# The Jackson Family is at it Again **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 24, 2012, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250 "2012-07-24T16:15:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sachertorte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sachertorte/32/3727_2.png) [@sachertorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sachertorte)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/21 "2012-07-25T18:40:40Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Whenever I hear about Jackson’s brothers I have to stop and remember “Which one did Tootie make a model head of on _Facts of Life_?” Rhetorical, I know, but… Jermaine. Why do I know this? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/22 "2012-07-25T19:00:16Z")
> [@sachertorte](#): > > Rhetorical, I know, but… Jermaine. Why do I know this? Because you grew up in the '80s too? 😉 Some googling shows that Jermaine is also the one who married a Berry. I guess that consolidates what I know about the Jackson brothers even more. (When I first watched _American Idol_ I remember thinking “Randy looks nothing like Michael and Janet… and seems a helluva lot more sane…”, though in my defense there were lots of websites identifying him as “former Jackson 5 member Randy Jackson” before the show premiered.) ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/23 "2012-07-25T19:21:16Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Especially if you were already one before you had the shot at the billion. Which is the shocking thing about LaToya being the sedate one. > > Whenever I hear about Jackson’s brothers I have to stop and remember “Which one did Tootie make a model head of on _Facts of Life_?” Then they get divided into the two uneven camps of “The one whose head Tootie sculpted and the ones whose heads Tootie didn’t sculpt”. And I know one was married to Berry Gordy’s daughter but they divorced a long time ago. Other than this, are any of them really remarkable for any accomplishments other than having once been in the Jackson 5? For example, have any of them distinguished themselves in some other aspects of the music business or in computers or real estate or whatever, or are they all basically former child stars? Well, that’s not fair. Remember that the Jackson 5/Jacksons were a performing group from around 1966 to 2000. That’s a long time. Obviously being in a band with Michael would eclipse any accomplishment most musicians would have. But all of the brothers are accomplished musicians - Tito, Jermaine, and Randy are well regarded on their instruments (they can hold their own on the albums and tour). Tito’s sons are in a band called 3T, who were actually fairly successful in Europe - I believe he may have managed and produced some of their work. Marlon and Jackie have been featured lead or co-lead vocalists on many songs. All of the brothers have written songs and produced albums. Given the fact that they were in a moderately successful to world-famous band for over thirty years, I think that’s pretty good. Marlon did get into cable TV and real estate at one point. No idea how that panned out. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/24 "2012-07-25T19:28:57Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Because you grew up in the '80s too? 😉 > > Some googling shows that Jermaine is also the one who married a Berry. I guess that consolidates what I know about the Jackson brothers even more. (When I first watched _American Idol_ I remember thinking “Randy looks nothing like Michael and Janet… and seems a helluva lot more sane…”, though in my defense there were lots of websites identifying him as “former Jackson 5 member Randy Jackson” before the show premiered.) Jermaine was the original lead singer of the Jackson 5, and is the co-lead on most Jackson 5 songs. Most J5 songs were not just Michael on lead - Jermaine usually had a section or the chorus and of course the brothers were backing vocals. You could even argue that Jermaine and Jackie were the heartthrobs of the band in the early days - Michael was a little boy back then. You could get Right On! posters of the older boys. As you note, Jermaine married Hazel Gordy and stayed at Motown when the brothers moved to CBS in 1975-6. Believe it or not, this was a real issue because of Jermaine’s prominent role as co-lead singer. Jackie and Marlon primarily took his role when he left, and they had studio musicians like Nathan East and Louis Johnson handle bass. Jermaine is an accomplished bassist and solo artist. From Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Jermaine was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his 1980 album Let’s Get Serious. He had a number of Billboard Top 30 hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including “Daddy’s Home” (#9), “That’s How Love Goes”, “Let’s Be Young Tonight”, “Bass Odyssey”, “Feel the Fire”, “Let Me Tickle Your Fancy” (featuring Devo on backing vocals) (#18), “Let’s Get Serious” (#9, also one of his only two UK hits, peaking at #8), “Dynamite” (#15), “Do What You Do” (#13), and “I Think It’s Love” (#16). A duet with his brother Michael, “Tell Me I’m Not Dreamin’ (Too Good to Be True)”, hit #1 on the dance chart in 1984. He and Michael also collaborated with Rockwell, both providing guest vocals on his 1984 hit single, “Somebody’s Watching Me”. In 1985, his duet with Pia Zadora, When the Rain Begins to Fall, topped several singles