Michael Jackson: 1958-2009

Los Angeles' county coroner has confirmed the shocking news: at 1:07 pm PST, The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, died of cardiac arrest brought on by as-yet-unknown causes. The former Jackson 5 lead singer, who had gone on redefine superstar success in the Eighties with his monumental album Thriller, was rushed to the UCLA hospital earlier this afternoon after paramedics found him in a coma on the floor of the Bel-Air mansion he had been renting. Six minutes later, he arrived at the medical center, and was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. (L.A. police have vowed to investigate the murder, although foul play is in no way suspected.) Thousands of fans have already begun gathering outside Michael's home to grieve.

The 50-year-old megastar, whose career had been derailed over the past decade due to slumping album sales, bizarre personal behavior, an addiction to prescription painkillers, and a much-publicized child molestation trial (which brought back a "not guilty" verdict), had been primed to resurrect his career, recently holding a press conference to announce the This Is It tour, a series of 50 concerts to be performed at London's 02 Arena beginning July 8. The pop icon, who had not mounted a tour since 1997, had begun rehearsals and personal training to prepare for the grueling series of concerts. The multitalented singer and dancer is survived by three children: Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr. and Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, both from Jackson's second wife, dermatology nurse Debbie Rowe; and Prince Michael Jackson II, from an unnamed surrogate mother.