[Deathwatch] Michael Jackson, musician, 50

[Deathwatch Central <cdw@slick.org>]

Pop star Michael Jackson dead: report

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? Pop giant Michael Jackson, who took to the
stage as a child star and went on to set the world dancing to the
thumping rhythms of his music for decades, died Thursday, TMZ website
reported. He was 50.

"We've just learned Michael Jackson has died," TMZ said.

"Michael suffered a cardiac arrest earlier this afternoon and
paramedics were unable to revive him. We're told when paramedics
arrived Jackson had no pulse and they never got a pulse back," the
entertainment site said.

There was no official confirmation of the reported death and
spokespersons for Jackson could not be reached for comment.

Earlier, the Los Angeles Times said that the singer had been rushed to
a Los Angeles-area hospital by fire department paramedics who found him
not breathing when they arrived at the singer's home.

The newspaper said paramedics performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation
at the scene before taking him to the UCLA Medical Center hospital.

Jackson had been due to start a series of comeback concerts in London
on July 13 running until March 2010. The singer, whose hits include
"Thriller" and "Billie Jean," had been rehearsing in the Los Angeles
area for the past two months.

The shows for the 50 London concerts sold out within hours of going on
sale in March.

Jackson started out as a child star in the band "The Jackson 5" more
than 40 years ago.

He has lived as a virtual recluse since his acquittal in 2005 on
charges of child molestation.

There have been concerns about Jackson's health in recent years but the
promoters of the London shows, AEG Live, said in March that Jackson had
passed a 4-1/2 hour physical examination with independent doctors.

Many thanks to Deathwatch Central for posting this obituary