Michael Jackson's Death Upstages Fawcett's

JUNE 26, 2009 - Poor Farrah Fawcett. Even in death, she was upstaged - by the news of the demise of pop icon Michael Jackson yesterday. Fawcett, who suffered from cancer, died at St John’s Heath Center in Santa Monica. She was 62.

However, the world is shocked by news of Jackson's death, reportedly of heart attack, at 2.26pm PDT (5.26am Malaysian time) on arrival at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 50.

Fawcett was a pop culture pin-up girl whose hairstyle (picture) was emulated by millions of young women. Her poster sales broke records, making her an international sex symbol in the 1970s and 1980s. Fawcett rose to international fame as private investigator Jill Munroe in the TV series Charlie's Angels in 1976. Fawcett later appeared off-Broadway and in highly rated television movies in roles like The Burning Bed, Nazi Hunter, The Beate Klarsfeld Story, Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story and Margaret Bourke-White.

Her 1989 portrayal of convicted murderer Diane Downs in the miniseries Small Sacrifices earned her a second Emmy nomination and her sixth Golden Globe Award nomination.

King of Pop Jackson (left), who had lived as a recluse since his acquittal in 2005 on charges of child molestation, had been scheduled to launch a comeback tour from London, from July 13 until March 2010. He had been rehearsing for the past two months.

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

His lifetime record sales tally is believed to be around 750 million, which, added to the 13 Grammy Awards he received, makes him one of the most successful entertainers of all time. However, his accountants say Jackson leaves behind a mountain of debt, including a $200 million loan secured by his stake in the Beatles catalogue. Jackson owned the music in a joint venture with Sony Corp known as Sony/ATV.

May they rest in peace.