By now, many of you have probably read that Janet, amazingly, is the only Jackson with any financial dexterity (and a job) these days. If not, we're here to serve: "Stiffed by their superstar brother Michael and plagued by decades of bad fiscal decisions, the once-mighty Jackson family is barely scraping by, with one brother stocking groceries, another repairing cars and others living at home with mom while hoping for sister Janet's next handout."
Imagine being 50-years-old and still living with Mom and Dad. It gets worse once you find out who's doing what:
Marlon Jackson, 51, an original Jackson Five member who stocks shelves at a Vons supermarket in San Diego, had to temporarily move into an extended-stay hotel.
Randy, 46, does odd jobs, including fixing cars in a Los Angeles garage owned by a family friend. He recently claimed Michael was going to give him $1.7 million - "a pipe dream," said another brother last week.
Jackie, 56, the oldest and most debonair of the brothers, is struggling to manage his son Siggy's aspiring rap career after an Internet clothing business startup and attempts to produce music failed.
So where exactly did they go wrong? Michael is partly the blame according to the report. He signed the brothers to his MJJ label and refused to release any of their music. Now, Michael, don't let us find out you're hating like that.
"Michael's mission was to make sure his family was broke, and he accomplished that through the industry, which mostly kowtowed to him," said Bob Jones, former longtime director of communications for Jackson and the author of "Michael Jackson: The Man Behind the Mask."
- Advertisement -"We were always ordered by Michael to keep his family away from his offices and out of his business," he said. "He hated them. He wanted them broke. Michael even refused to allow Jermaine, who had come over to Europe to see one of Michael's concerts about a decade ago, to guest on 'I'll Be There.' Jermaine was devastated."
While paying [Marlon] Brando $1 million to appear [in concert] and giving five- and six-figure fees to artists such as Whitney Houston, Usher, Britney Spears and Destiny's Child to perform, Jacko had his brothers sign a contract that would pay them just $1,100 each.
- Advertisement -Michael charged the brothers for hotel and travel, and the siblings were never paid their measly performance fees, according to the brothers.
The report in the NY Post has it that the Jacksons are approaching poverty. We're really not sure what the definition of "poverty" is in JacksonWorld Land, but if any of these allegations against Michael are true ("allegations against Michael"--it's like 2005 all over again) then karma's ugly hide will cast a dark shadow all over his next project. Can we have one year, just one, where these people are getting along and all on the same page?
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Jacko Clan in a Deep Funk [NYP]
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