Le "live" du Los Angeles Times:
[url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/06/pop-star-michael-jackson-was-rushed-to-a-hospital-this-afternoon-by-los-angeles-fire-department-paramedics--capt-steve-ruda.html]Michael Jackson is dead [Updated][/url] 2:06 PM | June 25, 2009 |
[Updated at 3:15 p.m.:Pop star Michael Jackson was pronounced dead by doctors this afternoonafter arriving at a hospital in a deep coma, city and law enforcementsources told The Times.]
[Updated at 2:46 p.m.: Jackson is in a coma and his family is arriving at his bedside, a law enforcement source told The Times.
Jackson was rushed to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center this afternoon by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics.
Fire Capt. Steve Ruda said paramedics responded to a call atJackson's home at 12:26 p.m. He was not breathing when they arrived.The paramedics performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation and took him tothe hospital, Ruda told The Times.
[Updated at 2:12 p.m.: Paramedics were called to a home in the 100 block of Carolwood Drive off Sunset Boulevard. Jackson rented the Bel-Air homefor $100,000 a month. It was described as a French chateau estate builtin 2002 with seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, 12 fireplaces and a theater.
The home is about 2 1/2 miles, about a six-minute drive, from UCLAMedical Center. An earlier version of this post incorrectly describedthe time to travel between the home and hospital as two minutes.]
The news comes as Jackson, 50, was attempting a comeback after yearsof tabloid headlines, most notably his trial and acquittal on childmolestation charges.
In May, The Times reported that Jackson had rented the Bel-Air residence and was rehearsing for a series of 50 sold-out shows in London's O2 Arena. Jackson had won the backing of two billionaires to get the so-called "King of Pop" back on stage.
His backers envision the shows at AEG's O2 as an audition for acareer rebirth that could ultimately encompass a three-year world tour,a new album, movies, a Graceland-like museum, musical revues in LasVegas and Macau, and even a "Thriller" casino. Such a rebound couldwipe out Jackson's massive debt.
—Andrew Blankstein and Phil Willon