Michael Jackson’s memorial will cost $25 for the average person to attend. I’ll be free for Jackson family, friends, and VIPs. From Celebitchy’s earlier article it doesn’t sound like the family is charging money to profit off the memorial, but simply to defray the enormous costs associated with it.
Fans who wish to attend Michael Jackson’s star-studded memorial service at Staples Center will have to shell out $25 to sit in the stands, RadarOnline.com has learned exclusively.
Family, friends and VIPS will have seats on the main floor for The Tuesday, July 7th Staples service, first reported by RadarOnline.com, while the general public will be plucking down $25 to sit in the stands.
The memorial service will feel like a concert production featuring guest speakers, a lot of music and video screens inside and outside of Staples, a source close to the planning tells RadarOnline.com.
Michael Jackson’s close friend Elizabeth Taylor is expected to attend, along with Diana Ross.
T-shirts that were going to be sold on Michael’s upcoming “This Is It” tour will not go to waste… They will be sold outside Staples to people entering the service.
The service will be held between 10am PST and Noon PST… with the scheduled Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus on standby, literally.
The parade of elephants, held as circus performers arrive in town is scheduled to take place immediately following the service.
[From Radar]
The thing with the Ringling Brothers’ elephants might sound random and strange, but they were scheduled to begin their traditional “parade of the elephants” through downtown L.A., where the elephants walk tail to trunk to the circus venue – in this case, the Staples Center. That’s still happening, but the timing will be tight, and it sounds like it’s quite likely this will literally turn into a circus.
It sounds like Jackson’s memorial will be a very fitting one in keeping with the lifestyle he lived. I’m sure there will be a lot of pomp and whatnot – Radar also has photos of his funeral carriage – and it’s literally a carriage – the kind with horses. No word yet on whether Jackson’s children will be in attendance. It seems like they might be, since he was their father – however he was notoriously protective of their privacy, so it might be more in keeping with his wishes that they only attend the private family memorial.
i don’t know how I feel about charging. I’m sure a collection off-site would be more apropos ~ then again
T shirts and elephants and carriages oh my. I think I want to go. One thing by itself sounds tacky but when you add enough zippers to the red leather jacket it becomes undeniably Michael. Like a trip to Neverland for the Netherworld.
security and logistics are going to be a NIGHTMARE
Man, I can’t even imagine the traffic jam this is going to cause.
This must be Joe Jacksons idea!
tacky. so tacky.
Yikes. As if traffic isn’t bad enough in LA.
Annie, after tuesday, LA will officially be known as the city with the worst traffic EVER!!!!!!
LOL. Oh, it already is.
Last Saturday, we were on our way to MyHouse and we were stuck on the 101 for like an hour. Then we were stuck on Sunset for about….45 minutes.
At MIDNIGHT.
And of course, MyHouse was having a Diddy event, and it was crazy packed.
I do think this is a Joe Jackson’s idea (lol). Since he wasn’t considered on the will of MJ, he’s trying to get something out of it. But this is truly disrespectful to MJ. $25!? If the family don’t have money for such huge funeral, why dont keep it simple and private? This is not a party. At least MJ could have some peace after his death, cause in real life he didn’t had peace at all.
Ps- I always said that the Jackson family members were like vampires. No one believed me. Guess what?! There is the prove!!
Tacky. Tacky. Tacky. If you want to throw a memorial that big, you pay for it. You are not required to do a big shindig. They could have had a private memorial and a public viewing and been done with it.
I think Michael Jackson is rolling in his grave. To have his fans pay to attend his memorial is truly the frosting on the cake. Shame on you!!!
Even in death its all about the money.
What a classy move.
What does the $25 go towards? Selling T-shirts at a memorial service is beyond tacky!!
o.k. I’ll give you charging admission is tacky.
But I think Micheal would love it!!! Truly. “this is it” T’s, circus animals, a fairy tale carriage. All the pomp of Diana’s service (whom he felt akin too) with a truly Micheal twist. I can see Cirque de Soliel hanging from the ceiling and carnival rides. Musical numbers, costume change, fireworks. Micheal was nothing if not eccentric. Why should his services be black suit affairs. That’s not who he was at any point in his life and if nothing else his funeral should be a reflection of his life. Not a mourning but a celebration of his fans for all that he was. If they could incorporate something along the lines of Diana’s concert by her boys into the service that would be fine by me. This is not going to be a million folks standing around somber. It just won;t happen that way no matter how it’s done. This isn’t JFK’s funeral. It’s the King of Pop and I think they should blow it out.
I also think the Jacksons, Jones, Taylor, Sony, ect. should foot the bill
$25 goes to cover the cost of the building rental. Personally, I wish it was $100 so it’d weed out the non-fans. At least at Neverland it would have only been true fans, this will bring those just curious and who happen to be near at the time. It will be a spectacle like nothing else LA has seen, especially if he can have the horse drawn carriage to Forest Lawn.
This is ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING. When is the last time you heard about a public memorial. let alone one where they CHARGE YOU TO PAY YOUR LAST RESPECTS??? Congratulations to the Jackson family for finding a way to make a buck on their dead son’s body…
It is so sad to see how many selfish people there are in Los Angeles, worrying about traffic. Of course they have to charge, to cover the security, and everything else. If you do not care about Michael keep it to yourself, show some respect!!
