tv Larry King Live CNN July 12, 2009 12:00am-1:00am EDT
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many thanks, a discussion i fear we will be having many, many more times in the future. thanks, guys. that is it for us. we'll be back monday, 8:00 eastern. good night, everybody. have a great weekend. >> larry: tonight, a prime-time exclusive. michael jackson's doctor breaks his silence, answering the questions everyone wants answered. is dr. arnie klein the father of the pop star's children? and what does he have to say about drugs? his former employee debbie rowe and the singer's ever-changing face. and then the bombshells that dropped today. shocking details about michael's body at the time of his death. dr. arnie klein on the friendship of almost 25 years. and the loss that has left him devastated next on "larry king live."
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>> larry: good evening. the saga of the death of michael jackson continues. and we welcome a very special guest tonight. dr. arnie klein they call the dermatologist to the stars, easily the best-known dermatologist in southern california, maybe elsewhere, too. he's michael jackson's long-term dermatologist, friend and professor of medicine and dermatology at ucla. doctor, how did you first meet michael? >> i met michael because somebody brought him into my office. they walked into the room with michael. i took one look at him and i
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and trying to clean it off and going to these doctors, and he was ex kwis italy sensitive to pain. i said, when you have thick crusting of your scalp. you have hair loss. he said, how do you know this? i said because it's the natural course of lupus. i then did a biopsy. i diagnosed lupus and our relationship went from there. >> larry: grew from there. fast forward. you saw him the monday before he died? >> absolutely, yes, sir. >> larry: what was the purpose of the visit? >> he came to me because basically, i was sort of rebuilding his face because had he severe acne scarring. he had scarring from having a lot of cosmetic surgery. and my expertise is like -- my patients are my treasures and i
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was rebuilding his face so he looked much more normal. contrary to what people said he could not take off his nose, his nose was attached. it looked too small. i was trying to get him ready to do the concert because the way he looked, in his face, he wanted to be absolutely as perfect as it could be. >> larry: did he consult you when he was doing his plastic surgery? >> no. i mean, i came on to the scene long after he had begun plastic surgery. in fact, what i wanted to do was you know, stop it, because i felt that, you know, we were losing body parts in the situation. >> larry: do you know why, he was such a good-looking young man, why he even started with plastic surgery? >> i don't know. people made fun of, family members, made fun of the size of his nose. he's very sensitive to that. so then he started doing cosmetic surgery. you know, it's like remember totie fields very well. had a facelift and she lost her leg. and the thing is -- >> larry: we knew her well. >> the plastic surgery, if you want it done, there's someone who will do it. >> larry: correct. how do you find the right one?
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i'll get to that in a while. how would you describe michael's mental, fiscal condition on that monday? >> he was dancing in the office so it's hard to say. so he was in very good physical condition. he was dancing for my patients. he was very mentally aware when we saw him. he was in a very good mood. because very happy. >> larry: looked good? >> it was a very, very happy mood. >> larry: therefore, you had to be shocked when he died. >> i remember when i found out. i sat at my desk for about five hours. i couldn't move. because i was very close to lim. it's not just because he's michael jackson, probably the most talented actor, or excuse me, performer of our age. i mean, when i lose anyone that i know, i go -- having lost my brother and my father when i was in medical school, i don't deal well with death. >> larry: a doctor should feel that way, right? any loss is a loss to him or her. >> i've taken care of many good friends. i have to tell you one thing, i give my life to my work. i have nothing else. >> larry: was michael in any kind of pain when you saw him? >> none whatsoever.
