Word: jacksonism
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Many aspects of the Great Mausoleum in Glendale, Calif., would have delighted Michael Jackson. It is, in its way, a kind of necrological version of his Neverland, filled with Hollywood pomp, kitsch and idiosyncrasy: rolling hills; art so classic, it's almost camp; and an impressive collection of the relics of the famous dead. But above all, Michael Joseph Jackson's family will take comfort in knowing that their often reclusive son will probably be undisturbed by prying fans and press. "Security was highly critical in the final decision," a source close to the family tells TIME. "[Michael's brother...
...debated whether to inter the deceased King of Pop in his Neverland estate. Indeed, his brother Jermaine told Larry King that Neverland would have been ideal. "I'm just concerned about security and being secure in a peaceful setting," he said. But Neverland was not popular with all the Jackson family members. There were too many negative associations with Michael's once beloved home: police raided the place in 2005 looking for evidence to be presented in his molestation trial. "That destroyed the magic for him, it really did," his nephew Taj Jackson tells TIME. "Neverland was never an option...
...grounds are chapels - replicas of famous European churches - such as the "Wee Kirk o' the Heather" (Ronald Reagan tied the knot with Jane Wyman there in 1940). In other locations there are replicas of Michelangelo's David and La Pieta. A massive stained-glass version of one of Jackson's favorite works of Renaissance art, Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, is the artistic highlight of the Great Mausoleum. (Jackson had a version of the painting at Neverland, with Christ replaced by himself and the disciples by the likes of Walt Disney, Elvis Presley, John F. Kennedy and Albert...
...Great Mausoleum takes its architectural inspiration from the Campo Santo in Genoa, Italy, and features 11 terraces, each named for a flower and filled with its own set of luminaries. Jackson will lie in the Holly Terrace, sharing proximity with Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and Carole Lombard. And Jackson will not be far from the comic Red Skelton, whom he once befriended. "Red was very fond of Michael and would no doubt find humor in the fact that they will be spending eternity together," says a Skelton friend...
Another neighbor will be the classic comedian from an even earlier era: W.C. Fields. "They have only the moon in common," says grandson Ronald Fields. "Michael Jackson did the moonwalk, and W.C. Fields loved moonshine. Besides that, I think he'd be just fine with it." Ronald points out that while some find the gothic setting inspiring, it can be a bit morose. "I don't think [W.C.] would have liked it in there," says Ronald, who has written three books about his grandfather. "He didn't like gloomy places. It can be scary there, for God's sake...