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NOTICE: In order to get the FULL interview that actually took place in the “Living with Michael Jackson” documentary, make sure to watch the special “Take Two: The Footage You Were Never Meant to See” immediately after viewing “Living with Michael Jackson”. The special provides outtakes from the interview necessary to understand the FULL interview that actually took place. Thank you very much for reading.
“Take Two: The Footage You Were Never Meant to See”: https://youtu.be/GB3Zs2ix0rY
Michael is devastated and feels utterly betrayed by the British television programme, Living With Michael Jackson, presented by Martin Bashir and broadcast in the UK on Monday, February 3, 2003, which he regards as a gross distortion of the truth and a tawdry attempt to misrepresent his life and his abilities as a father.
In a number of crucial respects Michael is concerned that Martin Bashir and Granada Television have broken the trust he placed in them.
In particular, he felt he had obtained their assurance that his children would not be featured in any way in the broadcast programme.
Michael repeatedly asked Bashir to stop filming his children, and was promised by him that the footage of his children would be taken out in the final edit but, Bashir said, shooting should not be stopped because "it would break the continuity of filming".
Michael is deeply upset that the programme sensationally sets out to use two or three pieces of footage giving a wholly distorted picture of his behaviour and conduct as a father.
Michael feels particularly devastated that he has been treated so badly by Martin Bashir, whom he let into the Jackson family home on a number of occasions over eight months, in the belief that Bashir wished to make a genuine documentary of his life.
Michael believes that what was eventually broadcast was a salacious ratings chaser, designed to celebrate Martin Bashir, and which was indifferent to the effect on Michael personally, his family and his close friends.
Michael originally consented to grant Bashir extended access to the Neverland Valley Ranch, his family and Michael himself, because he wanted to give the world a faithful representation of the truth about his life.
Michael believes that the programme Bashir has produced is a travesty of the truth.
Michael would never have consented to participating in this film if he had been aware of how Bashir was going to falsely portray him.
Michael believes that this programme was intentionally produced and edited with a view to broadcasting sensationalised innuendo.
Michael feels deeply angry that the programme could have led viewers to conclude that he abuses children in any way. Michael Jackson has never, and would never, treat a child inappropriately or expose them to any harm and totally refutes any suggestions to the contrary.
Michael would never betray the trust that a child, or their parents, might place in him.
Michael was today moved to make the following personal statement: "I trusted Martin Bashir to come into my life and that of my family because I wanted the truth to be told.
"Martin Bashir persuaded me to trust him that his would be an honest and fair portrayal of my life and told me that he was `the man that turned Diana's life around'.
"I am surprised that a professional journalist would compromise his integrity by deceiving me in this way.
"Today I feel more betrayed than perhaps ever before; that someone, who had got to know my children, my staff and me, whom I let into my heart and told the truth, could then sacrifice the trust I placed in him and produce this terrible and unfair programme.
"Everyone who knows me will know the truth which is that my children come first in my life and that I would never harm any child.
"I also want to thank my fans around the world for the overwhelming number of messages of support that I have received, particularly from Great Britain, where people have e-mailed me and said how appalled they were by the Bashir film.
Their love and support has touched me greatly." These comments are excerpts from a videotaped statement from Michael Jackson, which shall be released after the airing of the Bashir television special in the United States.
Debbie Rowe, Michael's ex-wife and the mother of two of his children reacted: "It breaks my heart that anyone could truly believe that Michael would do anything to harm or endanger our children: they are the most important thing in his life."
“Living With Michael Jackson” transcript
(Opening scene – Michael is seated in his studio. Mr. Bashir is standing nearby with his left arm resting on a computer screen.)
BASHIR: “Why are you laughing?”
(Michael snorts with laughter) “Okay…c’mon” (camera pans in for a close up of Michael)
BASHIR: “What…what…what have I done?”
MICHAEL: “It’s all right…”
(camera pans over to a smiling Mr. Bashir) “C’mon tell me, what have I done?”
MICHAEL: “No. I like your accent.” (camera pans back to Michael) “I was laughing…”
BASHIR (off camera) : “You like my accent?”
MICHAEL: “…laughing at how you said I’m gonna ask you somethin– you said “I’m going to ask you [adopts posh British voice]. I like it!” (laughs)
BASHIR: “Can you do an English accent?”
MICHAEL: “A bit.” [adopts posh British voice]
(Bashir, off camera laughs)
MICHAEL [speaking with British accent]: “It’s nice…Nice to meet you.”