charts in Europe. His final chart success, 1989’s “Don’t Take It Personal”, hit #1 on the Billboard R&B singles chart. Some of Jermaine’s finest moments as a singer can be heard in the soulful “Castle of Sand” and the Earth Wind & Fire inspired “You Need To Be Loved”. > > Jackson is proficient on the electric guitar and is a talented bass guitar player. Already at an early age he performed the parts of legendary bass player James Jamerson etc., when J5 performed live. Jermaine also composed and produced for other artists like Switch. He also produced and sang a couple of duets on Whitney Houston’s debut album on Arista Records. In 1992, he produced The Jacksons: An American Dream, an award-winning and highly-rated miniseries about the history of The Jackson 5. Jermaine Jr. portrayed his father as a young teenager in the miniseries. Randy is arguably the most instrumentally talented Jackson brother - he plays piano and congas. He co-wrote and co-sung “Can You Feel It,” one of the most successful Jacksons singles. ---
**Author:** ![LionelHutz405](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lionelhutz405/32/536_2.png) [@LionelHutz405](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LionelHutz405)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/25 "2012-07-25T19:40:54Z")
> [@Hippy\_Hollow](#): > > Well, that’s not fair. Remember that the Jackson 5/Jacksons were a performing group from around 1966 to 2000. That’s a long time. Still going too. They are touring again. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/26 "2012-07-25T19:53:21Z")
> [@LionelHutz405](#): > > Still going too. They are touring again. Yeah, so does Jermaine have time to get involved with family drama? Jeez. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BMax](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bmax/32/4267_2.png) [@BMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMax)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/27 "2012-07-25T20:00:30Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Whenever I hear about Jackson’s brothers I have to stop and remember “Which one did Tootie make a model head of on _Facts of Life_?” 😕I thought that was Lionel Richie. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2012, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/28 "2012-07-25T20:07:08Z")
> [@BMax](#): > > 😕I thought that was Lionel Richie. No, that was just some blind girl he said “Hello” to. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/29 "2012-07-26T13:23:58Z")
Now it’s splashed all over the headlines about Katherine saying basically, “What’s all this, then? I didn’t do anything wrong; it was just a vacay.” So, you just up and left the kids you’re guardian of without telling them where you were going or when you’d be back? I know I don’t know the whole story, but it seems that Paris was at least more than a little worried, and wasn’t in on Grandma Jackson’s little walkabout plan. I can’t help but think that Katherine’s more than a little bit of a stupid, irresponsible bitch. Matter of fact, that’s exactly what I was thinking when I read the story on CNN: “You stupid bitch.” Those poor kids. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/30 "2012-07-26T13:38:01Z")
At 82, there’s also the possibility of dementia or Alzheimer’s. Add to it that a strange doctor (not her usual personal physician) came in and basically told her she needed to be moved immediately. I wonder who asked for the doctor to come in? Nobody has answered that, as far as I know. You have an old, possible mentally incompetent woman trying to stand against a number of her own children who are trying to take control of the estate. I agree that she shouldn’t be sole guardian. StG ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/31 "2012-07-26T14:00:25Z")
I don’t understand Janet Jackson wanting Micheal’s money. She has a pretty successful career. Just a few years ago she was headlining on tv and that guy pulled open her top. Nipplegate cost the network a big FCC fine. But it was ratings gold for Janet. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/32 "2012-07-26T14:01:21Z")
I can’t get a straight answer of the quality of the guardianship Katherine is providing to Michael’s kids. She’s 82, and the only photos of her show her barely able to walk. When the Jackson 5 were giving and interview, and Tito broke down saying he was removing his name from the complaint, well… She old. Maybe she has early onset Alzheimer’s. Maybe she is a little slow and senile. I can’t be sure. I guess Michael really thought his mother was the best person to keep his kids emotionally and developmentally grounded in the event of his death. I guess better than anyone else he knew. I hope I’m not damming Katherine with faint praise there. Who cooks for the kids? Who cleans their clothes? Duh. The maid does. Who dives them to school. Duh. The chauffeur. Who manages the investments and house payments? I assume the executors of the will. A _separate_ group of people appointed by Michael. Who helps Paris maintain her burgeoning movie career? I dunno, her agent, and possibly other handlers sent by the studio. So who helps Paris not be a royal Lohan-esque screwup? I suppose that is one task Katherine has to handle. Its funny to me, Paris using Twitter to air her family’s dirty laundry. That is a little out of control. But the person with the real problem with it – Janet? Did people forget, she married El Debarge just to make a break from the Jackson family. I can almost her her griping in geriatric tech phobia, “In MY day, we didn’t have Twitter, you wanted to piss off your family, you waited 'til you were 16 and got a quickie marriage in Mexico, consarnit” I dunno why I care about this, myself. But it seems to me, the more facts that are known, the less people will care. There isn’t one normal person, with a rational complaint, voiced clearly. Just layers and layers of drama and baggage. ---
