Michael Jackson fans dance, cheer his life in NY
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Michael Jackson fans danced in the aisles of Harlem's famed Apollo Theater on Tuesday to celebrate his life, cheering and placing tributes on the stage where the "King of Pop" performed as a child.
A line stretched for several city blocks from the theater with fans chanting Jackson's name to passing tourist buses and singing his songs as they waited to see a 45-minute music and video tribute being repeated throughout the day.
"He was my first love," said Wilma McClelland, 48, from the Queens borough of New York, as she waited in line. "We have grown up with him."
Jackson, who died on Thursday, first performed at the Apollo Amateur Night at age 9 with his brothers. Their group, the Jackson 5, won the competition in 1969, when the pop singer was 11 years old, performing Smokey Robinson's "Who's Lovin' You."
Wearing a badge of Jackson and carrying posters and music of the singer, Kenya Dowe, 43, from Harlem, arrived at 10 p.m. on Monday to be one of the first in line.
"I wanted to be a part of the celebration for a legend, an icon, a global humanitarian," said Dowe, holding an umbrella to shade herself from the sun. "Michael Jackson is a beautiful person, he deserves this. I wish he could see this in life."
Student Ashley Allder, 20, traveled from Piscataway, New Jersey, and wore one sparkling glove that she made herself and a badge with a picture of Jackson and the words "peace at last."
"Even though I didn't grow up with him as long as other people did, he still touched me, he still made me want to be who I am," she said. "I love Michael Jackson so much."
"FEEL THE LOVE"
On the stage a spotlight shone on the singer's signature fedora, sequined glove and sunglasses placed on a stool next to a microphone. Jackson's hits such as "Bad," "ABC" and "Billie Jean" played.
"He's bad, he's our brother, he's our friend," Al Sharpton, civil rights campaigner and friend of Jackson, told the first audience inside the theater. "Let's love Michael today."
Jackson died from cardiac arrest at his rented Los Angeles home, days before he was due to perform a string of concerts in London that were designed to revive a career grounded by his 2005 trial and acquittal on child molestation charges.
"No matter all of the trials and tribulations he went through, I still love him regardless," said Barbara Brown, 46, a security guard from the Bronx. "Michael is a part of my household, that's my baby. He will always be in my heart."
Speculation about what caused Jackson's death has centered on prescription drug use but the results of toxicology tests are expected to take several more weeks.
Reports of Jackson's funeral arrangements have trickled out piecemeal, with conflicting sources speaking of a public viewing at Jackson's Neverland Valley Ranch in central California on Friday or Saturday, or possibly both.
On the streets near the Apollo, vendors sold T-shirts, hats and posters of Jackson.
"It helps me grieve a little to meet other fans," said Clara Edwards, 56, a hair stylist from Brooklyn who was selling posters from a table she had set up about a block from the Apollo. "It's like a trauma."
Carrying Jackson records, Gordon Penn, 48, a chauffeur from Harlem, said, "We love him dearly, we miss him dearly. I came here to feel the love."
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