One seller requesting $20,000 for passes to Tuesday’s memorial service
LOS ANGELES - Listings for tickets to the Michael Jackson memorial service at Los Angeles’ Staples Center on Tuesday appeared on eBay and Craigslist as soon as winners were notified on Sunday.
One eBay listing asked for a Buy It Now price of $20,000, while other prices varied. Buyers and sellers must act fast, as ticket winners received a unique code and instructions to pick up their tickets Monday at Dodger Stadium.
When they pick up their tickets, a wristband will be placed on each person’s wrist. Organizers will check IDs to make sure those picking up wristbands are the same people who originally applied online, said Staples Center spokesman Michael Roth.
Fans must have both the ticket and the wristband to enter Staples Center on Tuesday. Wristbands that have been ripped, taped or tampered with will be voided.
But winners were permitted to give anyone their second bracelet, so “theoretically, the second wrist band can be sold,” Roth said.
Organizers were considering how to distribute any unclaimed seats, but had not immediately decided on a plan, Roth said.
On Sunday evening, fans around the world started posting Twitter messages about receiving tickets.
“I’m in shock that it has happened,” said Deka Motanya, 27, of San Francisco. “It’s surreal.” She received an e-mail message at 4:35 p.m. notifying her, “Congratulations, your application was successful.”
She immediately Twittered: “OMG OMG OMG OMG i got tickets to the michael jackson memorial service!!!”
Soon after receiving his invitation, David Gobaud, 25, who studies computer science at Stanford University, was scrambling to find his way down to Los Angeles.
“It’s amazing. It’s quite a surprise. I didn’t believe it was real in the beginning,” he said. “It’s Michael Jackson, one of the greatest musical stars of all time.”
Another winner was Zach Moss, a 21-year-old Chicagoan working for the summer as a DJ in Las Vegas. He said clubgoers have responded strongly to Jackson’s music since his death.
“You can play two, three Michael Jackson songs back to back and people are going to have this huge jubilation celebration,” he said. “Everyone throws their drinks up and shouts, ’MJ!’ It’s extremely powerful.” More than 1.6 million fans registered online for free in the random drawing of only 8,750 names. Each person selected will receive two tickets. The odds of getting a ticket were about 1 in 183.
The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Center plus 6,500 in the Nokia Theater overflow section next door. The streets around the stadium will be closed to prevent those without tickets from trying to attend, police said Sunday.
The ceremony will not be shown on Staples' giant outdoor TV screen and there will be no funeral procession through the city. No details were available about the actual memorial events.
Assistant Police Chief Jim McDonnell warned people without tickets to stay away: “You’ll be standing in the hot sun on a city street with a lot of other people ... but not within eyeshot of Staples.”
At the Wilshire Grand Los Angeles hotel about a half mile from the Staples Center, more than 90 percent of the hotel’s 1,000 rooms were booked for Monday and Tuesday night, up from about 60 percent last week.
“There’s a lot of demand right now,” said spokesman Marc Loge. “We are going to sell out.”
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Michael Jackson memorial ticket winner details
Millions of Michael Jackson fans around the world are anxiously sitting by their computers waiting to see if they have been one of the lucky winners of tickets for the memorial concert at the Los Angeles Staples Centre on Tuesday.
Organizers of the show were to begin informing registrants on Sunday if they had been awarded one of the 8,750 pairs of free tickets to the event.
In the 32-hour window that mourning Jackson fans had to register for the event, more than 1.6 million applications were received.
Each person whose name is drawn will receive two tickets and will be notified by email after 11am PST (2 pm EDT) Sunday with instructions on where to go on Monday to collect their tickets.
The tickets will include a wristband, part of an effort to prevent people from trying to sell the tickets.
The Staples Center has a capacity of nearly 20,000 for sporting events but the organizers said only 11,000 fans will be admitted to the arena for the memorial performance, with the remainder reserved for Jackson’s family, friends, guests and the news media. At the Nokia theater next door 6,500 fans will be admitted.
