A.G. Court Session 10: Michael Jackson Showed No Sign of Illness

On Monday’s court day, two of Michael’s choreographers—who had worked with him in the 1990s and on the This Is It tour—were called to the stand by A.G.’s defense attorney to give testimony.

Stacey Walker, who had worked with Michael on three projects since 1996, said as the first witness that she saw no signs of illness in Michael and that he was healthy and full of energy, even though he had lost weight. She did, however, admit that she worked with other dancers more often and that her job was to prepare them, so she didn’t spend much time with Michael. Travis Payne was also present in court that day. He is also a choreographer for the tour and currently works on Michael Jackson’s Immortal tour.

Stacey Walker said that in Michael’s final days, she saw no signs of illness in him and didn’t think the King of Pop would die. The dancer did say, however, that Michael was thinner than ever and wore many layers of clothing, but she never saw him shiver from the cold. Karen Faye had said in a previous court session that Michael complained about being cold and couldn’t keep himself warm. Walker, however, said she had never seen Michael with blankets or next to a heater.

“He had become much thinner since 1997.” She added that she hadn’t noticed any severe weight loss in him from April to June 2009.

Walker said that although Michael had missed some dance sessions, based on the performance he delivered on stage during the two nights before his death, she believed Michael could have carried out the TII tour. Walker said that based on what she saw those two nights, she concluded that he was prepared for the tour. She attributed Michael’s absence from rehearsals to spending more time with his children.

“One night he apologized and went to his room. He wasn’t feeling well. He didn’t say anything. I wasn’t shocked that he sometimes didn’t come to rehearsal sessions, but I was a little upset. I thought maybe he wanted to stay at home with his children.”

From April to May, Michael sometimes attended rehearsals. At that time, they were busy training the dancers. Walker’s job was to take care of the young dancers and she received instructions from Michael, Travis Payne, and Kenny Ortega.

“I never thought he would leave us and die. The idea didn’t even cross my mind. Back then, I wasn’t paying attention to things like that. I wish I had. I remember telling him not to worry about anything—everything was fine. I truly believed everything was fine.”

She said that once Michael lost his balance and it seemed he might have been under the influence of medication. She, however, explained that she didn’t remember seeing this personally or hearing about it from someone else.

“I’ve seen people drunk or intoxicated. Michael was never like that.”

Walker had no particular opinion about the presence of a personal doctor next to Michael:

“Some artists bring their own chef, massage therapist, and fitness coach with them. The presence of a personal doctor didn’t surprise me.”

She said she didn’t remember a personal doctor being present during the History Tour years 1996 to 97, but she pointed out that she had never seen any sign of drug misuse in Michael. She also described Michael’s performance on the History Tour as amazing.

During the History Tour, dancers rehearsed without Michael in Los Angeles. They went to France and rehearsed in a studio at Disneyland. Michael appeared in their rehearsals once or twice. Walker worked on the tour for six months. She was one of the two dancers for the song The Way You Make Me Feel. She said she felt that song was her own.

Stacey, who was a dancer alongside Michael in the second part of the History Tour, described the King of Pop’s final stage performances—those two nights before his death—as very powerful and great.

“It was great. I finally saw what I had been waiting for. I felt at ease because he had returned. Those first two nights were the first time we saw the show as a whole.”

During those two nights, Michael also showed the group some unique aspects of his personality:

“He was very bold and the coolest, just like he always was. He was a very funny man. He would intentionally hit the camera and then say ‘Sorry, it’s out of love.’”

Walker recalled June 25, 2009, the day Michael died. On that day, Travis Payne—the senior choreographer and the head of Walker during the tour—was on his way home from Staples Center to rehearse with Michael at home. Payne called Walker and said that on the way he had been listening to radio news and heard that Michael had been hospitalized. Walker asked Kenny Ortega, the tour director, about it, and Ortega rejected the news. Walker told the dancers not to worry, but a few hours later, the truth became clear to them. Michael was dead.

Fighting back tears, Walker said:

“It was shocking. Only 12 hours earlier, he was on stage performing Thriller and Beat It.”

The dancer continued that during the This Is It tour rehearsals, she had conversations with Michael that, with time and the events that followed, became very valuable and special to her. She didn’t repeat Michael’s words.

