Sudden death of an international superstar Injected with 4 kinds of sedatives overnight, multiple broken ribs, "like a lost child"
It's been 15 years
Before you know it, Michael Jackson, the "King of Pop," has been dead for 15 years.
To this day, many young people have never even heard of him, but back then, he was unbeatable.
"Thriller"、"Billie Jean"、"Beat It"等经典歌曲让人如痴如醉,Moonwalk,45度倾斜、机器人舞,Toe Stand给人留下不灭的记忆。
On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died of a heart attack in Los Angeles at the age of 50.
On the anniversary of his death this year, details of his death before and after his death were publicly revealed. The final days of a generation of superstars were so painful and tormenting.
In March of that year, Michael Jackson announced that he would hold a "This is it" London residency concert, which will be held for 50 consecutive performances. All tickets sold out within a few hours of going on sale.
This is Michael Jackson's first concert since disappearing from public view in 2005 on allegations of child sexual harassment.
At a press conference for the concert in March, Jackson said it would be his last.
"This is the final curtain call. That's it, I love you guys. ”
In early April, Jackson began rehearsals in California, USA. His longtime friend, choreographer Travis Payne, and show director Kenny Ortega were all on board.
He looks happier than he has been in years.
However, Jackson's body is still very weak, and most importantly, he has difficulty sleeping and has to resort to strong anesthetics every day.
On Easter Sunday, April 12, he frantically called his close friend and nurse, Cherilyn Lee, and begged her to bring him propofol, a powerful intravenous anesthetic to help him sleep.
Jackson has long been injected with the drug to get to sleep, and he often refers to it as "milk."
Jackson begged Lee to find him an anesthesiologist: "I just need something to help me sleep." ”
Cherilynn Lee
Lee expressed concern about the risk of propofol overdose, but Jackson claimed that doctors assured him that "as long as somebody is here watching and waking me up, it's safe." ”
In May, tour promoter AEG Live hired Dr Conrad Murray, who had treated Jackson's daughter Paris as his personal physician for a salary of $150,000 a month.
Dr. Murray
Murray began giving Jackson nightly injections of propofol.
Entering June, Jackson had problems with his physical condition and was unable to rehearse for about a week. When he finally returned to the rehearsal hall, his whole body was trembling and incoherent.
The show's director, Kenny Ortega, said in an email that Jackson looked like a "lost child" and exhibited "paranoia, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive-like behavior."
Canceling the entire tour might be the best option, but he feared it would "break Michael's heart." ”
John Hogdal, the show's production manager, also said: "I've seen firsthand [Jackson] get worse and worse over the past eight weeks. ”
On June 20, Jackson was again absent from rehearsals. Dr. Murray held a crisis management meeting at Jackson's home. He assured Ortega that Jackson was "physically and emotionally able to handle all of his responsibilities as a performer." ”
Unexpectedly, Jackson's situation was even worse the next day.
Cherylyn Lee received an urgent call from Jackson's aide saying he felt hot on one side of his body and cold on the other.
Lee heard Jackson moaning in pain in the background of the call, fearing that he had a serious reaction to the drug.
She said Jackson should have been taken to the hospital, but aides decided to keep him home.
Dr. Murray paused propofol for the next two nights to help Jackson fall asleep.
On June 23, Jackson resumed rehearsals.
Who would have thought that the next day Jackson had already entered the final stage of his life.
At noon, he had his final lunch with his children, 11-year-old Paris, 12-year-old Prince and 7-year-old Blanket.
The chef carefully prepared grilled tuna and salad, as well as carrots and orange juice. Jackson looked happy.
After lunch, choreographer Travis Payne took Jackson to practice some dance moves.
At 7 p.m., Jackson arrived at the Statples Center in downtown Los Angeles for his final rehearsal with musicians and the company before flying to London on July 2.
他的状态不错，在唱经典歌曲如“Smooth Criminal”、“Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'”和“Billie Jean”时，笑容满面。
At midnight, the rehearsal ended, and Jackson thanked his team and hugged his dancers and said, "God bless you." ”
He rode home in a Cadillac and made a brief stop at the front door to greet a small group of fans.
Jackson complained to Dr. Murray, who was already waiting at home, that he was tired.
At 1:30 a.m. the next day, Dr. Murray gave Jackson 10 mg of diazepam, an anti-anxiety medication, to help him sleep.
Half an hour later, Jackson still hadn't fallen asleep. Dr. Murray added 2 milligrams of lorazepam, another anti-anxiety drug, through a saline drip attached to Jackson's arm.