Organizers said the memorial will not be shown on the giant video screens in the Staples Center plaza to keep crowd levels under control, but arrangements have been made for a world-wide TV broadcast and streaming feed on the Internet.
City officials have urged residents to watch the memorial from home, but many fans have signaled that they intend to show up anyway.
Los Angeles police officials are bracing for tens if not hundreds of thousands of people, but have not given an estimate of what it may cost to control the event, whose lineup and other details have also not been announced.
Los Angeles is battling a recession-fueled $530 million deficit in its operating budget, but Jan Perry, a city councilwoman who is serving as acting mayor, said, that the city considered the memorial an “extraordinary event” and would tap into a fund set aside for such occurrences.
Plans for Jackson’s burial, expected to be private, have not been disclosed, though it has been reported the dead entertain will be buried in a $25,000 casket made of solid bronze and plated with 14-karat gold.
Organizers of the show were to begin informing registrants on Sunday if they had been awarded one of the 8,750 pairs of free tickets to the event.
In the 32-hour window that mourning Jackson fans had to register for the event, more than 1.6 million applications were received.
Each person whose name is drawn will receive two tickets and will be notified by email after 11am PST (2 pm EDT) Sunday with instructions on where to go on Monday to collect their tickets.
The tickets will include a wristband, part of an effort to prevent people from trying to sell the tickets.
The Staples Center has a capacity of nearly 20,000 for sporting events but the organizers said only 11,000 fans will be admitted to the arena for the memorial performance, with the remainder reserved for Jackson’s family, friends, guests and the news media. At the Nokia theater next door 6,500 fans will be admitted.
Organizers said the memorial will not be shown on the giant video screens in the Staples Center plaza to keep crowd levels under control, but arrangements have been made for a world-wide TV broadcast and streaming feed on the Internet.
City officials have urged residents to watch the memorial from home, but many fans have signaled that they intend to show up anyway.
Los Angeles police officials are bracing for tens if not hundreds of thousands of people, but have not given an estimate of what it may cost to control the event, whose lineup and other details have also not been announced.
Los Angeles is battling a recession-fueled $530 million deficit in its operating budget, but Jan Perry, a city councilwoman who is serving as acting mayor, said, that the city considered the memorial an “extraordinary event” and would tap into a fund set aside for such occurrences.
Plans for Jackson’s burial, expected to be private, have not been disclosed, though it has been reported the dead entertain will be buried in a $25,000 casket made of solid bronze and plated with 14-karat gold.
Michael Jackson Memorial Ticket Winners
Like a modern-day Willy Wonka tale, more than 1.6 million fans waited to learn Sunday whether they were among the lucky few to win access to Michael Jackson's memorial service at Staples Center on Tuesday.
Fans registered online for free in the random drawing of only 8,750 names. Each person selected will receive two tickets.
Ticket winners were in the process of being notified Sunday afternoon, according to Michael Roth, a spokesman for Staples Center owner AEG Live.
The odds of getting a ticket were about 1 in 183.
The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Center plus 6,500 in the Nokia Theater overflow section next door. The streets around the stadium will be closed to prevent those without tickets from trying to attend, police said Sunday.
Assistant Police Chief Jim McDonnell warned people without tickets to stay away: "You'll be standing in the hot sun on a city street with a lot of other people ... but not within eyeshot of Staples."
Jackson died at age 50 on June 25 after going into cardiac arrest in the bedroom of his rented mansion. The cause of Jackson's death has not been determined. Autopsy results are not expected for several weeks.
Also Sunday, a judge signed search warrants connected to the investigation of Jackson's death, Los Angeles County Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini said. The warrants were sealed and Parachini would not discuss any details.
Authorities are investigating allegations that Jackson had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and antidepressants. The powerful sedative Diprivan, which is usually administered by anesthesiologists in hospitals, was found in his home. It was not known what drugs, if any, Jackson obtained from doctors.