She also said Michael didn’t intend to change his dance moves. The only new dance was related to Drill. Drill was the name of a short video Michael recorded for the show during the tour, in which soldiers were seen marching in a military parade.

“M.J. said we can’t use guns because it wouldn’t be appropriate for children.”

She described Michael as a very risk-taking person, an excellent dancer and choreographer—creative, inventive, and great.

Catherine’s lawyer, Kevin Boyle, showed parts of the film Ghosts in court. Walker had worked as a choreographer on this film. It was her first collaboration with Michael. Explaining the work, she said:

“Michael is very impressive in this film. He plays five different roles. This was one of the most difficult projects I’ve ever done.”

Like others, Walker reminded the court that Michael never used the general term “music video” for his works; he called them short films.

“He never made music videos; he made films.”

She remembered Michael as the best person she had ever seen in her life. They weren’t friends; their relationship was only work.

“He was very cautious and reserved. He showed you Michael Jackson, not Michael.” (Meaning Michael didn’t get close to his coworkers and kept the relationship professional.)

Walker explained that Michael behaved more comfortably in the TII tour compared to the Ghosts film. During the Ghosts film project, Michael never spoke to Walker even once. She did point out, however, that Michael had very kind behavior toward everyone, even though he was very quiet.

This witness said that unlike her, Travis Payne had a very close relationship with Michael, and their friendship was based on mutual trust. Travis would go to Michael’s house every day around 1 p.m. to rehearse alone.

Travis Payne, choreographer and assistant director of the TII tour, was another witness from yesterday. He confirmed Walker’s statements. Unlike Walker, he had private rehearsals with Michael, and he said he had never seen any sign of illness or weakness in Michael that would worry him.

“He was thinner than before, but there was nothing that would make me worry.”

During the last three months of Michael Jackson’s life, Travis Payne rehearsed privately with him almost every day (five days a week). He said they would have lunch together. Michael’s appetite changed every day. Michael had the ability to perform many of his most famous dance moves, but for him—at age 50, when he didn’t naturally have the flexibility of his younger years—some moves had to be adjusted. Some days Michael would get tired of rehearsing, and some days he performed better. According to Payne, Michael’s goal was to perform all songs live during the tour. In past tours, Michael would sometimes lip-sync because the intensity of his physical activity on stage naturally didn’t allow him to perform some songs live. In the Q&A, Payne said that in his belief, Michael had the power to complete and finish the TII tour.

“That was the goal he set for himself. He wanted to perform all the songs from this tour live.”

But contrary to that goal, Michael hadn’t achieved it by June 25, the day he died. Still, Travis Payne believes Michael had the ability to fulfill this wish and reach his goal.

Payne said that because Michael didn’t attend rehearsals consistently, the tour production committee was worried that their goals would be disrupted. They wanted Michael to rehearse with the other dancers instead of private rehearsals.

He said: “Michael looked very tired; all of us were tired.”

Rehearsals began from the day the concerts were announced in London (March 5) and continued until the night of Michael’s death (June 24).

Dancer selection began in April. They auditioned from five thousand people, and Michael chose the final dancers. He also personally selected the music group director. Payne said he hadn’t met Michael before Michael announced the tour. Then he was invited to the tour. Payne said he was excited to meet and work with Michael again. Payne and Kenny Ortega, the tour director, had been longtime collaborators. He was in Las Vegas with Ortega when Michael called them and invited them to a new project (TII).

“All the ideas started with Mr. Jackson. We were the supporting group—we would bring our ideas to him and discuss them with him. But the decision-maker was him.”

Travis pointed out that Michael had asked him to be present at every concert. He wasn’t a dancer on this tour; he served as choreographer and assistant director. Michael wanted him to transcribe everything he said so that nothing would be missed from the source. He wanted a complete show.

“Drill” was the last part they worked on. Travis said Michael had a strong interest in military and armed forces themes. Drill included Michael’s military march and his fellow dancers.

On that day, an email from Travis Payne was shown in court, in which he provided instructions about the special outfit for the song Billie Jean and how the lighting should be done. Michael also ordered a torch in the style of the Italian Baroque era. Originally, he wanted two torches so that if one broke, the other would be available. According to Payne, these torches had a special meaning for Michael.

Travis had attended a meeting at Michael’s home in April, two months before Michael’s death. In the witness stand, he said there was no sign of weakness or addiction in him.