At 3 a.m., Jackson tossed and turned in bed, still unable to sleep, and Dr. Murray added 2 mg of the sedative midazolam to the drip, but it still didn't work.
This is already the 3rd different sedative he has given Jackson.
At 5 a.m., Dr. Murray gave Jackson another 2 mg of lorazepam.
At half past seven in the morning, Jackson was still awake. Dr. Murray added another 2 mg of midazolam.
By 10:40 a.m., Jackson had been home for more than nine hours and still hadn't fallen asleep. Feeling irritable and exhausted, he begged Dr. Murray to give him some "milk".
"Let me sleep. It doesn't matter what happens. ”
At first Murray disagreed, but soon gave in.
He injected Jackson with 25 milligrams of propofol, a lethal dose.
The villa where he lived at the time of his death
Murray was supposed to stay by Jackson's side to see how he reacted to the injection, but he left 10 minutes later to go to the bathroom.
After that, he replied to the email and made a phone call to his clinic and a call to his patient.
At 11:51 a.m., Dr. Murray made a third call to Sande Anding, a cocktail waitress in Houston whom he had been courting.
Murray now has a girlfriend, and the two have a daughter.
After all of this was done, it was already noon, and Murray was back in Jackson's bedroom, more than an hour after the propofol injection.
Michael Jackson is no longer breathing.
The bodyguard Alvarez rushed upstairs to find the pop king lying on his back, arms outstretched, eyes and mouth open.
Dr. Murray began CPR and asked Alvarez to clear the room of empty pill bottles before calling 911.
Hearing the commotion, Jackson's daughter Paris and son Prince walked into their father's bedroom, cried, and were taken away by Alvarez.
Jackson was lifted to the floor, and Dr. Murray attempted mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while another security guard performed chest compressions.
It wasn't until 12:21 that the bodyguard Alvarez called 911 and told the operator: "I need an ambulance, the sooner the better." We have a gentleman here who needs help and he is not breathing. We are trying to give him CPR but he is not breathing.
Diagram
Emergency personnel arrived 6 minutes later. While Dr. Murray claims he can feel a faint heartbeat on Jackson's thigh, everyone else can't.
First responders tried two rounds of CPR at Jackson's home before continuing in the ambulance.
Dr. Murray and Jackson took an ambulance to the hospital together. He did not tell the first responders about the propofol he injected Jackson.
Instead, he said he was treating Jackson's dehydration and mentioned that he had injected him with 4 mg of lorazepam through an intravenous drip.
At the hospital, doctors tried various resuscitation methods, including using pumps to forcibly insert his arteries and heart. More than an hour of CPR left Jackson with multiple rib fractures.
At 2:26 p.m., Jackson was pronounced dead.
Dr. Murray burst into tears and left the hospital despite police objections.
Within 20 minutes, the media broke the news of Jackson's death, which immediately caused a sensation. Some news sites crashed, and global internet traffic rose by 20 percent.
In the evening, police began an investigation at Jackson's home. They found medical equipment, oxygen tanks, syringes, and a jug of urine in the bedroom.
Bottles of used propofol and other prescription painkillers were in bags, and a syringe lay on the floor near the bed.
At the hospital, Jackson's body was packed in a white body bag and sent to a helicopter to be transported to the Los Angeles coroner's office for an autopsy. All major TV stations were broadcasting live, and the scene was heartbreaking.
After nightfall, grieving fans gathered outside Santa Ynez's Jackson Neverland to sing his hits all night long.
Jackson's records were another big hit, selling more than 2 million copies within three weeks of his death.
A memorial service was held on July 7. After a private memorial service at Forester Lawn Cemetery, the gilded solid bronze coffin containing Jackson's body traveled 11 miles in a hearse to the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
More than 2.5 billion people around the world watched the live funeral, making it the most-watched non-sports broadcast in history. 17,500 people were able to come to the venue through tickets allocated by random lottery.
Jackson's 11-year-old daughter, Paris, tearfully said goodbye to her father on stage: "I just want to say that Dad has been the best father you can imagine since I was born, and I just want to say that I love him very much. ”
The coroner ruled that Jackson's death was a homicide. The autopsy report revealed that Jackson's feet were badly deformed, hardened into calluses, and had a severe fungal infection.
Two years later, Dr. Murray was sentenced to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter. He was released early in October 2013 due to prison overcrowding.
Although Michael Jackson's personal life has been controversial, it still can't shake his place in the hearts of fans.
The brightest star will also die one day, but his music and spirit will always reverberate in the hearts of those who love him.