Pop Legend Michael Jackson Dead at 50

AP

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• Music icon Michael Jackson died Thursday afternoon at a Los Angeles hospital, a source close to the family told FOX News.

Music icon Michael Jackson died Thursday afternoon at a Los Angeles hospital, a source close to the family told FOX News.

Debra Opri, a former Jackson family attorney, confirmed that the legendary singer, 50, was rushed to the hospital Thursday afternoon, where he later died at 3:15 p.m. EDT after falling into a deep coma.

Multiple reports claimed that shortly after noon Thursday, Jackson went into cardiac arrest and had to receive CPR in the ambulance. As the news broke, Joe Jackson, his father, told multiple news sources that his son was "not doing well."

Paramedics responded to a 911 call at around 12:26 p.m. PDT, the Los Angeles Times reported. He was reportedly not breathing at the time of their arrival.

A Jackson spokesman was unavailable for comment.

His death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.

PHOTOS: Click here for photos of Michael Jackson.

Jackson was born in Indiana in 1958. He rose to fame as part of the successful pop group The Jackson Five, formed with his brothers in 1967. The group went on to earn four number one hits in 1970 alone, and the 12-year-old Jackson became the undeniable breakout star of the group.

In 1972, Jackson enjoyed his first solo hit with the song “Ben.” Six years later, he made his film debut in “The Wiz,” where he renewed his friendship with producer Quincy Jones.

Collaborating with Jones, Jackson went on to become remarkably successful with his solo efforts “Off The Wall” in 1979 and “Thriller” in 1982.

From there, Jackson went on to become the undeniable “King of Pop,” winning seven Grammy awards for “Thriller” alone.

During the 1980s, he became an icon with a distinct style of fashion and performing as well, wearing one sparkling glove, bejeweled military clothing and short pants with socks.

It was around this time that Jackson began experimenting with excessive cosmetic surgery, including lightening of his skin.

In 1992, Michael founded the "Heal the World Foundation," a charity that brought underprivileged children to Neverland Ranch where Michael would spend time with them and allow them to spend the night.

This practice raised many eyebrows, especially when Jackson was accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy who had become a regular Neverland guest. Jackson responded to the allegations publicly, maintaining his innocence. In 1994, he settled the case out of court for an undisclosed amount.

Jackson was briefly married the daughter of Elvis Presley, Lisa Marie. The union was publicly scrutinized and speculations arose as to whether the marriage was simply an attempt to improve Jackson’s image, though he maintained that they lived genuinely as man and wife; however, the marriage broke up after less than two years.

From there, his career never recovered, but he remained in the news making headline after headline for strange and unusual behavior, including dangling his child over a balcony in Germany in .

While Jackson was on the set, the police raided Neverland Ranch issuing an arrest warrant for charges of child molestation by the same boy who appeared in Martin Bashir's documentary about Jackson.

A trial took place in 2005, and Jackson was acquitted of all charges. After his acquittal, he relocated to the Gulf Island of Bahrain, where he has reportedly been spending his time writing new music.

In 2004, a man filed a lawsuit against him, alleging he had been molested 20 years earlier but had repressed the memory until 2003. However, a judge eventually dismissed the lawsuit.

Jackson was set to go on European tour of 50 concert dates this year, but he had not booked any dates. There were multiple reports that he was too sick to perform, but Jackson never confirmed the rumors.