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>> larry: there are reports, doctor, that his body was riddled, want to get this right, with needle marks when he died. did you see any evidence of needle marks? >> i didn't examine his entire body. >> larry: had you seen any in prior exams? >> no, i never saw needle marks on his body. i mean, i never saw them that i could tell you. but i didn't see a riddle of anything. people sound like he looked like he was made of, you know, there were holes in him. there weren't anything like that. >> larry: people said he looked emaciated. >> he wasn't emaciated. i have worked with dancers. i knew he always wanted to be thin and i talked to him about eating enough and making sure he didn't overexercise. some dancers in order to remain thin will overdance in order to keep their weight down. >> larry: would you call him a good patient? >> i thought he was a great patient. i don't have any bad patients. >> larry: okay. well, some patients are not as cooperative as others. >> absolutely. >> larry: don't listen to their
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doctors. what about pain-killing medication, did you prescribe any? >> i used some sedatives when he had medical procedures that were immense. don't forget, he had the burn when he was burned on the pepsi commercial. and he had severe hair loss when he contracted lupus also. so when you have to fix all these areas, you have to sedate him a little bit. if you took all the pills i gave him in the last year at once, it wouldn't do anything to you. >> larry: what was the strongest medication you gave him? >> i occasionally gave him demerol to sedate him. that was about the strongest medicine i ever used. >> larry: you've worked with addicts, have you not? >> i wrote a book on heroin addiction. i think what's happening with drugs now is a disaster. i mean, we look at the actor from batman, look what happened to him. have you him, you have michael. the thing to remember this, you have all these drugs now that are being prescribed, the pills like oxycontin, available at high school campuses, i think we have to do something about the readily availability of these drugs.
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>> larry: and michael -- we're going to get to that. did michael have an addiction that you were aware of? >> michael at one time had an addiction. he went to england and withdrew that addiction in a secure setting where he went off drugs altogether. what i told michael when i met him in his present situation when i was seeing him, that i had to keep reducing the dosage of what he was on because he came to me with a huge tolerance level. when you take drugs repeatedly, unless you have something like your kidneys don't work, you may require some larger doses than normal. the other thing that you have to remember, when using certain drugs -- like we've been talking about diprivan. >> larry: did dr. klein father any of michael's children?
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>> larry: we're back with dr. arnie klein. how do the story surface between you and -- >> i don't have any idea. whether it came from debbie rowe, i have no idea. >> larry: could it have come in and suddenly you're going and it feels good. >> it's a good drug if used correctly. >> used by anesthesiologists? >> yes, because it's a very short drug and you go to sleep and it rids from the body very quickly. >> what would it be doing at somebody's house? >> i don't know. that makes no sense to me. these substances are available that people can get. the rich and the famous can buy anything they want.
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>> how would you buy diprivan? >> you'd have to get it from anesthesiologists. >> but would he come to your house? >> no, certainly not, not unless you have anesthesiologist administer it to you. there are certain things you should not do. i developed certain things in my life, not a lot, but botox, certainly injectable fillers and you see people throwing botox parties. i told him he was absolutely insane. i said, you have to understand that this drug, you can't repeatedly take because what happens with narcotic, no matter what you do, you do them and get a tolerance to them.
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>> larry: how could a reasonable anesthesiologist give that to someone otherwise prior to surgery. >> because i have to tell you that there are certain people in this world that are not reasonable. integrity in medicine -- >> would you lose the license if you were giving it for anything other than -- >> people have used something for everything. there are so many -- don't get to the topic of integrity with medicine now. that's what is happening with the fda and -- >> are you surprised that diprivan was found in his home, supposedly? >> i'm very shocked but i'd have to tell you that it's not something that would be unheard of. i told him that this drug was very dangerous. >> what did he say when you told him? >> well, he listened to me. >> and -- >> i spent half -- i bet half a year living with heroin addicts and writing a book about my experience when i was at medical school. when i went to england after the death of my father and brother, i learned that you couldn't really ever be assured that you
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were getting honest information. >> because they lie? >> because they lie. >> did you ever see any i.v. type equipment in his house? >> never. >> did you ever see diprivan in his home? >> no, i never did. and i also told him specifically the dangers of the diprivan, the dangers of getting it used by someone who is not anesthesiologist or -- >> did he have an insomnia problem? >> not that i knew of. except one time i went on tour with him and me and my whole office went to sleep in the room with him. so i never knew that he had a problem with sleep until this whole tour came up, or basically problem with sleep at that time. >> it's not what i do as a doctor or dermatologist.
