The much-sullied home of the King of Pop is up for sale.
The Neverland Valley Ranch in Los Olivos in southern California, sprawled over more than 1,000 hectares, could be valued at about US$30.3 million as assessed by the local government.
Michael Jackson, who died in 2009, lived and visited there with his chimpanzee, Bubbles, until 2003. A year before his death, the investment firm Colony Capital took control of the estate with a $23.5m note as debts against Jackson piled up.
Thomas Barrack, Colony Capital’s chief executive, is ready to put the property back into the market, Bloomberg reported last month.
The asking price was not given.
The King of Pop had put it on the market for $50m in 2002, according to Forbes.
Jackson died at the age of 50 from a drug overdose as he prepared for a world tour that was supposed to mark his comeback to the music scene.
“We’ve really just been custodians of an irreplaceable estate and are proud to say we’ve restored it to the original elegance Michael first envisioned,” Mr Barrack was quoted in the report.
Jackson bought the ranch in 1988, and turned it into an amusement park with rides, a zoo, several fountains, statues of children at play and a movie theatre. In 2003, police searched the property for evidence of alleged child molestation on its premises. Jackson was acquitted in 2005.
The estate includes a 13,000 square foot main house with extensive wood floors, panelling and banisters, according to a photo gallery on Time magazine's website. It also notes that the interior of the place has not changed much since Jackson bought it in 1988.
Pictures show a secret room accessed through a walk-in closet with three bolts. Jackson used the room to store valuables, the magazine notes.
The mansion, built along Tudor lines, also had two railways as part of the surrounding amusement park.
The place fell into disrepair following the molestation charges, but Colony Capital has since renovated it, according to media reports.
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RECORD BREAKER
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The biog
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Best movie: Avatar
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13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
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Lightweight
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Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
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51% of parents in the UAE feel like they are failing within the first year of parenthood
57% vs 43% is the number of mothers versus the number of fathers who feel they’re failing
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Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
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Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
MATCH DETAILS
Liverpool 2
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Genk 1
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Wonka
Director: Paul King
Starring: Timothee Chalamet, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant
Rating: 2/5
Like a Fading Shadow
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Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)