Special Interview
ABC's 20/20 (12-09-1997)

On Friday 12th September, Micahel did an interview on ABC's 20/20. Here is the complete Interview:

MJ = Michael
BW = Barbara Walters

20/20 shows clips from Michael together with Diana at a charity show...

MJ: "I met her first at a concert, she was very loving, very kind very sweet."

BW: "what did you two talk about?"
MJ:"I wrote a song about called dirty diana, it is not about lady Diana, it is about a certain kind of girls that hang around concerts or clubs, they call 'em groupies, I lived in that all my life and these girls do everything with the band, you know eveything you could imagine... So I wrote a song called 'Dirty Diana', but I took it out of the show in her royal highness honor... Then she took me away and said " Aren't you going to do 'Dirty Diana'?", and I said "I took it out of the show because of you..." and then she said" no I want you to do it, do it , do the song."

BW: "So she had a sense of humor with you?"
MJ: "Yes, of course and she told me it was an honor to meet me and I said it was an honor to meet her."

BW: "How did you hear about her death?"
MJ: "I woke up and my doctor gave me the news, and I started to cry, and I fell back down in grief, and I started to cry, I felt inner pain, pain in my stomache, pain in my chest, so I said too my self "I can not, I can not handle this, its too much, just the message and the fact that I knew her personally, then on top of that one I said " there is another one, I feel it soon, there is another one and I prey its not me, please don't let it be me and then came mother Theresa."

BW: "Are you saying you are psychic?"
MJ: "I dont want to say that but I've done it before."

BW: "And you thought it might be you?"
MJ: "Yes.....I have been lining that kind of life all my life, the tabloid press, that kind of press, not the press, the tabloids, the paparazzi, thattype. I have been runnin for my life like that. Running there, let's go this way, then this way, but they are over there, so we go that way. Somebody needs to sa" Hold on, STOP!, this person deserves their privacy, you are not allowed to go there" I go around the world running and hiding, I can't take a walk in the park, I cant go to the store, I hide in the room and it feels like prison."

BW: "What has been the most intrusive thing, whats the worst?"
MJ: "They've always been, uh, they go as far as hiding into places, they'll slide a machine under the toilet, CLICK,CLICK, CLICK ,CLICK- I go OH MY GOD... THEY HAVE ACTUALLY DONE THAT!"

BW: "When you came into this hotel you had to come in, or you Felt you had to come in through the kitchen?"
MJ: "I've been doing that for years, many lobbies I have never even seen, the front door."

BW: "Did you ever try to out race the paparazzi?"
MJ: "To out race them?"

BW: "Yes."
MJ: "They chase us, they follow us on there scooters." (Michael immitates somebody on a scooter)

BW: "Cutting in front of you?"
MJ: "Yeah, and I have to say to the driver "slow down, I jump in, You are gonna kill us!" I say: slow down. I have done that many times. " slow down, then the driver jumps out and he has to yell at these people."

BW: "You know that there is an arguement that you rely on publicity to sell your albums, your concerts, you want it."
MJ: "When I approve of something, yes."

BW: "But you can't always control the press, you can't approve of everything, you cant again and again invite them in and then close them out."
MJ: "Yes, yes you can."

BW: "Well how do you do that?"
MJ: "By doing this, this your time for doing this, and this you should not do.. You should not say he's an animal, you should not say he's 'Jacko', Im not a 'Jacko', I'm jackson

BW; "How do you feel when they call you Wacko?"
MJ: "yeah Wacko Jacko, where did that come from? Some english tabloid, I have a heart, I have feelings, I feel that when you do that to me, It is not nice, don't do it, Im not a wacko."

BW: "There are some that would say that you add to the attention."
MJ: "No, no I dont."

BW: "Well the mask, the, the mysterious behavior."
MJ: "No there is no mysterious behavior.. there is a time when I give a concert, I want as many people to come as can come and then there is a time when you'd like to be private, to put on your pajamas and go to sleep( MJ immitates somebody turning off a light and going to sleep) That is your private time, if you go in the park, I cant even go in the park so I create my own park in Neverland, my own water space, movie theatre, them park, that is all for me to enjoy."

