Pop star Michael Jackson dies

LOS ANGELES - Michael Jackson, the sensationally gifted "King of Pop" who emerged from childhood superstardom to become the entertainment world's most influential singer and dancer before his life and career deteriorated in a freakish series of scandals, has died, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. He was 50.

The person, who requested anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly said Jackson died in a Los Angeles hospital.

The circumstances of his death were not immediately clear.

According to celebrity news website TMZ.com, the singer was rushed to UCLA Medical Center after suffering a heart attack.

"Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon and paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back," the entertainment site said.

Jackson was not breathing when Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to a call at his Los Angeles home about 12.30pm local time (7.30am NZST), Captain Steve Ruda told the Los Angeles Times.

The paramedics tried to resuscitate him and took him to UCLA Medical Center, Ruda told the newspaper.

Jackson's brother Randy has reportedly told CNN that the singer collapsed in his home.

Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

The singer's father, Joe Jackson, spoke to E! News earlier and said that he was told about his son's medical emergency, but does not have any details about his condition.

"I am in Las Vegas but yes people in Los Angeles called me and are with Michael and tell me he was taken to the hospital," he said.

"His mother is on her way to the hospital now to check in on him.

"I am not sure what's wrong. I am waiting to hear back from them," he added.

However TMZ.com is reporting that members of Jackson's family have left their homes within the last half an hour, possibly to head to the UCLA Medical Center.

Jackson's 1982 album Thriller - which included the blockbuster hits Beat It, Billie Jean and Thriller - remains the biggest-selling album of all time, with more than 26 million copies.

He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his feverish, crotch-grabbing dance moves, his high-pitched voice punctuated with squeals and titters.

His single sequinned glove and tight, military-style jacket were trademarks second only to his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance.

As years went by, he became an increasingly freakish figure. His skin became lighter and his nose narrower. He surrounded himself with children at his Neverland ranch, often wore a germ mask while travelling and kept a pet chimpanzee named Bubbles as one of his closest companions.

In 2005, he was cleared of charges he molested a 13-year-old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of plying the boy with alcohol and groping him. The case took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital as word of his death spread. The emergency entrance at the UCLA Medical Center, which is near Jackson's rented home, was roped off with police tape.

In New York's Times Square, a low groan went up in the crowd when a screen flashed that Jackson had died, and people began relaying the news to friends by cell phone.

"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."

There has been no official confirmation of the singer's death from his spokesperson.

Jackson is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson II.

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- AP, NZ HERALD STAFF