Michael told him that working with A.G. would be beneficial for the tour. This Is It would be different from Michael’s previous tours because A.G. appeared as a partner, not a sponsor. Payne expressed Michael’s motivation for doing this tour:

“In my belief, he was hungry to perform. He missed direct connection with his fans. He was excited to do this tour and share it with his children.”

Travis Payne talked about his work history with Michael. After Michael’s death, he worked on the video game Experience, which was designed based on the King of Pop’s dance moves. His first collaboration with Michael was in 1992 on the Remember the Time video. In that short film, Travis played one of the dancers. He noted that Michael referred to these videos as “short films,” not music clips. Their next collaboration was on Michael’s Dangerous Tour from 1992 to 93. At that time, they developed a friendly relationship. Travis worked with Michael on the choreography for the songs Jam and Dangerous during the Dangerous Tour. Travis Payne said working with Michael Jackson was a childhood dream, and that dream came true during the Dangerous Tour.

“During the Dangerous Tour, I was completely immersed in joy and excitement. I was working alongside my idol.”

He said he knew Michael had been dealing with pain in his hands and joints since 1983, after the Pepsi incident.

Payne also worked with Michael in 1995 on the HBO show One Night Only. That show was canceled due to Michael’s illness and fainting on stage. Read more

Ghosts was the next step in 1995 and 96. He was then invited to the History Tour. During that tour, Michael rehearsed both with dancers and without them. The same method was applied to This Is It. Michael would give the dancers space by letting them learn his dance moves. History Tour rehearsals were intense and exhausting. Payne was involved in selecting dancers, coming up with ideas for costumes, and other details.

Travis Payne testified that Michael’s skin specialist, Dr. Arnold Klein, and his assistant Debbie Ro—who later became Michael’s wife—were the only doctors he had met. This choreographer said he had never seen Michael drinking alcohol or taking drugs. He also saw no signs of addiction in Michael.

Dr. Christopher Rogers, the doctor who performed Michael’s autopsy and who had previously appeared in court, returned to the stand on Monday. He said that although Michael Jackson was very thin, his weight was normal and he was in full health. Rogers said Michael did not suffer from malnutrition at the time of death. Rogers explained that the ratio of his 136-pound weight to his height of 5 feet 9 inches (61.6 kg—175 cm) placed him in the appropriate range for BMI (Body Mass Index). For Michael, the BMI was 20.1. The BMI is only dangerous and means underweight when it falls below 18.5.

Rogers said: “Many people saw him as thin and frail. But he wasn’t malnourished and he wasn’t suffering from hunger.”

He continued that Michael’s body also had fat, though not much, and most of his body weight was in muscle tissue.

He emphasized again that Michael’s death was a drug intoxication and that propofol was the cause of death. Other sedatives also acted as intensifiers. He again said that no narcotic substances—and not even Demerol—were found in Michael’s body. Rogers said he knows that besides Dr. Murray, other doctors—including Arnold Klein—were treating Michael, but he doesn’t hold any of them responsible for Michael’s death, and he places the weight of that guilt solely on Murray.

Rogers also discussed inflammation in Michael’s lungs, saying they had been damaged in a way that could ultimately lead to pneumonia and other problems. Pneumonia is one of the main causes of death in elderly people and infants. James Brown, one of the artists who inspired Michael in childhood, also died from this disease. Rogers emphasized that inflammation in Michael’s lungs had no role in his death. He had previously said that this inflammation didn’t affect Michael’s ability to hold a concert tour.

He also referred to damage to Michael’s lower spine vertebrae, saying that this damage had increased over time and was unstoppable. Rogers said he couldn’t determine how severe the back pain was.

This doctor said that because several medications were found in the room where Michael died, he was curious about the autopsy results and the role of drugs in his death, and before toxicology results were confirmed, he believed death could have been caused by drug intoxication. Because of Michael’s fame, he carried out his work with double care.

Rogers again emphasized that propofol should only be used in a hospital, and the unconscious person must be monitored second by second. Conrad Murray had left Michael alone for 47 minutes. The only other case of propofol use leading to death that Rogers had worked on involved a doctor who took his own life with this drug.

Source: eMJey.com / Reuters & NY Psot & ABC & CNN & AP