Shocked, saddened Australian fans remember Michael Jackson

Sad day for music, said an Australian fan on learning about the death of pop icon Michael Jackson while another fondly remembered his trademark moon walk dance.

Jackson died Thursday in the US following a cardiac arrest at his home in Los Angeles, officials said. He was 50.

Thomson Kottarathara wrote in The Age newspaper blog: "Sad day for music. MJ was a legend. Love all the timeless music and the images he provided us with. MICHAEL, you will remain in our hearts. RIP."

Yann said: "The king of pop is dead, am sure anyone from the X generation will feel little bit sad, in the 80's we had the greatest concerts, their where the great days. The moon dance unh!! that was so cool. And then the 90's came thats when Michael just went coucou!!"

Another wrote: "There is, or was, more to Michael Jackson than what the media painted him to be. He was a tortured genius, a victim of fame and a victim of a rough upbringing by his father. He may have not been 'normal' by society standards, but Michael never had a normal life from the word go. Fame was all he knew. Imagine that from the age of 5...."

DPA adds: A prodigious talent that rose above a hellish home life to meet the greatest of expectations, was how Australian pop music guru and friend Molly Meldrum summed up Michael Jackson.

"He was just a craftsman and such an amazing performer on stage.

"By the time he was 9 years old he was like a superstar in the world and basically was flown into that arena and, in my mind, never came out of that arena," Meldrum said.

Jackson's seeming reluctance to accept that he was black was a product of his secluded, hot-house home life, he said.

"(Jackson's brother) Jermaine would often tell me that for Michael it was really hard where the rest of the boys... were able to go out and play with their friends... while Joe, their father, always insisted that Michael would have to keep rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing, rehearsing," Meldrum said.

Last updated on Jun 26^th, 2009 at 13:05 pm IST--DPA