**Author:** ![MegaBee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f0a364/32.png) [@MegaBee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MegaBee)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/33 "2012-07-26T14:08:19Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I notice LaToya’s name is absent from the above report. That, coupled with her not-completely-embarrassing appearance on the Celebrity Apprentice, leads me to believe that she may be the most reasonably sane member of the Jackson family. Rebbie Jackson is the most sane member of the Jackson family by far. She got out from under Joe’s thumb early and never looked back. ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/34 "2012-07-26T14:29:00Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > At 82, there’s also the possibility of dementia or Alzheimer’s. Add to it that a strange doctor (not her usual personal physician) came in and basically told her she needed to be moved immediately. I wonder who asked for the doctor to come in? Nobody has answered that, as far as I know. You have an old, possible mentally incompetent woman trying to stand against a number of her own children who are trying to take control of the estate. I agree that she shouldn’t be sole guardian. > > StG Maybe, but you also have to remember that she let her husband Joe physically and mentally abuse all of her children for years and years. She’s been a stupid bitch for a long time. Age is no excuse. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/35 "2012-07-26T15:49:39Z")
I got curious because of the news and read Paris Jackson’s twitter. Seems like a really normal teen worried about her grandmother and studying for tests. She commented today that her grandmother was back home. I’ve seen her on interviews and she really seems so normal. I hope the media glare or family stress doesn’t change her. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/36 "2012-07-26T18:33:26Z")
Heaven’s to Betsy. So, granny is back home now, but now Michael’s eldest son, Prince, is on on the [Twittering](http://www.twitlonger.com/show/ihkq3p). > [@](#): > > I would first like to start off this tweet by thanking the fans that have always stood by me and my family, my dad really appreciated your support and I still treasure it to this day. As I am sure everyone is well aware of the events that have been going on. I have been holding off on backing up my sister and her tweets avidly because I was waiting for the time to reveal my side. As long as I can remember my dad had repeatedly warned me of certain people and their ways. Although I am happy my grandma was returned, after speaking with her I realized how misguided and how badly she was lied to. I’m really angry and hurt. The following image is of a group chat I had started to several family members. This group text message I had started was replied to but they didn’t know that I could see the responses. For this whole time, they denied us contact to our grandmother. “If you continue with your lies I will continue with the truth” > > -Michael Jackson Jr. He even [posted a screen shot of a group MMS he sent to family members](http://i.imgur.com/n273V.jpg), which Janet responded to, not knowing he could see it. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/37 "2012-07-26T19:06:50Z")
Has Prince Michael always gone by Michael Jackson, Jr., or is that something he started after MJ’s death? ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/38 "2012-07-26T19:11:44Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Has Prince Michael always gone by Michael Jackson, Jr., or is that something he started after MJ’s death? His sister refers to him as “Prince,” so I think he’s using his full legal name here to subtly assert a little authority. Sort of a subtle jab to the family, I suspect. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/39 "2012-07-26T19:14:27Z")
> [@Arkcon](#): > > She old. Maybe she has early onset Alzheimer’s. At 82, I doubt it would be classified as “early onset” any more. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2012, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250/40 "2012-07-26T19:50:47Z")
I keep expecting one of their evil uncles to put them in the tower. ([Artists representation](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Princes.jpg).) Are they living at Neverland or is it just empty at the moment? What about Hayvenhurst (which, when MJ died, was reported as being in foreclosure and I’ve later read was part of MJ’s estate and last I read was on the market)? Is this a new house altogether? Or a compound? Paris and her brothers will have a remarkable story to tell once the Culkinize (i.e. get prematurely emancipated). How awful to grow up in a hive of relatives and nobody to trust- it’s like a mash-up of that Angela Bassett _The Jacksons_ miniseries and _I CLAUDIUS_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jackson-family-is-at-it-again/629250.md?page=3)