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>> there are at least five doctors now reportedly under investigation. have you contacted any authorities? >> the only thing i've done is turn my records over a long time ago to the medical examiner. >> nothing with regard to think? >> no. >> do you know anything about these doctors supposedly? >> i know that various doctors went on tour with him. what happened to his mother? she died during surgery. how many people have this problem when they have -- when they die during surgery for whatever the reason is. and then they sit around with a dead person. >> are there a lot of doctors practicing who shouldn't? >> i would say a lot of people have come into my field of
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aesthetics because they think it's the only place they belong for untold reasons. >> i'm going to ask you in a minute about michael and his looks when we come back. in the world. can you hear them? food is talking to store shelves. cargo containers are talking to supply chains. power lines are talking to the grid. now that's smart. systems that allow carrots to tell truck drivers how fresh they are. roads alert cars about traffic patterns. cars alert mechanics before they break down. when things communicate... systems connect. when systems connect... the world gets smarter. that's what i'm working on. i'm an ibmer. let's build a smarter planet. including who i trust to look after my money. ♪ (woman) the dust might be settling... that's great, but i'm not. ♪ (second man) i guess i'm just done with doing nothing, you know? ♪ (third man) oh, i'm not thinking about moving my money. i am moving it.
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tdd# 1-800-345-2550 >> larry: we're back with the famed dermatologist dr. arnie klein in a nighttime, prime-time exclusive on "larry king live." what is vitiligo? >> it's a loss of pigment cells. for every 36 normal cells in your body, you have one pigment cell pumping pigment into them. unfortunately, it's an auto immune disease. and lupus is an autoimmune disease. you make antibodies against your pigment cells. >> larry: and michael had it? >> absolutely. >> larry: do black people have it more than white people? >> no, it's just more visible on black people. because they have the dark skin. the other thing is, it certainly occurs with a family history.
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i believe one of michael's relatives in fact had vitiligo. >> larry: how bad was his? >> his was bad because he began to get a speckled look over his body. >> larry: all over his body? >> all over his body, on his face, significantly on his hands, which is very difficult to treat. >> larry: let's clear up something. he was not someone desirous of being white? >> no. michael was black. was very proud of his black heritage. he changed the world for black people. >> larry: how do you treat vitiligo? >> there's certain treatments. you have one choice of ultraviolet light treatments that you can use certain drugs to try to make the white spots turn dark. or his became so severe, that the easier way is to use certain creams that will make the dark spots turn light. >> larry: so the decision was, he would go light? >> that's ultimately what the decision had to be because there was too much vitiligo to deal with. >> larry: otherwise, he would have looked ridiculous? >> he would have to wear heavy,
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president obama ended up taking questions from people in africa and we expect that on monday he's going to be releasing some of the answers to those questions via video on his website. so if you want to check that out for us, go to whitehouse.gov. we are also monitoring your thoughts about what happened not only during the g-8 but also to his trip to ghana. e-mail us and let us know what you have to say about this trip and the coverage of that trip. what was accomplished? what would you have wished to have seen accomplished? end us your views at cnn.com. you saw the address there. send us your thoughts and include your name and also the
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city and the country from which you are sending that e-mail. we'll try to get your thoughts into our coverage later on here today on cnn. if you're just watching us, we're getting ready for the president, his wife, and his two children and they are probably sleeping right now as they are being awoke and then a short trip on to marine one, the helicopter, as they get back to the white house and a process, i'm sure, was an amazing journey. this is the first african-american president making his first official visit to ghana during this trip and there was a lot of meeting, not just for him but also for the people of ghana. seeing this man who has personal ties to africa, the first time that it ever has happened in the history of america. so quite an historic trip today as we get ready for the first
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family to make their way back out of air force one and to only what i can assume is their beds now that it's 22 minutes past midnight here eastern time. we'll continue to watch this as they make their way there and a reminder again that anderson cooper was able to sit down with president obama today. they had a chat or i should say that they've stood and had a chat as they were at this castle where so many as they were being held as slaves. that's tomorrow during the state of the union hosted by john king. you'll see the whole thing, though, next week during the ac 360 program which will be airing
