Orianthi performed last night on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno

I am so glad to see Orianthi get the recognition she deserves. Michael saw her talent; now the world has a chance. It was wonderful to have both Janet and Orianthi on the same night.

Samsung releases limited edition golden This Is It harddrive

Electronics giant Samsung has announced plans to release a limited edition golden external harddrive that comes pre-loaded with Michael Jackson's This Is It film. The portable S2 drive depicts Jackson in his signature This Is It silhouette with upstretched arms and crossed legs. With features such as automatic backup, data encryption, and password-protected data access, the 500GB hard drive is the ultimate gift for die hard MJ techie fans. Samsung says the drive will retail for around €109 Euros or $149 USD.

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Michael Bearden and George Lopez spoke about Michael Jackson

The musical director for Michael Jackson's This Is It is now the band leader for George Lopez's Lopez Tonight show. They sat down a few months ago to discuss Michael Jackson and the rehearsals for the This Is It concerts. I was tickled by his anecdote about the rehearsals for Dirty Diana. Michael planned to have an aerialist and master pole dancer dance around a larger-than-life iron canopy bed on the stage, eventually handcuffing him to the bed. At one point, Michael Bearden asked Michael where the female guitarist Orianthi was supposed to be during the number. Michael said, 'In the bed with me!--I can handle it!'

Who's bad?

This Is It choreographer Travis Payne dances with the "Dancing Inmates"

Long-time choreography consultant to Michael Jackson, Travis Payne, visited the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC), a maximum security prison in the Philippines, to visit the world famous "Dancing Inmates." The inmates first gained the world's attention with their rendition of Michael's Thriller performed in bright orange jumpsuits with a male Ola Ray in drag. Payne and This Is It dancers Daniel Celebre and Dres Reid spent several days teaching the inmates routines from the blockbuster music film.

I think it is wonderful someone from Michael's camp finally recognized the accomplishments of these men and their love of Michael. It warms my heart to see just how far-reaching Michael's appeal spanned.

Spike Lee wrote a letter to Michael

Legendary filmmaker Spike Lee, directed two controversial videos for Michael Jackson as well as the eulogy on film to accompany the posthumous single "This Is It". Jackson and Lee collaborated on both videos for "They Don't Care About Us. The first version was filmed in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro and Salvador da Bahia, Brazil and featured local residents and the cultural music group Olodum. It showcased the both the crushing poverty and resilient spirit of the area. The second video depicted Jackson as a prisoner in a prison filled with discontent inmates. Scenes of Jackson handcuffed and protesting in the mess hall were interspersed with images of police brutality, genocide, execution, and bigotry. This duo of videos remains among Jackson's most powerful in his catalogue.

Lee continued his support of Jackson by staging a community-wide birthday party in honor of Michael in Brooklyn last August 2009. At the beginning of this year, Lee released a touching music video ode to Michael to accompany the single "This Is It." The video featured scenes from Michael's life and his hometown of Gary, Indiana. Now, Lee has penned a letter to his friend for the luxurious coffee table book, Opus: Michael Jackson. The Opus is a massive 26 lb. book containing photos, drawings, letters, and more celebrating Michael. He had considerable input into the work and it is the last official book to gain his approval before his passing.

Read the text of Spike Lee's touching personal letter to Michael below:

October 10, 2009

Dearest Michael,

Last week I made a pilgrimage to your birthplace, Gary, Indiana. I stood
inside your family’s modest three-bedroom home on 2300 Jackson Street. I felt
the magic. It started there, nine kids plus your parents, jam packed, livin’ on
top of each other pursuing The American Dream. For this alone 2300 Jackson
should be declared a National Landmark. One has to go back to the beginning to
clearly see the entire journey. Gary, Steel town, Midwest, blue collar, hard
workin’, hard livin’, great work ethic and simple basic values. It’s there early
where you learned ‘you had to sing and dance like your life depended on it’
which it did. You and your family made the dream a reality. But as we all
finally learn (sooner or later) dreams have costs and costs have consequences. I
truly cherish the short time we worked together, visiting my home in Brooklyn,
huggin’ and kissin’ my newborn daughter Satchel, as if she was your own
daughter, our fantastic journey to Brazil to shoot the video for ‘THEY DON’T
CARE ABOUT US.’ I regret never getting to inform you that our video was directly
responsible for the great film CITY OF GOD being conceived and made. Michael,
your life touched people the world over you will never know. Michael, I’m one
year older than you, we grew up together. I had my Afro just like you. I wanted
to be like you. Wanted the cute girls to fawn over me the way they did you (the
girls were not going for it. They’d rather make goo-goo eyes at your pictures
plastered all over their bedroom.) At that young age I had no notion of what I
wanted to do in my life. You made me see the possibilities even though I could
not sing or dance a lick despite coming from a musical family. You, Jermaine,
Tito, Jackie and Marlon showed us the way. You guys were young Black boys like
us. Upon us was a new day, a new world and it’s on us to make the most of it. In
closing Michael, you checked out of here way, way too soon but while you walked
this earth in your physical form you changed it. You changed the World, changed
the Game forever.

May you rest eternally in Peace.

Love,
Spike Lee

P.S. Brooklyn luvs ya!

This Is It #1 in DVD sales

According to Home Media Magazine, Michael Jackson's This Is It rocketed to the number one position on national home video sales charts in its first week of release selling 1.2 million copies in the U.S. alone. This is a record performance for first week sales of a music film. According to Nielsen VideoScan, the film was also the number 1 seller in the Blu Ray format for the week ending January 31, 2010. Fully 21% of sales of This Is It were on the Blu Ray format, which is also a record for a release of any type.

