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"Living with the J5!" Article

Date range assessed by the fact that the article mentions “the day early this year when their hometown of Gary, Indiana, named a street after the group for an entire week; this was in January 1971.

"Living with the J5!" article, transcript

Have you ever wondered what your fav five do when they're not on concert tours or entertaining in some distant location? Why, they’re happily “at home" in their big, beautiful, spanking new home in Encino, California--which the entire Jackson family recently moved into!

And now would you like to know what domestic life with this big, bouncy, and close family named Jackson is really like? Life with any large family can he hectic, enjoyable. full of sharing, caring and fun and games--so you can just imagine what life with the Jacksons is like! There are not only the lovable, darlin’ members of the J5 themselves--Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael--but also their parents, Joe and Katherine; their eight-year-old brother Randy; and their sisters--Latoya, 15, and little Janet, 5. In addition, two J5 cousins live in this super-house Ronnie Rancifer, the group's organist, and Johnny Jackson, the J5's drummer. (The Jacksons' oldest sister, Maureen, who is 21--is married and lives in Kentucky with her husband and baby.)

They’re a closely-knit group, and if you could he there with them, living with them, and sharing their most intimate moments, here are some of the things you might notice about the boys and

their new home:

The house is in a secluded setting and is surrounded by a high iron fence.

Your arrival must be announced over the intercom, which is built into one of the stone pillars at the entrance gate.

One of the first things you see is a large, square, dreamy-looking swimming pool encircled by greenery--lemon trees, palm trees, shrubbery, and exotic plants.

The boys all ride motorbikes--Marlon and Jackie have lime green ones, Michael's is sunny yellow, Jermaine's is orangey-red, and Tito's is jet black.

The basketball court is always in use, 'cos the boys frequently hold mini-tournaments there. They boys also spend lots of time on their archery range and badminton court. *You'd* have to learn *both* sports to keep up with them!

All the boys like to wear flowered shirts or colorful striped ones...

Rings are a favorite of all the Jackson boys--they sometimes wear a ring on each and every finger!

All the boys wear watches--so they'll always know what time they have to meet you!

The family's favorite room in the new house is the white brick and wood paneled den.

That room has a modern spiral staircase, splitting the den into two levels.

The den's walls are lined with books and the many gold records the J5 have received for their million-selling singles and LPs--plus their two 16-SPEC Gold Star Awards.

Souvenirs of the group's travels adorn the den too--their most memorable: a gold-colored street sign saying "Jackson 5 Blvd", from the day early this year when their hometown of Gary, Indiana, named a street after the group for an entire week,

Also mounted on the walls, framed Billboard and Cash Box music charts show how popular the J5 songs have been in the nation's radio stations in the jukeboxes.

But more than anything else you'll notice how great it is to be living with the jumpin', jivin', fabulous Jackson 5--being with your fav five constantly and sharing their super-fun spare time!!