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on tuesday on cnn. the president is saying during that interview that it's important -- anderson asked him how important it is to remember the issue of slavery as they are at the historic site and he said that it's important, something that we have to remember and something that we have to acknowledge and something that -- he actually spoke in front of the people of ghana and said to them that it was very important to him that he bring his two children, sasha and malia, so they could see where all of that history began as well. it looks like we're getting -- and speaking of sasha and malia, i think i saw them -- there they are right there. they are getting ready to go down the stairs. they are holding hands with their mom and dad. they are making their way back on to american soil after their week long trip that started in europe and there you see president obama and michelle obama as they get ready to go on to marine one and head over to
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when i see these people walking around with lips that look more like something that belongs below the waist -- >> larry: they look ridiculous. >> it's ridiculous. you have to restore the face. >> larry: why did he wear the mask? >> he wore the mask because it sort of became like the white glove. >> larry: it was a gimmick. >> a gimmick. he had no reason other than wearing the mask. >> larry: he also had the children wear a mask? >> no, he didn't have them. that goes to the brashear interview. >> larry: the what? >> the martin brashear interview. he got paid $200,000 for that interview. uri geller. in that interview, michael was assured that he painted him as a normal person. well, he painted him as a strange person. i think in that interview they had, the kids walking down the street with masks on. the only time with masks -- they used to come to my house. they loved my dogs. i used to go to their house. i've never seen the children wear those strange masks he had them walking down the street with, ever. >> larry: when we come back, i want to talk about the nose. i want some of the things you're angry about and want changed. >> okay. >> larry: and what was relationship with other members
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why did he do that? and is it true that he wanted to look like peter pan? >> i don't think he wanted to look like peter pan. i didn't see him implanting wings on the back of his back. >> larry: what about the nose? >> the nose was a very special thing. because his father and his brothers, supposedly, what i read, made fun of his nose all the time. he was sensitive about his nose. >> larry: what was wrong with his nose? >> i didn't originally think there was anything wrong with his nose. i thought he had a nice nose. it was never able to come off his body. but it got to the point where it didn't look natural. >> larry: now, you helped him rebuild it? >> yes. >> larry: how? >> i used fillers and hyaluronic acids. i'm telling, he was beginning to look like the nose was normal again. it was total collapse of the cartilage. >> larry: in the last photos we've seen, his nose has been built up, right, he's looking better? >> yes. >> larry: was he still working at that? >> no, because i think we got to the point where he was very happy with the way he looked.
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filled in the cheeks a little bit. what i do with an individual patient is what i do. and what i do is just restoration work. i don't think people should look like, again, anything that's been altered. >> larry: you're not a plastic surgeon, so are you extending yourself when you do things like this? >> no, i invented injectible aesthetics. for better or worse, it's what i've been doing since 1979. i'm not extending myself. yes, plastic surgeons invented everything including the wheel. >> larry: are you on the war about injectables? >> the fda, they've gotten it approved without knowing what happens once they're injected under the skin. when you inject something synthetic under your skin, whether plexiglas, your body will react against it.
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you'll get a foreign body reaction. >> larry: i thought the fda is tough on drugs? >> no. the fda is run more or less by the drug companies. when you look at toxins now. if you read the faa warning, the warning in canada is the patients, they're given that. the warning in germany also. but the warnings here are only to the doctors who don't know what they're doing to begin with. what doctor is injecting a toxin. i think what we have to adequately do is teach doctors how to do it. how can you trust the status? some of the status has been altered. i'm working with a congressman and with a member of the house of representatives, as well as the fbi and justice department to change this from happening. i think the most important thing
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is patients. >> larry: is it ignorance or do the doctors know they're doing wrong? >> doctors are ignorant because you can't believe everything you read. that's what's happening in medical literature. it's turned into reading a mystery novel. pain medication -- >> larry: you have a lot of clout, don't youou? >> i don't have much clout, but i know people who have clout. >> larry: keep us posted on the war. >> i will. >> larry: was michael happy with the way he looked? >> absolutely. michael, they painted him as a very sad creature like charlie chaplain or something. >> larry: he loved chaplain. >> we once went to disneyland. it was disneyland paris. at night he brought michael chapman. he took a cane and starts imitating the way michael chaplain walks. every time michael would turn around, michael jackson would hide the cane. he's very funny like that. the kids wanted to meet princess laya. that's all they wanted.
