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July 3, 2009

Promoter Says Jackson Memorial Planned at LA Arena
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=2523F42:A6F02AD83191E160DAFAACA1201EAA6EE55ED32ED25AB8F6&
 
Randy Phillips, head of AEG Live promotion company, says family is
considering holding event on Tuesday but has not made a final decision 
Handout image obtained on June 30, 2009 from Wire Image shows Michael
Jackson during rehearsals for planned shows at Staples Centre in Los
Angeles, 23 Jun 2009The head of a concert promotion agency says a
tribute to late pop star
Michael Jackson will likely be held at the Staples Center arena in Los
Angeles. Randy Phillips, head of the promotion company AEG Live,
said Thursday that the family is considering holding the event on
Tuesday but has not made a final decision. He said admission will be
free. AEG Live was the company producing a series of "comeback"
concerts featuring the late star, which were set to begin this month in
London. Now it is expected to produce the memorial event, after
Jackson's sudden death on June 25.Also Thursday, the biological
mother of Jackson's oldest two children hinted that she may press for
custody. Debbie Rowe told a Los Angeles television news program that
she wants her children. But her lawyer said later that Rowe
has not reached a decision about asking for custody. Jackson asked in
his will that his 79-year-old mother be made their guardian. And U.S.
media report the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has joined the
investigation into Jackson's death. Investigators
removed two large bags of medical evidence from Jackson's rental home,
where an emergency caller reported that the pop icon had stopped
breathing. A medical examiner found no external signs of foul
play and investigators are now waiting for the results of toxicology
tests, which are expected to take weeks. On Wednesday, Jackson's
2002 will was filed in court and estimated his fortune to be worth $500
million at the time, with the estate to be put into a family trust, and
guardianship of his three children. 

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.


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