No tears for father who whipped Michael Jackson when he missed a beat
sexually abused her and her sister Rebbie as children.
Rebbie claimed at the time of the book’s publication that she wasn’t raped. When interviewed later for a planned book of her own, she said: ‘Joseph did inappropriately touch me.’
The once all-powerful Jackson patriarch spent his later years shunned by his children, with insiders insisting he wasn’t considered part of the family. He and Katherine never divorced, but they lived separate lives for years.
Michael completely left his father out of his will and Jackson struggled to support himself, living in a modest flat in Las Vegas and once trying to sell perfume in a local strip mall. The venture failed after the mall noticed the perfume line used Michael’s image and demanded Jackson prove he had the legal right to sell it. He didn’t.
The once feared showbiz magnate also tried to demand $ 50,000 (£38,000) for interviews, only to find that nobody was interested.
Jackson revealed his lonely existence on social media four years ago, complaining: ‘When I suffered four strokes last year and was in the hospital recovering, only two people in my family travelled all the way to see me. My granddaughter Brandi [Jackie Jackson’s daughter] and my baby girl, Janet.’
Family insiders noted that Jackson’s admission ‘I never tell her this, but I am proud of Janet’ spoke volumes about his refusal to ever compliment his children when they were growing up.
No Jackson passing goes without controversy and, sure enough, the family complained in recent weeks that his minders had kept them away — apparently on his orders — as he lay on his death bed.
Yesterday, the same family that had shunned him were showering him with love and praise on social media. La Toya said: ‘I will always love you! I will never forget our moments together and how you told me how much you cared.’ Given she once accused him of molesting her, it seemed a curious tribute.
Perhaps, like her brother Michael, she may have decided to let fury give way to forgiveness.