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he was a person who was both the father and he loved them here dearly. >> larry: we want to talk about debbie rowe in a moment. i want to ask, is it true how bright he was? >> michael? michael was probably one of the most talented people. there are producers who he gave ideas to who told me if only they had listened to him. but he wasn't educated in the way -- >> larry: but he was intelligent? >> oh, beyond. fred astaire told me he was the greatest dancer of our time. >> larry: astaire said that? >> yes, to hear that from astaire, who else are you going to hear it from? >> larry: more about michael's life, after this. mr. evans? this is janice from onstar. i have received an automatic signal you've been in a front-end crash. do you need help? yeah. i'll contact emergency services and stay with you. you okay?
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>> larry: now, the debbie rowe part of the story. she was your nurse, right? >> yes. >> larry: they met in your office? >> yes. >> larry: was it a real love affair? >> i don't know what love is. i think that she loves him very much. she admired him very much. but if you think they're riding off in a horse-drawn carriage, i mean, we have to put what is a real relationship. we have to go back to what barnhart said to danny kaye. and she didn't even know who danny kaye was. which means who of us is normal. i'll tell you, was that a love affair, you want to know. i think she really cared about his welfare. >> larry: it was not a sexual
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relationship? >> i think they did have sex. >> larry: you do? >> yes. i can't guarantee that. >> larry: you think michael had sex to father the children? >> i don't know that answer, i think it's possible that he did. i can't guarantee that. you can only guarantee things you see. i don't want to make any suppositions about anything in this interview, because i want this to be as truthful as possible. >> larry: now, what about all the rumors about you and the fathering of those children? >> here's the most important thing. michael loved those children as a father. those children loved him as a father. as far as i know, that's the most important grouping that is. >> larry: that's not answering the question. >> no, because i'm not going to answer it the way you want me to answer. >> larry: well, you can say no. >> i will say no if that's what you want to hear. >> larry: i want to hear what you know.
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>> the most important thing with the father is the father is who the children want their father to be. i will tell you this, i will say, no, because the most important person for these children is how michael loved them. and how he loved his children and how they loved him. he would never pass him without saying, i love you, daddy. he would say, i love you. >> larry: earlier today, you said you couldn't answer that one way or the other. >> i still can't answer it absolutely one way or another. >> larry: that means you donated sperm. >> i once donated sperm. >> larry: you donated to him. >> oh, absolutely not. once to a sperm bank. i don't think i should go over my legal affairs. i think to the best of my knowledge, i'm not the father. this discussion, however, is between michael's children and this person. it's not to be discussed who the father is over national television. >> larry: it's nobody's business.
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>> it's no one's business. >> larry: except he's become the public's business. isn't this a fact of life? >> let me tell you something, there's something called private lives. can't we leave this alone? can't we leave these children alone? these are brilliant, talented children. forget this, understand, this man loved these children. these children loved him. his children loved him. >> larry: you're not saying you won't take a dna test? >> if they want a dna test, i will take a dna test. i don't care at this point. >> larry: your concern is the kids. >> my concern are the kids. they're the brightest children i've ever met. they come over to my house, they behave wonderfully. i know how deeply he loved them and how deeply they loved him. i don't want to destroy this relationship in any way, shape or form. i'll tell you this, no matter what, i will protect these children. >> larry: how are you
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personally, arnie klein, dealing with all of this surrounding you? paparazzi following you? >> i ignore it all. because you know what -- >> larry: stories that you're the father. i mean, come on, you can't put it away. >> you have to understand, i've been through a few things in my life. i've been through debbie rowe marrying michael. i've been through the pregnancy. the botox. understand? this is just another episode. this is a little bigger because they're following me for a change but i think it's sensationalism, but it's happening to the world. we should more worry about what's happening at the fda and drugs existing all over the playgrounds at high schools than what's happening to me. >> larry: you once told me about michael and ryan white dying of aids. >> michael wanted to bring ryan white to neverland. and his plastic surgeon said you can't bring him in the jacuzzi because you might catch aids. >> larry: you're kidding? >> honest to god. michael called me, will i catch aids if i go in the jacuzzi with ryan white. i said, no way. he was very good friends with
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ryan white until he died. that's what people don't know. >> larry: did he go in the jacuzzi? >> absolutely. he really cared. i have a brother who's learning disabled. he asks me every time he seen me, how is steven doing? this is a person who really cared about other people. he's unlike any person i ever met. >> larry: did you go to the memorial service? >> i couldn't. i watched it on television and it was still too emotional for me. i understand who he was. i thought it was a very beautiful service. i know you were there, you know, services like that, father's a rabbi and i do not do well at memorial services. >> larry: i don't either. what is michael jackson's legacy? you can go to cnn.com/larry king, read our blog. cnn.com/larryking. check it out. back in 60 seconds. dr. arnie klein.
