A memorial service to Michael Jackson was held in Los Angeles today after family and close friends earlier held a private service at a Los Angeles cemetery.
A fleet of black vehicles took Jackson's parents and siblings to the cemetery. The gold-trimmed casket was later carried off in a hearse to the Staples Center sports arena where the memorial show was held.
A Gospel choir singing "We're going to see the king" launched the emotional public memorial. Jackson's brothers carried the singer's gold-trimmed casket into the Staples Center, the same place where Jackson rehearsed the day before his death for a highly anticipated comeback tour.
Mariah Carey performed Jackson's 1970 hit "I'll Be There" and singer Smokey Robinson read out written tributes from former South African president Nelson Mandela and Diana Ross. Singer Stevie Wonder also sang, and a glossy memorial program was filled with pictures of Jackson and testimonials from friends and family.
"Michael was the biggest star on earth," said actress Queen Latifah, to huge applause.
Some 18,000 fans and friends got tickets in the arena or at a nearby, overflow theater for the ceremony, which took place against a large backdrop and picture of Jackson that read "In Loving Memory of Michael Jackson King of Pop 1958 - 2009."
The memorial was shown live on US television networks, in some 37 US movie theaters, and on the Internet.
Jackson (50) died after suffering cardiac arrest in his rented Los Angeles mansion during rehearsals for a 50-show series of comeback concerts in London after a fallow period in his singing career.
Outside the Staples Center, fans crowded the sidewalks and vendors sold King of Pop t-shirts for $10, as well as posters, necklaces and white sequined gloves that became Jackson's trademark.
Questions persist over the cause of his death, which is being investigated by coroners, police and drug police amid reports of possible prescription medication abuse.
Custody of his three children is temporarily in the hands of his mother Katherine but Jackson's ex-wife Debbie Rowe has not yet decided whether to seek custody herself.
Reuters