'King of Pop's' death at 50 stuns family, fans

Indeed, Jackson's brief marriage to Elvis Presley's only daughter, Lisa Marie, cemented his place in pop royalty. Eventually, Jackson married twice and had three children - the third one by artificial insemination with a surrogate mother - but he would be increasingly dogged by speculation over his close friendships with young boys.

Twice, the allegations bubbled over into the legal system and nearly destroyed Jackson's career. In 1994 he paid $22 million to the family of a 13-year-old boy who'd reportedly made sexual allegations. Later, California authorities launched an investigation and eventually indicted Jackson over allegations involving a 14-year-old boy, but the singer was acquitted after high-profile trial in 2005.

But his legal fights led to some highly publicized money woes, and Jackson appeared increasingly frail - his child-like voice even softer than usual - the rare times he appeared in public. But the Los Angeles Times said that Jackson reportedly passed a health screening last month, as he stepped up the pace of rehearsals for the London gi

To the end, many preferred to remember

Jackson as the young and dynamic performer he was in the 1970s and 1980s.

"He was a very kind person, extremely shy," said author and musician James McBride, who spent several months covering Jackson's "Victory Tour" for People magazine in the 1980s. "He felt wary of the press, he felt put upon and misunderstood by the press."

But many people not only understood but felt the cultural impact of Michael Jackson right to the very end.

"No joke. King of Pop is no more. Wow," Michael Harris, 36, of New York City, read from a text message a friend sent to his telephone. "It's like when Kennedy was assassinated. I will always remember being in Times Square when Michael Jackson died." *

Staff writer Dan Gross and the Associated Press contributed to this report.