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>> larry: a gut-wrenching moment at the memorial came at the end when michael's 11-year-old daughter paris talked through her tears. we've seen it many times. we want to get arnie's reaction, watch. >> ever since i was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine. and i just wanted to say i love him so much. >> larry: what do you feel when you look at that? >> i can't, it's difficult to look at that. because here's a man who changed the world. he enabled black people to do things they've never done before. we have a black caucus, we have a black president. he enabled so many things. he gave so many gifts to the world.
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he's the finest entertainer what he ever had. unlike what they did to this sarah bernhardt. she died painless, yet they had a big funeral for her. now everybody wants the gossip. we lost one of the greatest people of our life. the most generous and with a bigger heart than anyone i've ever known. he's produced three incredible children. >> larry: about the children, this is hypothetical. if you were the parent, this is hypothetical, would you go and talk to them and do something about it or let it ride? >> if i was the parent, i'd spend every moment of the day with the children. >> larry: you'd become their father? >> absolutely. having the right tools is crucial to being able to manage your diabetes properly.
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>> larry: before we get back to >> larry: how do you think the topic of fatherhood surfaced? >> whether that came from debbie rowe, i have no idea. >> could it have come from debbie rowe? >> absolutely. my greatest concern was what was going to happen to the children. i told her i didn't want in the next version of jacksons and these children are bright. they've gone to film school. >> larry: do you think she said something about it? >> i don't know that. all i told her was this, i want her to get active and be the mother of these churn. >> larry: do you think that she has custody? >> i don't know if she has custody. i think i'm very worried that the custody -- the woman who was her nanny was incredible, she should remain the nanny and help raise the children.
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i worry about the jackson family only because i worry about the father. >> larry: in what way? >> he was very difficult to deal with with michael. they announced his new record label at the memorial. as you remember. and he seems more interested in making money than dealing with the -- >> larry: what do you think of the rest of the family? >> i think janet is wonderful who i happen to know. i know randy. he seems nice to me. i think they're going to put a performance on again. what they want to do is perform. >> larry: they're performers. >> yeah, they're performers. but you heard speeches yesterday from very controversial speakers. i think the most wonderful speech was the person who i thought would be the least was al sharpton when he talked about michael. he spoke really eloquently yesterday. i just want to assure that debbie rowe or someone take good care of these gifts from god. >> larry: is katherine the stronghold of the family? >> i think she is. how would old she now? >> larry: 79. >> do you think it's difficult for a 79-year-old to raise
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adolescent children? that would be my question. also, debbie rowe has gained her rights back to the children. now, you may not think she's the best person in the world, having worked with her for 25 years, as a nurse, she can be a very loving person. if she's combined with grace, it could be a wonderful combination. i can't make these decisions, nor do i want to. >> larry: have you gone to see the family? >> i have not gone to see the family. i didn't want to see the family, i have difficulty with jesse jackson who i didn't know very well. reverend sharpton who i didn't know very well. once the family invites me to visit them, because i'd love to see the children. i have to get invited to visit. >> larry: what do you think will happen to michael's body?
