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1 READING
Read the article below and make a list of Michael Jackson’s peculiarities as in the example.

Example:

He
      – died yesterday.
      – lived sensationally.
          etc.

He was
      – as famous as a human being can get.
      – the ‘King of Pop’.
        etc.

 

 

Object of Acclaim, Curiosity, The 'King of Pop' dies in L.A.

 

Michael Jackson, 50, died yesterday in Los Angeles as sensationally as he lived, as famous as a human being can get. He was the King of Pop who sold 750 million records over his career and enjoyed worldwide adoration.
But with that came the world's relentless curiosity, and Mr. Jackson was eventually regarded as one of show business's legendary oddities. […]
In the end there were two sides to the record: the tabloid caricature and the musical genius that his fans will always treasure. There were those whose devotion knew no bounds, who visited the gates of his private ranch north of Santa Barbara, California, arriving at Neverland on pilgrimages from Europe and Asia, and who were among the first to flock to UCLA Medical Center as news of his death spread yesterday afternoon. Those were the same kind of fans who camped out at the Santa Barbara Superior Courthouse, to show their support during his 2005 trial. They released doves and wept when he was acquitted.
Then there was the other kind of fan, who preferred to keep memories of the singer locked firmly in his 1980s prime: today's young adults all have memories of being toddlers and grade-schoolers who loved him. […]
Mr. Jackson's death set off an instant media frenzy befitting the later chapters of his celebrityhood. […] Web sites began reporting that the singer had been taken to the hospital. Soon, streets in the Westwood neighbourhoods around the hospital were clogged with traffic as crowds of onlookers formed, much as they did wherever the singer had appeared. All around the world, from Los Angeles to Times Square to Tokyo and beyond, people cued up Mr. Jackson's songs – some digging out cassettes and LPs. […]
Mr Jackson’s career began as a family business in Gary, Indiana. […] In 1982, Mr. Jackson released his album 'Thriller,' which became an instant phenomenon, selling more than 40 million copies globally and yielding seven Top 10 hits, including 'Billie Jean,' 'Beat It' and the title track. 'Thriller' won eight Grammy Awards but it was Mr. Jackson's breathtaking performances on music videos accompanying the album that became instantly memorable. He choreographed the exciting dance routines, which featured his show-stopping moonwalk, acrobatic moves and uncanny precision. He started wearing a white glove on one hand, which became one of his sartorial signatures. […]
In his 30s, Mr. Jackson started to become more enigma than entertainer. He straightened his hair and nose, beginning a process of almost surreal self-reconstruction. In time, Jackson's skin turned from brown to a pale, ghostly white, his nose shrank from repeated plastic surgery, and his frame remained painfully gaunt. He wore outlandish costumes in public and spoke in an airy, high-pitched whisper.
His world devolved into a series of tabloid headlines that reported rumors or facts about everything from his curious pet ownership to the plastic surgeries that drastically changed him. He built a private playland, the sprawling Neverland, replete with an amusement park and zoo, to which he invited scores of underprivileged children. He was accused of abusing a child in the 1990s (a case which was settled out of court in 1994 for a reported amount between $15 million and $24 million). […]
People loved to think they had cracked the mystery of Michael: He wanted his face to resemble Liz Taylor's. He hated his appearance because his father and brothers used to tease him. He was repressed, he was asexual, he was an addict, he was a pervert, he was from outer space, he was a genius, he was stupid, he was insane. The truth was never known.