Joe Jackson, Father Of Michael Jackson, Dies At 89

Barry Anderson, BDO Contributing Writer

Joe Jackson, the music manager and father of 11, died early Wednesday morning, TMZ reports. He was 89. Joe’s death eerily comes nearly nine years to the date that Michael Jackson died (June 25, 2009).

A few days ago, we reported on the Jackson family patriarch had been battling terminal pancreatic cancer and was “not doing well” as of late.

Grandsons Randy Jackson Jr. and Taj Jackson confirmed the news in tweets Wednesday afternoon, writing, “RIP to the king that made everything possible! I love you grandpa” and “Joe was loved by the entire family and our hearts are in pain. Let us grieve.”

Pancreatic cancer typically spreads rapidly to nearby organs. It is seldom detected in its early stages. But for people with pancreatic cysts or a family history of pancreatic cancer, some screening steps might help detect a problem early. One sign of pancreatic cancer is diabetes, especially when it occurs with weight loss, jaundice or pain in the upper abdomen that spreads to the back.

Treatment may include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or a combination of these.

Signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer often don’t occur until the disease is advanced. They may include:

– Pain in the upper abdomen that radiates to your back

– Loss of appetite or unintended weight loss

– Depression

– New-onset diabetes

– Blood clots

– Fatigue

– Yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes (jaundice)

Over the years, Jackson — who was born on July 26, 1928, in Fountain Hill, Arkansas — had a series of health problems.

In November 2012, he recovered from a minor stroke at his Las Vegas home. Three years later, daughter Janet had to put rehearsals for her Unbreakable World Tour on hold when he suffered another stroke and heart arrhythmia in Brazil on his 87th birthday in July 2015.

In May 2016, he was hospitalized due to a high fever and in June 2017, he was released from the hospital after a car accident in Las Vegas.

Joe Jackson’s legacy is the shaping and promotion of the Jackson 5, comprising his sons Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael, and later Randy. The young family band from Gary, Indiana, became a phenomenon in the late 1960s and 70s, with their first four singles, I Want You Back in 1969, and ABC, The Love You Save and I’ll Be There in 1970, topping the Billboard charts.

But Jackson’s legacy is also been marred one of physical abuse. If you remember the hugely popular miniseries… “The Jacksons” many found out that the Joe has been physically abusive to his children. In 2003, he admitted to the BBC that he whipped Michael as a child. In 2010, he told Oprah Winfrey that he beat his children with a strap and didn’t regret doing so. “It kept them out of jail and kept them right,” he said. In the 2003 ITV documentary Living With Michael Jackson, the singer told interviewer Martin Bashir that his father would oversee the Jackson 5’s intense rehearsals “with a belt in his hand” and “tear you up, really get you” if one of the brothers missed a step.

Regardless of how you feel about Joe or what people know or don’t know about his parenting and business practices, Joe still raised one of the greatest musical groups and musical families ever. Rest in peace.