This Is It chronicles the exhaustive rehearsals leading up to what would have been the largest concert tour ever. The documentary provides a glimpse of the creative genius that was Michael Jackson and offers the viewer the opportunity to meet the dancers, musicians, and crew behind the massive production. This Is It earned over a quarter of a billion dollars in its limited theatrical release worldwide.

Source: Reuters

SONY Corp. posts $871 million (USD) Quarterly Profit

The numbers are in: Sony's electronics and entertainment divisions posted a quarterly profit of $871 million USD (79.2 billion yen). That's QUARTERLY. Third quarter profits a year ago were only 10.4 billion yen. Sony attributes the surge in profits to cost-cutting measures and the performance of its consumer electronics division. We here might beg to differ; certainly the performance of the This Is It film coupled with strong sales of MJ's catalogue had a little something to do with it. Michael had a little something to say about Sony. Watch the video.

This Is It has been released, along with my tears

Someone tweeted about sitting next to a man on an airplane flight. The man was watching This Is It and bawling his eyes out. I know how he feels.

I have had an official (meaning non-bootleg, studio quality) copy of the mvie, but I have been eagerly awaiting the release of the discs with the extra footage. I carefully studied the differences between all the exclusive offers at the big box retailers and finally settled on the 2-disc version from WalMart. (I hate to support them, but lately they have been really promoting MJ.) After deliberating in the store for over 30 minutes, I bought the DVDs on Tuesday. I brought the package home...and just looked at it. I busied myself with family duties, laundry, cooking, cleaning, and chatting on line. I kept the boxed set right next to me and occasionally ran my fingers across the packaging, but for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to watch it. The furthest I got on Tuesday night was opening the plastic.

Wednesday came and went without me being able to watch the movie, though I did progress to putting the disc in the DVD player. I have a lot of anxiety about watching the extra footage. I already know I will cry while watching the Man In The Mirror segment as I have the last 20 or so times I have seen it. I always start to tear up when the song begins to play. By the time Michael crosses himself and spreads his arms in that freeze frame I have dissolved into rivers of saline. Given my reaction to the movie itself, I truly fear what will happen if I see any more footage of our beloved Michael literally hours before his passing. I just don't know. So you see, I empathize with that anonymous man on the plane. My soul still aches.

Target is giving away 3-D glasses

Starting today (Sunday) Target Stores will be giving away free 3-D glasses for the special Michael Jackson tribute during the Grammy Awards this year. Be sure to pick up your pair so you can enjoy the segment as it was intended for the This Is It shows at London's O2 Arena. This Is It will be released on DVD and Blu Ray this Tuesday, January 26th.

This Is It Thriller Segment

Kenny Ortega and others discuss the making of the "Thriller" segment from Michael Jackson's This Is It. The movie will be released on DVD and Blu Ray in the United States on Tuesday.

VH1 "World Premiere" of "They Don't Really Care About Us" from This Is It

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

VH1 made a lot of hoopla about its "world premiere" of "They Don't Really Care About Us" from Michael Jackson's This Is It. Fans rushed to turn on their television sets last night at 10pm Eastern...only to see the same exact segment they saw in the theateres. It was the same segment with NO extras. Ah well, for those who have been suffering through withdrawal since the movie left the theater, (Planet has had access to a copy of the movie all along and it's not one of those poor quality pirated copies either) this was a welcome appetizer for the main course that will be released next Tuesday. Play it over and over to your heart's content.

Vote for This Is It VH1 Best Documentary

Michael Jackson's This Is It is nominated for the Best Documentary at the VH1 Critic's Choice Awards. You can vote for it by clicking here. You can vote as many times as you want to. The show airs this Friday January 15th at 9 PM Eastern time on VH1.

This Is It Limited Edition Flash Drive

Michael Jackson's concert documentary, This Is It, will be distributed on a limited edition USB flash drive beginning on January 26, 2010. Timed to the DVD and Blu-ray Disc(TM) release of "Michael Jackson's THIS IS IT," the limited edition drive will be available on www.kingston.com/shop and at major U.S. retailers on January 26, 2010. The film on the drive can be backed up on up to three PCs and is compatible with Windows® XP, Windows Vista® and Windows 7 operating systems. You will need Windows Media Player to view it

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"Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is dedicated to exploring new distribution channels, and we are pleased to work together with Kingston on a program that introduces consumers to Flash memory as a vehicle for enjoying their favorite movies on devices like netbooks and PCs," said Joe Arancio, senior vice president, digital distribution, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
"We are humbled and excited to present this movie starring Michael Jackson, the greatest entertainer of all time, on Kingston Flash memory," said Rick Webb, vice president, consumer markets group, Kingston. "Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is a leader in providing quality content and this collaboration into digital media adds unique value to our memory offerings. This DataTraveler USB Flash drive is destined to be a collector's item."

This might be a good option for some who want portability of the movie and do not have the resources to make a backup copy for themselves. Besides, you can share it with two of your friends!

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Stevie Wonder can't handle TII

When asked, “Do you think he [Michael Jackson] would have wanted the movie to be released even though it’s all rehearsal footage?” Longtime friend Stevie Wonder emotionally replied, “I don’t know. I really don’t know...I haven’t seen the movie yet. I’m sure I will go see it but, emotionally, I can’t really handle going to see it now...“I will say that I hope the film, the movie is very successful and I hope that his children, his mother and the family get what they're supposed to receive.”

Translation: I hope Joe don't get shyt because Michael left him out of the will on purpose.

The King of Pop is a Lightweight

"Thank you for your love and support, I want you guys to know I love you very much," he said, before adding, "I don't know how I'm going to do 50 shows. I'm not a big eater - I need to put some weight on."
--Michael Jackson on Fox News dot com

Am I the only one who thinks 50 shows is too much?