BW: "I don't want this to be insulting, Im just gonna be straight with you but you are somewhat eccentric, the way you look, the way you dress it all invites attention... the whole appearance as you grew up was larger than life, more extreme, you don't think that draws attention to you?"
MJ: "No."

BW: "No?"
MJ: "Maybe I like to live that way I like to dress that way, I don't want the paparazzi to come but if they do come. Be kind write the right thing about me."

BW: "Is it the press' job to be kind?"
MJ: "To be kind?"

BW: "Don't they have to look into things, to be tough?"
MJ: "What you saw happen to ladi Diana, you tell me...."

MJ: "There should be some kind of boundaries, some kind of way, the star needs some space, give him time to relax, he has a heart he's human"

BW: "You cancelled the concert when you heard of Diana's death"
MJ: "Yes" ( in the softest most sad voice)

BW: "And when you finally did the concert you dedicated it to her, what did you say?"
MJ: "In my heart I was saying: I love you Diana, shine and shine on forever because you are the princess of the people... and in words I did not say that, but first there was 1 minut silence and after that we showed Diana's picture on all the jumbotrons and the crowd went bananas (michael playfully immitates crowd cheering) and I also played the song 'Smile' and 'Gone Too Soon'"

BW: "Give us some of the lyrics"
MJ: "Shiny, sparkly and splendidly bright, here one day, gone one night gone too soon"

BW: "you have said: I have grown up in a fishbowl and I will not let that happen to my son. Yet when your son was born you sold pictures of him to the National Enquirer and these other European tabloids"
MJ: "Right"

BW: "Why did you do that?"
MJ: "Why?"

BW: "Yeah, why?"
MJ: "Because there was a race, there was illegally pictures out, somebody had illegally taken pictures of some baby for millions of dollars and said: Here is Michael Jackson's son"

BW: "And it wasn't"
MJ: "And it wasn't...so I took pictures of the baby...they were forcin' us to give these pictures...hellicopters flying over us, over the hospital, flying over the house, machines and sattelites all over the place, even the hospital said: Michael we've had every kind of celebrity and we've never seen anything like this, it is unbelievable... So I said: here take the pictures and I gave the money to charity"

BW: "So what you did was get them off your back?"
MJ: "Yeah...now they want to do it again and I don't, maybe I don't want to show him to the world again like that...I want him to have his space...I want him to go to school. I don't want him to be called 'wacko jacko', that is not nice, they call the father that, that's not nice, right?

BW: "You said you don't want them to say wacko jacko to your son' how are you going to prevent it?"
MJ: "That's it, that is the thing, maybe you should come up with a plan to help me"

BW: "Well you're the daddy"
MJ: "There you go...they created that. Did they ever think that I have a heart, that I might have a child some day. It is hurting my heart why pass it to him"

BW: "Do you like being a father?"
MJ: "I love it"

BW: "Do you like being involved with him?"
MJ: (michael starts to laugh and looks shy) "Yes"

BW: "Do you want to have more children?"
MJ: (now he seems to be very shy and in between laughter whispers...) "Yes"

BW: "You have been in the spotlite since you were a baby"
MJ: "Yeah"

BW: "If your son showed talent, by the way does he show any talent at 8 mos?"
MJ: "Well, I'll tell you this much, when he's cryin' you have to do one thing to stop him"

BW: "What?"
MJ: "I have to dance"

BW: "Really?"
MJ: "He starts clapping and his tears turn to laughter"

BW: "And do you do your moonwalk for him?"
MJ: "I do all kinds of moves" (at this point michael starts to dance and do robot type moves in his chair with corresponding sound effects then he pauses to laugh and dances a little more)

BW: "He stops cryin? you must do a lot of dancing"
MJ: "Yes" (with his face in his hands laughing histerically)

BW: "Michael, if this little boy says: daddy I want to go on stage"
MJ: "I'll say: Hold on.., hold on now, if you do go out expect this, this, this, and expect that"

BW: "You'd lay it all out?"
MJ: "I'd lay it all out: you are gonna get this, this and all this and he'll say: yeah, I can't wait and than I'll say: GO and do it better than I did"

BW: "Just know what you are in for?"
MJ: "Know what you're in for!"

After the interview Michael left the hotel with a huge crowd waiting outside...



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