BASHIR (parrots laughingly): “It’s nice to meet you.”
MICHAEL [speaking with British accent]: “A nice, beautiful interview.”
(Bashir off camera laughs uproariously)
♫ Billie Jean (from Thriller album, 1982) plays
(Montage scene follows – starting with driving up to Neverland gates at night)
♫ Michael beat-boxing the introduction
(cuts to footage of same then cuts to Michael dancing to Billie Jean)
♪ “She was more like a beauty queen from a movie scene
( MJ & Bashir shopping in Las Vegas then the Las Vegas sign)
♪ I said ‘don’t mind but what do you mean, I am the one’
(Michael dancing)
♪Who dance on the floor, in the round
(Michael & Bashir on Ferris wheel then in the go carts)
♪ She said I am the one, who dance on the floor, in the round
(MJ & Bashir shopping in Las Vegas)
♪ She told me her name was Billie Jean as she caused a scene
Then every head turned with eyes that dreamed of being the one
Who dance on the floor, in the round
(MJ & Bashir in Las Vegas with Prince then Michael feeding baby Blanket)
♪ People always told me ‘Be Careful what you do…
Don’t go around breaking young girls hearts’
(MJ hugging pretty blonde fan in Germany)
♪ And Mother always told me ‘Be careful who you love…
Be careful what you do until the lie becomes the truth’
(MJ & Gavin holding hands with Gavin’s head on MJ’s shoulder)
♪ Hey Hey! Billie Jean is not my lover…
She’s just a girl that says I am the one…
But the kid is not my son…”
(Opening scene – Neverland carousel)
Bashir Commentary: “8 Months ago I put a proposal to Michael Jackson: Show me the real man but show me everything - make nothing off limits. He thought about it and then he said “Yes! Come to Neverland.”
(Cut to Bashir & Michael Jackson walking with amusement park rides in the background.)
Bashir: “Do you come out here on your own?”
Michael: “Yeah!”
Bashir: “How Often?”
Michael: “All the time!” (laughs)
Bashir: “Just come out on your own?”
Michael: “Yes.”
Bashir: “What, and go on a ride?”
Michael: “Yep, usually the carousel, I play music. I love…I love playing classical music on the carousel cause I love…um…like um…something like ‘Childhood’ or ‘Smile’ you know…”
(Mr. Bashir laughs)
Michael: “Or ‘People’ by Barbra Streisand…something beautiful, you know?
Bashir: “Right…What about the Ferris wheel?”
Michael: “I like the Ferris wheel, it’s a traditional…um…very old, you know… amusement exhibit and its soothing, it’s not, you know, anything that’s dangerous or anything. It’s just comfortable…makes you wish and dream and...”
(cut to scenes of amusement rides)
Bashir (voiceover): “Can we go on it?”
Michael (voiceover): “Sure!”
Bashir (voiceover): “Let’s go on it.”
Bashir Commentary: “We began a journey together – across continents, through his past and rapidly into the disturbing reality of his life today.”
Bashir (off camera): “Shake hands before battle commences.”
Michael (laughingly): “Okay…all right.” (Cut to the two men shaking hands before each heads off to their respective vehicles)
Bashir: “Michael Jackson versus Martin Bashir…”
Michael: “Okay…”
Bashir: “…in the go cart land of Neverland…”
(pans over to Michael who is laughing heartily as he enters his go cart aided by an attendant)
♫ Bad (from album of same name 1987) starts to play
Michael: “You got a head whooping coming…I’m gonna whoop your head”
(Michael laughs – cut to Mr. Bashir who is seated and turns his head to look at Michael. Cut back to Michael who is waiting for roof of his go cart to be lowered.)
Michael: “Hey, he’s cheating! He’s cheating!” (Michael starts to drive but Mr. Bashir is already well ahead)
♪ Your butt is mine, you know you ain’t right…show your face…
Bashir Commentary: “This is Michael Jackson as you’ve never seen him before. From the inside; his music, his money, his children, his sex life, his face. Quite simply: his world.”
♪ “I’m giving you…to the count of three…to show your stuff or let it be…
I’m telling you…just watch your mouth…I know your game…what you’re about”
Bashir (who is winning the race): “Wooooohoo! Yeah!”
Michael: “Ha, Ha. He’s good!”
Bashir: “Nice win for Britain there against the USA.”
(Cut to Michael’s studio where Bashir is asking:)
Bashir: “How do you write a song? (pause) How do you write a song?”
