Michael Jackson spent wild amounts of money and was too paranoid to set up a bank account in the years before his death, it has emerged.
Jackson, who is the subject of a string of new bombshell claims about his sexual activity with children, would demand his assistants bring him thousands of dollars in cash wrapped inside takeaway bags whenever he wanted to go on a spree.
His business partner Marc Schaffel would be instructed to deliver the vast amounts of cash in paper sacks from fast food points – which Jackson found hilarious, referring to it as “French fries” and telling Schaffel: “Bring me some fries, will you? And supersize it.”
While the King of Pop had established a net worth of more than $1billion at the height of his fame, his spending spiralled out of control in the years before his death.
(Image: PA)
When he died, Jackson was around $500million in debt, having splurged between $30 and $50million a year on his personal lifestyle.
He also made huge payouts for friends, once buying himself and Elizabeth Taylor two bottles of the most expensive perfume in the world.
The $75,000-a-piece limited edition perfume came inside a flask made out of platinum, gold and diamonds and was packed inside a walnut box that could be opened only with a gold, diamond and ruby key.
Employees of his reported watching Michael riffle through catalogues and order every single item in them, and he spent $4million a year just on keeping his staff at the Neverland ranch – not just cleaners and chefs, but also snake handlers and carpeters.
(Image: Getty)
Schaffel once reported that Jackson threw a strop when the Las Vegas hotel he was staying in could only lend him $50,000 for a $100,000 purchase he wanted to make. The singer snapped, “Oh forget it” at hotel staff before turning to his children.
“All the kids come over and he hands them each a stack of $10,000 and says, ‘Go out and entertain yourselves for an hour’,” Schaffel said.
Jackson would routinely fly around the world on a whim to enjoy shopping splurges in other countries, hiring a private jet big enough to carry all his purchases and his entourage, who would stay in an entire floor of a luxurious five-star hotel.
The Thriller singer would also waste tons of money on nonsense projects, including his widely mocked plans to build a theme park home for all British cows infected with mad cow disease.
(Image: Bauer Griffin)
And with a $8million a year bill just for antiques and travel, it wasn’t long before Jackson’s spending caught up with him.
By 2008, creditors were circling the Neverland estate as Jackson had put it up as collateral against an enormous bank loan, and was stony broke.
He’d been kicked out of hotels for his credit card being maxed out and couldn’t even afford balloons for daughter Paris Jackson’s 10th birthday party, meaning nanny Grace Rwaramba had to pay for them out of her own pocket.
(Image: Getty)
It was September 2008 when Jackson finally agreed to sign a contract for what would have been his last ever tour – the 50 This Is It concerts in London’s O2, which the singer had initially been reluctant to do.
But with mounting debts and the thought of his children’s future in mind, Jackson eventually gave in.
Less than a year later, Jackson was dead by the hand of his personal physician Dr Conrad Murray, who injected him with powerful painkillers and left the room, only to find Michael lifeless when he returned.
