Neverland on the Block: Inside the Michael Jackson Auction

On April 22nd, approximately 2,000 items belonging to Michael Jackson will be auctioned off in Beverly Hills. Jackson picked the items, but he's now suing to stop the sale, though Julien's Auctions' CEO says it will go on regardless. Jackson recently sold out 50 concerts at London's O2 Arena, a lengthy run that he'll need to defray his mounting financial woes. According to the new issue of Rolling Stone, Jackson's attorneys fees and the $250,000 per month cost of maintaining his beloved Neverland Ranch have left the singer in millions of dollars of debt. Jackson's manager, Dr. Tohme Tohme, and Randy Phillips, the CEO of AIG Live (the company promoting MJ's London gigs) say the pop star's stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, which owns the Beatles catalog, is keeping Jackson financially afloat, but he has borrowed hundreds of millions of dollars against that investment.

So what's up for sale in the epic Jackson auction? Jeweled gloves, Neverland Ranch's massive iron gates, a plethora of Michael Jackson figurines and portraits, a 1991 piece of artwork by actor Macaulay Culkin and many more bizarre items. Check out a gallery of the goods here:

• Neverland on the Block: Inside the Michael Jackson Auction

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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