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>> burial. >> larry: neverland? >> wherever they want to put the body. i believe firmly that he should be buried. i'm an orthodox jew, once you've died the body is just a body. it belongs in the ground. >> larry: orthodox bury the next day. >> i know. in my view he should have been buried already. they want to keep him stored in neverland until they bury it. i think you have to put an end to the carnival atmosphere. i think it's time to put the body in the ground and get on with the rest of the world and get on with the great things that he's done. remember how he changed the world in such a positive manner. >> larry: will you come back? >> absolutely. >> larry: i'd like to look into your mind on lots of things, including treatment with drugs. we have panel shows coming up. >> i'm only an expert on injectables. those are drugs. >> larry: appreciate it. we want to thank the millions of you who watch cnn here in the
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>> larry: extraordinary young man joins us now, shaheen jafargholi. he was a finalist on "britain's got talent." he was on this program at that time. he performed at yesterday's michael jackson memorial. michael had invited shaheen to london for his upcoming tour. shaheen was a big hit tuesday. let's take a look at him singing michael's song "who's loving you." ♪ i want to make it, all my life ♪ ♪ all my life
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♪ now come on ♪ come on and take it girl come on and take it girl ♪ >> larry: how did they get you to do that? how did they call you? what happened. >> well, you know, michael was meant to be doing the tour dates because i was on "britain's got talent" he saw me on youtube and he wanted me to appear with him on his -- >> larry: in london. >> yeah, in london. and so you know, unfortunately he passed away. and so they were setting up a memorial, very short notice, you know. and they were discussing it with kenny ortega, the guy who was going to direct the show in
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london and you know, they thought it would be a great idea for me to perform there. he used to watch me on youtube every day. he used to really like me. >> larry: did you like the idea? >> when i first went, i couldn't believe it. i was to be honest, honored to be invited. when i found out i was in the o-2 date, that was amazing as well. >> larry: you were going to sing in that concert. >> i was going to be singing a duet of feel the world with him. >> larry: so they flew you over and you rehearsed. what did it feel like to perform at the memorial. >> i just felt really honored. i'd been given the opportunity and the chance to say good-bye to my idol and my hero in a way that no other person on earth ever could. i had a great opportunity. >> i'm really glad it happened. >> larry: how old are you? >> i'm 12. >> larry: what's the background of the name? >> i'm half iranian. >> larry: born in london? >> no, born in wales which is a small country in london.
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>> larry: you live there now? >> yeah, i live in wales. >> larry: what's your goal? >> to keep doing what i'm doing, to sing and you know, just record maybe, just be out there and be able to show people how much i love to do this. >> larry: you have extraordinary talent. do you dance? >> well, i'm not saying i can't dance but you know, my main stronger point is singing and just basically what i love to do all the time. i just love getting the chance to get up on the stage and sing to lots of people. >> larry: when you were singing, berry gordy was singing right in front of me, the famed founder of motown. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. >> larry: so i leaned over to him and i said, did you know who kid this kid is and he said, i don't know who this is, but if i had a record company, i'd sign him tomorrow. do you have a recording contract? >> not at the moment. i mean, we're waiting to see what's going to happen with me in the future. i mean, hopefully, you know, i'll be able to carry on singing basically just get better and
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progress. >> larry: are you good at school? >> i'm like really high level at school. i love going to school. i just love being normal and being with my friends and, you know, just sitting in. i love going from one extreme to the other. >> larry: do you vocalize every day? >> i sing all the time. i sing to myself. i just forget, sometimes. >> larry: you just start singing. i'm going to have you sing in a minute. when you're 12, couldn't your voice change? >> well, everybody, every person goes through that change. but when i was on the show, "britain's got talent" the vocal
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coach said i can hear in your voice that it is going to obviously break, which everyone thinks, i think it's going to break but get stronger. >> larry: more tenor or less tenor. >> more tenor. >> larry: sing something for us. anything. you walk down the street and sing. sing. >> i'll sing "who's loving you." >> larry: okay. we have about 45 seconds. go. ♪ when i had you ♪ i treated you bad oh, my dear ♪ ♪ and i wonder who's loving you ♪ >> larry: it was that natural to you as a kid? when did you start singing, when you were 5, 6 years old? >> in front of an audience, yes. but ever since i could talk. i mean i was always singing words to all my favorite songs, seemed to just stick in my head. i mean, my mom always used to play lots of motown and michael jackson around me so i grew up listening to all these amazing songs. >> larry: you have an extraordinary future in front of you. you're quite a young man.
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