Michael Jackson memorial was 'beautiful'

Tickets for the memorial service were distributed to fans at random in a ballot
Ali Miller, a 21-year-old Michael Jackson fan from California, was among the 17,500 fans at the memorial service for the King of Pop at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

It was beautiful. All of his close friends and family had the nicest things to say. It was not sombre - it was a celebration of his life. Everyone around us was crying and laughing as well. It was sad at times but joyful at others.

Some 1.6 million fans applied for the 8,750 pairs of tickets
I noticed a family who must have been really huge fans of Michael's, they were all hugging and crying before the memorial even started. There were a lot of people who were devastated by the end of it.

We had a couple of laughs and the stories that some of his close friends told were really funny.

Brooke Shields had a very touching story. She said they bonded over the fact that they were child stars and they had to grow up very quickly, but when they were together they could be children again.

That was a big problem for him, that was why he kept his life so secretive, because he didn't trust anyone. He had to grow up so fast and he was held under a microscope for his entire life. So with Brooke Shields, he was able to become himself again.

Paris' speech at the end was so sad. She could hardly speak and I think everyone in the crowd was with her.

Jackson had been rehearsing in the Staples Center for his comeback gigs
Those children have always been kept away from the public eye and I think this is the first time a lot of us have been able to see his kids' faces, let alone hear how they felt about their father's death.

It was absolutely a fitting tribute. We couldn't have asked for a better memorial. It was done completely the way it should have been done.

Like a lot of people out there, I'll always remember Michael Jackson for Thriller. I was in pre-school when the video came out. A friend and I were in dance class and we decided to come home and pop the music video in and choreograph our own little dance to Thriller.

I think that's how I'll remember him - always trying to emulate his dance moves.

source:bbc