherine and $60,000 a month for the children. In 2010, Joe withdrew the request. A year later, he sat down on camera and said what he really thought. “All that money that they’ve taken from the Jackson family, I wish it would go retroactive. Make them give it all back.” And then, with a laugh: “Everybody got paid but us.” Was Joe Jackson a father who was robbed, or a father who got exactly what Michael wanted him to get? Follow me for more stories of famous names who lost everything to the people closest to them.