Lem is right on — Michael would have loved this! This is how he lived his life, as a SPECTACLE — and so he should go out that way.
That is the most disgusting thing I have ever heard. To charge his fans for paying thier last respects..It had to be Joe Jacksons idea, hes the money hungry abuser in the family.
Geez, i was just seeing the video “Thriller” on youtube and thinking that MJ made it to honour his family. He was the little girl running to the house, and his father, mother and siblings were the zombies and wolfs going after him.
I’m also seeing Joe Jackson standing on the door asking or money and giving tickets: “You’re sit it’s third line, first chair left! Don’t forget cause the sits are all marked! Enjoy the show…”
EXCUSE ME!#17 you uneducated, mouth breather! Have you ANY clue what a nightmare this is going to be for people who actually HAVE a job and must commute in the area, or even nearby on the 110 fwy. What about the hundreds of thousands of dollars in police, fire, paramedics, and clean up of the area? MJ’s family and promoter should foot the bill for every dime it’s going to cost the taxpayer. In a private funeral you pay for the escorts and other costs. Bury this man with some shred of dignity.
I cannot believe they are selling t-shirts at a funeral. It doesn’t matter whose funeral it is, that is just TACKY pure and simple.
I feel really sorry for celebrities when they die. All the phony tributes and bs “celebrations of their lives”. It’s all so self-serving and stupid.
And yes, I am pissed that my mom is going to have a devil of a time getting to work because of this disgusting circus of morbidity.
yes, it will be a nightmare for commuters but can anyone tell me where I can get tickets. I’m just 30 miles out and would like to go. Jackson family has to charge for tickets to defer the cost of security, etc. I don’t believe for one second they are doing this for profit as some may suggest.
Well all of this is moot anyway. Now they are giving away 11,000 in free tickets. Let the riots begin!!!! Been better off charing the $25 and if anything left over after costs could donate it.
In all fairness, it appears that the proposed $25.00 is not necessarily intended to make this profitable, but to defray the costs related to event that will be necessary for crowd control, traffic, i.e., police, etc.; as opposed to having the financially strapped (broke) City of LA be forced to bear the burden of those costs. Frankly, I would rather pay the $25.00 than fight for free tickets, which will likely be gone in 10 minutes. How will the tickets be distributed?
what is the process going to be to get the ticket?
Is it me or does that carriage look like the one that is in front of the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland?
This man’s whole life was a circus so the whole Ringling Bros. thing totally prove God has a sense of humor.
Yeah it’s tacky but this guy wasn’t a politician. He lived out every moment of his entire life in front of us – good, bad and ugly – there is no way on this earth he would have wanted a quiet burial service. He would have wanted as many of his fans there as possible and he would have wanted it to be a show, something to celebrate his life and his talent…I think it’s a fitting tribute.
charging the memorial seems disresoectful, but you guys have to understand…they are using staples center which is a huge place, it takes people to run the facilities and they can’t just let everyone use it for free…….
I really want to go…I LOVED HIM..but I dont live in Las Angeles and I dont think I could still get tickets. : (
M Jackson Is internationally known, hi memorial must be huge event, and it is free, who mention $25?. and no one allowed to go near area if he has no ticket and wrist band, but it cost the city millions of $ in a time city of LA is in budget crisis and trying to layoff hi employee, ????????????????? many ? come to speaker, in the name of city of LA why not fixing the budget before giving all this over time too police and firefighters, just for standing there,are you playing same political dirty game in the name of public safety,for political gain, to show you are concern about public, what a hypocrite. you can use if you are real problem solver state rangers, park rangers, if need national guard, if there is any brain left in city, managers….????? I rather see national guards in the streets keeping peace than LAPD. who are mostly are not there when you need them.
hi Kennnzz: you can go on staple.com it is free that is the only way to get tickets
I think it is a shame that there is a charge to get into Micheal Jacksons memorial. I wish that his memorial would of been at Never Land. It seemed like a place that, at one time, brought a lot of happiness to him. I think that he would of liked his Never Land gates open to his fans in the end.
Why are there so much hatters out there, the money dos not go to m.j family. just relax and let the man have some peace.
hes a great man and i hope he rest in peace.
Has anyone mentioned that he is leaving an estate worth an estimated 500 million dollars? Not to mention all the money the Jackson family have between them. To charge for a memorial service is disgusting. For years to come he will be the richest dead celebrity, surpassing Elvis and John Lennon.
Let him have a little dignity in death.
first, they should have done it in 5 diffrent places cuz lyk some people live in miami , africa, and other place and maybe u got a frikin ticket but u need to buy a flight and that’s money as well and it depends were u live cuz my mom has been to 6 of his concerts and we live in miami and it’s a long trip to cali and a flight ticket costs 2,346 for one person to go and come back but he iz an icon and he is not dead to me but people have to let him rest in peace and that thing ’bout the memorial is joe jackson that is the worst dad in the world hitting his own kids just for a stupid mistake.
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