Michael (off camera): “How do I write a song?” (Camera pans over to Michael) “Well…”
(Cuts to picture)
Bashir: “You don’t have a pen in your hand and you don’t try...”
Michael: “If I sat down at this piano…”
Bashir: “…What would happen?”
Michael: “If I sat here and played some chords or whatever and say ‘I’m gonna write the best song ever written’ nothing happens.”
“Something in the heavens has to say ‘Look, this is the time that this is gonna be laid on you and this is when I want you to have it.’ Now, I remember when I wrote ‘Billie Jean’ I was riding in my car down Ventura Boulevard. All I said to myself beforehand “I wanna write a song with a great bass hook’ you know and…uhm
then, I just let it go really and then several days later, you know…[♫Michael beat boxes the introduction to Billie Jean]”
Bashir: “Where did that come from?”
Michael: “From above.”
Bashir: “So…”
Michael: “It really did.”
Bashir: “Okay, you were singing the bass lines, sing that again, and then what happened? How did you get the other instrumentation and the composition? How did it work?
Michael: “It…It…It…See the thing is…in…uhm…Artists seem to get in the way of the music. Get out of the way of the music…you know, don’t write the music! Let the music write itself.”
Bashir: “The dance as well?”
Michael: “Yeah, same thing.”
Bashir: “How do you do it? Can you show me how you do it?”
Michael: “Oh boy!”
Bashir: “C’mon just get up and show me!”
Michael: “I’m shy.”
Bashir: “Oh C’mon just show me!”
Michael: “C’mon…”
Bashir: “Just show me. Just show me. Show me what you do. Teach me.”
Michael: “Okay…err…Oh boy! You’re putting me on the spot now.”
Bashir: “C’mon!”
Michael: “See, now people are discovering something about me - I’m really shy, I’m embarrassed!”
Bashir: “Okay, you’re shy. Just get up and show me.”
(Michael laughs then says “OK” and rises from his chair. He then proceeds to dance to a mostly instrumental version of ‘Billie Jean’)
Bashir (voiceover): What’s going through your mind when you’re dancing?
Michael (voiceover): “Not thinking. Thinking is the biggest mistake a dancer can make. You have to feel…
(Michael dancing)
“You become the bass…You become the fanfare, you become the clarinet and the flute the strings and the drums”
Bashir: “So you’re almost the physical embodiment of the music?”
Michael: “Yeah, absolutely!”
(Michael stops dancing and invites Mr. Bashir to join him “You want to try one?”)
Bashir: “Show me. You want me to do it?” (laughs) “How am I going to do it? What do you want me to do?”
Michael: “Like stand here.” (Shows Bashir how to moonwalk) “Mainly one foot down and really using the other foot…push! It’s like really pushing, just push, you know? Using your heel…use your heel to slide back…slide back on your heel…heel”
Bashir: “That’s very, very difficult…That is not easy, that is not easy!”
Michael: “Huhm?”
Bashir: “No, that is not easy!”
Michael: “You know what? It’s very hard to explain too, how to do it.”
Bashir: “What…when…what…when your describing…
Michael: “Do it one more time, do it one more time. Just use that heel. Don’t slide back on your toes, slide back on your heel, okay?”
Bashir: “Okay, so I slide back…”
Michael: “You’ll wanna go on your toes, but don’t go on your toes, go on the heel. Not on the toe when you go back. Always on the heel. Heel. Heel. Heel.”
Bashir: “That’s pretty unnatural because normally you lift your foot as you walk.”
Michael: “I know, that’s part of the illusion.”
Bashir: “Right, So, I slide back…”
Michael: “That’s very good though!
(Bashir laughs self mockingly)
MJ: “That’s the idea.”
Bashir: “You’re a very kind man”
Michael: “That’s the idea.”
(Cut to montage of Bashir driving up to Neverland gates in a version of the bat-mobile. Followed by scenes of the amusement rides, the giraffes and elephants and then a close up of a Peter Pan garden statue outside the main house.)
Bashir Commentary: “Michael Jackson’s home Neverland is a 3000 acre ranch 3 hours north of Los Angeles. As with most of his life, it has to be seen to be believed. Inspired by the children’s fairy tale ‘Peter Pan’ - about the little boy who never grew up. It’s a multi-million dollar, man made slice of make believe. As well as the full size fun fair, there’s a zoo with giraffes, elephants, tigers and a couple of orangutans Bubbles the chimp has been moved out to an animal sanctuary.
It literally paradise for a 10 year old child but Michael Jackson is now 44.