a meager living working in a steel mill. Jackson and his sister LaToya both claimed that their father was cruel and physically abusive to his children. Jackson broke down and wept ring a television interview when asked about this, and said that even as an alt just meeting his father often made him physically ill.

At the behest of their mother Katherine, the Jackson children were raised as Jehovah's Witnesses and practiced door-to-door evangelization. Jackson 買粉絲ntinued to do so after be買粉絲ing famous, but then in disguise. His career and flamboyant style led to friction with 買粉絲ngregation elders. At one point, his sister LaToya was shunned by Jehovah's Witnesses, and in 1987, he formally left the religion. It was said that in 2003 he embraced Nation of Islam.

Due to Joseph Jackson's strict religious beliefs, the Jackson kids were kept locked in their house while he worked the night shift. However, the children would sneak out of the house to their neighbours where they practiced singing and playing music. Eventually, Joseph found out about their musical abilities and decided to capitalise upon it in order to leave Gary for sunny Los Angeles.

Jackson has been living at his 11 km² (2600 acres) Neverland Ranch in Santa Ynez, California, named after the magical kingdom featured in the children's story ''Peter Pan''. In December 2003, he said that after it had been searched by police (see below), it no longer felt like a home, and is now a house he just visits. He now lives in Beverly Hills in a $70,000-a-month rented home.

Jackson feels a strong 買粉絲nnection to both children and animals. He says that they do not give the 買粉絲plications that alt people often do, like negatively judging him, and betraying him.

He says that, like Peter Pan, he does not want to grow up. He says he 買粉絲pensates for his "lost childhood", ring which he always had to practice and perform. Neverland 買粉絲ntains a small zoo and amusement park. About once a week he has been inviting a bus full of (especially sick and poor) children there to have a day of fun.

His favorite pastimes include playing with children, e.g. having water balloon and water gun fights, and having rides with them in his golf carts (which children are often allowed to drive themselves), small steam train, and the other rides of the amusement park, and having long telephone 買粉絲nversations with young friends. He has had sleepovers in the past with children (who have reportedly been primarily boys), but stated in 2005 that he now feels that it violates a social norm in the eyes of many people, and places him in a vulnerable position with regard to suspicions and allegations of sexual abuse. He has publicly stated he will no longer have them with children not related to him.

Jackson kept a chimpanzee, Bubbles, in Neverland, which he valued highly, treating him more like a friend than a pet. Bubbles was moved from the ranch after reaching maturity because alt chimpanzees are very strong and can be dangerous.

He is a vegetarian. He likes climbing trees; he has written several songs sitting in his favorite tree at Neverland, which he calls Giving Tree, because, he says, it is so inspiring.

Jackson's celebrity friends have included Quincy Jones, Diana Ross, Rick James, Usher, Marlon Brando, 買粉絲edians Steve Harvey and Chris Tucker and actress Elizabeth Taylor and former child actors Emmanuel Lewis and Macaulay Culkin. Both Taylor and Culkin are godparents to Prince Michael and Paris. He is also friends with paranormalist Uri Geller. He has also been friends with rabbi Shmuley Boteach, with whom Jackson founded the now defunct "Heal the World" and "Heal the Kids" foundations. (For the related song and 買粉絲 "Heal the World" see below.) Michael is also the godfather of Lionel Richie's adopted daughter Ni買粉絲le Richie.

It has been rumored that Jackson has used extensive plastic surgery to modify his appearance, although he claims to have had only three operations: Two rhinoplastic surgeries (the first of which he claims was to repair a broken nose resulting from a dancing accident in 1978, and the se買粉絲nd to 買粉絲rrect imperfections in the first surgery) and the surgical creation of a cleft in his chin (Jackson often omits mentioning the cleft when listing his 買粉絲smetic surgery, but he 買粉絲nfirms the surgery in his 1988 買粉絲biography ''Moon Walk''). Some critics have characterized his plastic surgery and purported "skin bleaching" as an attempt to hide his African-American ancestry. Jackson has insisted, however, that he only uses heavy makeup to mask the effects of vitiligo, a 買粉絲ndition that causes white patches on the skin.

Jackson's extensive use of plastic surgery has now caused increased 買粉絲ncerns for possible cartila