Tears, tributes for King of Pop Michael Jackson

LONDON (AFP) - Fans around the world grieved for Michael Jackson while his star friends in Hollywood and music declared themselves devastated by the sudden death of the King of Pop.
Madonna said she could not stop crying over the news. Elizabeth Taylor, one of the singers closest friends, was too stunned to comment. Many tributes put Jackson into the pantheon of tragic stars alongside Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean.
Fan clubs around the world from Paris to Beijing planned candlelit vigils for the 50-year-old superstar.
But the recriminations also started over the treatment of the singer who made the worlds biggest selling album Thriller and was planning comeback shows in London next month after being dragged through the courts over paedophilia charges.
As fans gathered outside the Los Angeles hospital where the troubled star was pronounced dead after apparently suffering a heart attack, some of the biggest names in entertainment paid their own tributes.
Pop diva Madonna called Jackson one of the greats of modern music.
I cant stop crying over the sad news, she told celebrity website People.com. I have always admired Michael Jackson. The world has lost one of the greats, but his music will live on forever.
Actress Taylor, one of Jacksons longstanding friends, was too devastated to issue a statement, her spokesperson said.
Quincy Jones who produced the Thriller album said: To this day, that music is played in every corner of the world, and the reason is because he had it all talent, grace and professionalism.
The stars first wife Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley, said: I am so very sad and confused with every emotion possible. I am heartbroken for his children, who I know were everything to him, and for his family.
Jacksons influence was also highlighted by the new generation of pop stars.
Justin Timberlake who like Jackson is known for both his singing and dancing said in a statement that the world had lost a genius and a true ambassador of not only pop music, but of all music.
Beyonce called Jacksons death a tragic loss.
The incomparable Michael Jackson has made a bigger impact on music than any other artist in the history of music, she told US television programme Entertainment Tonight.
Jackson has immediately been put among the all-time entertainment greats.
Just as there will never be another Fred Astaire or Chuck Berry or Elvis Presley, there will never be anyone comparable to Michael Jackson, director Steven Spielberg told Entertainment Weekly.
His talent, his wonderment and his mystery make him a legend.
Tommy Mottola, the former head of Sony Music who released Jacksons records for 16 years, said the singer had a place in the pantheon of pop music.
In pop history, theres a triumvirate of pop icons: Sinatra, Elvis and Michael, that define the whole culture, he told the Los Angeles Times.
But many lamented the pressures of his eccentric private life, financial troubles and his planned comeback.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called Jackson one of the most influential and iconic figures in the music industry but said there were serious questions about Jacksons personal life.
Jackson was a universal star whose tragic destiny places him alongside Monroe, Dean and Elvis, Frances culture minister Frederic Mitterrand said.
All ended (their lives) in a manner not very different to his, devoured by medication in great solitude, he told Europe 1 radio.
Jackson represented this idea of a perpetual adolescence that one must try to preserve all ones life until the end. He did it but at such a price that he died from it.
Uri Geller, the psychic and friend of Jackson, said the stress of the 50 hugely-anticipated London shows starting next month caused Jacksons death.
Geller, who lives in Britain, said Jackson was desperate to prove to the world that he was still a superstar despite child abuse allegations which had tainted his career.
He wanted to prove to the world that he is number one, that he is still Michael Jackson, that he can still deliver a thriller, Geller told BBC radio.
The anticipation, the stress levels, the anxiety for what was coming up in London was so huge... I believe that that stopped his heart.
Jacksons former producer and friend Tarak Ben Ammar denounced the pop icons doctors as criminals and charlatans who had taken advantage of his hypochondria.
Its clear that the criminals in this affair are the doctors who treated him throughout his career, who destroyed his face, who gave him medicine to ease his pain, he told French radio.
He was a hypochondriac and one never really knew if he was sick because he had become surrounded by charlatan doctors who were billing him thousands and thousands of dollars worth of drugs, vitamins, said the Tunisian producer.
He ate badly, he didnt have a very healthy life, he couldnt do sport, said Ben Ammar.
Jacksons influence on a younger generation of pop stars was clear, with warm tributes from Grammy winners Justin Timberlake and Beyonce.
Timberlake who like Jackson is known for both his singing and dancing abilities said in a statement that the world had lost a genius and a true ambassador of not only pop music, but of all music.
He has been an inspiration to multiple generations and I will always cherish the moments I shared with him on stage and all of the things I learned about music from him and the time we spent together.
Beyonce called Jacksons death a tragic loss.
The incomparable Michael Jackson has made a bigger impact on music than any other artist in the history of music, she told US television programme Entertainment Tonight.
He was magic. He was what we all strive to be. He will always be the king of pop.
For anyone who has ever seen, felt, or heard his art, we are all honoured to have been alive in this generation to experience the magic of Michael Jackson.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger lamented the loss of one of the most influential and iconic figures in the music industry.
There were serious questions about Jacksons personal life, Schwarzenegger noted, adding however that he and his wife Maria Shriver joined all Californians in expressing our shock and sadness over his death.
Uri Geller, a close friend of the star, said: Im just devastated, very, very sad. I pray that his soul is up there now. Jackson was best man when the television psychic renewed his wedding vows in 2001.
Celebrities from Oscar-winning actress Jane Fonda to hip-hop icon and fashion mogul Sean Diddy Combs to cycling champion Lance Armstrong used micro-blogging website Twitter to express their sadness.