[geoff01]

LOS ANGELES — Pop superstar Michael Jackson died Thursday after suffering a cardiac arrest.

The popular celebrity website TMZ said when paramedics arrived, the 50-year-old King of Pop had no vital signs. Emergency workers were unable to revive the singer, they reported.

Meanwhile, the LA Times has also reported Jackson "was pronounced dead by doctors this afternoon after arriving at a hospital in a deep coma."

Jackson was taken to hospital Thursday afternoon and TMZ reported that Jackson's father, Joe Jackson, said the King of Pop was "not doing well," shortly after he was brought to UCLA Medical Center.

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Capt. Steve Ruda told the L.A. Times that Jackson was not breathing when they arrived at his home.

Paramedics were called to a massive home on off Sunset Boulevard at about 12:20 p.m. According to the L.A. Times, Jackson rented the seven-bedroom, 13-bathroom mansion for $100,000 month.

Jackson was planning a comeback tour with a series of 50 sold-out shows at London's O2 Arena, with the first show scheduled to take place on July 13.

The first show was originally scheduled for July 8, but was postponed for five nights. Three other shows that were set for July were reportedly delayed until March 2010.

The comeback tour has been marred in controversy after Jackson's manager previously signed a contract that would bring about a reunion tour of the Jackson 5 that conflicted with the planned London shows.

RollingStone.com had been reporting that bookies had already been increasing the odds against Jackson actually appearing at the concerts, which would have attracted some 750,000 fans.

"While Jackson has been rumoured to be frequently absent from his Los Angeles rehearsals with choreographer and musical director Kenny Ortega, the technical complexity of the shows, as well as Jackson's perfectionism has been cited for the delayed starting dates," Rolling Stone reported. "Jackson is reportedly seeking a children's choir that knows sign language and is "exactly equal" in racial diversity.

After years of bad press regarding his trial and acquittal on child molestation charges, Jackson had been hoping the O2 concerts would signal a comeback.

The Times reported the pop icon was living in a Bel-Air mansion and was in rehearsal for the shows. It said the "King of Pop" was being funded by two billionaires to ensure the success of the shows.

Jackson was in massive debt, and was hoping the shows would restart his career with a world tour, new album and movies.

Word of Jackson's passing has spread online, already garnering tributes. Former Barenaked Ladies frontman Stephen Page has Twittered on Jackson "you saved a very shy and awkward 12 year old boy in 1983. Thank you."

Canada.com