Jackson's family was planning a private ceremony at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills, McDonnell said. He did not provide further details.
More than a week after his death, tributes and accolades keep coming. Madonna had a Jackson impersonator dance to "Wanna Be Starting Something" at her concert Saturday in the same London arena where he was to stage his comeback.
The Rev. Al Sharpton called for nationwide "love vigils" for Jackson, asking people to gather in schools, community centers and churches to watch the memorial service and talk about the pop star's "message" instead of the "mess" surrounding his death.
The memorial service will be broadcast on five television networks, after NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to air the service live. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment.
Before the ticket drawing, AEG would "scrub" the entries to eliminate duplicates and any suspected of being made by automated systems, Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine said in a statement.
Winners received a unique code and instructions on how to pick up their tickets Monday at an off-site distribution center. When they pick up their tickets, a wristband will be placed on their wrists.
To prevent ticket scalping, fans must have both the ticket and the wristband to enter Staples Center on Tuesday. Wristbands that have been ripped, taped or tampered with will be voided.
City officials are preparing for huge crowds. McDonnell, the assistant police chief, would not say how many police would be on the job, but alluded to the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the recent championship celebration for the Los Angeles Lakers at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The ceremony will not be shown on Staples' giant outdoor TV screen and there will be no funeral procession through the city.
No details were available about the actual memorial events.
Fans registered online for free in the random drawing of only 8,750 names. Each person selected will receive two tickets.
Ticket winners were in the process of being notified Sunday afternoon, according to Michael Roth, a spokesman for Staples Center owner AEG Live.
The odds of getting a ticket were about 1 in 183.
The tickets will admit 11,000 people to the Staples Center plus 6,500 in the Nokia Theater overflow section next door. The streets around the stadium will be closed to prevent those without tickets from trying to attend, police said Sunday.
Assistant Police Chief Jim McDonnell warned people without tickets to stay away: "You'll be standing in the hot sun on a city street with a lot of other people ... but not within eyeshot of Staples."
Jackson died at age 50 on June 25 after going into cardiac arrest in the bedroom of his rented mansion. The cause of Jackson's death has not been determined. Autopsy results are not expected for several weeks.
Also Sunday, a judge signed search warrants connected to the investigation of Jackson's death, Los Angeles County Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini said. The warrants were sealed and Parachini would not discuss any details.
Authorities are investigating allegations that Jackson had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and antidepressants. The powerful sedative Diprivan, which is usually administered by anesthesiologists in hospitals, was found in his home. It was not known what drugs, if any, Jackson obtained from doctors.
Jackson's family was planning a private ceremony at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills, McDonnell said. He did not provide further details.
More than a week after his death, tributes and accolades keep coming. Madonna had a Jackson impersonator dance to "Wanna Be Starting Something" at her concert Saturday in the same London arena where he was to stage his comeback.
The Rev. Al Sharpton called for nationwide "love vigils" for Jackson, asking people to gather in schools, community centers and churches to watch the memorial service and talk about the pop star's "message" instead of the "mess" surrounding his death.
The memorial service will be broadcast on five television networks, after NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to air the service live. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment.
Before the ticket drawing, AEG would "scrub" the entries to eliminate duplicates and any suspected of being made by automated systems, Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine said in a statement.
Winners received a unique code and instructions on how to pick up their tickets Monday at an off-site distribution center. When they pick up their tickets, a wristband will be placed on their wrists.
To prevent ticket scalping, fans must have both the ticket and the wristband to enter Staples Center on Tuesday. Wristbands that have been ripped, taped or tampered with will be voided.
City officials are preparing for huge crowds. McDonnell, the assistant police chief, would not say how many police would be on the job, but alluded to the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the recent championship celebration for the Los Angeles Lakers at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The ceremony will not be shown on Staples' giant outdoor TV screen and there will be no funeral procession through the city.
No details were available about the actual memorial events.
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