Joe Jackson, patriarch of the legendary Jackson family, which included Michael and Janet Jackson, has died, the estate of Michael has confirmed in a statement. No cause of death was given, though he had reportedly been diagnosed with cancer.
Officially, Joe Jackson was a band manager, taking five of his sons from a locally celebrated pop vocal group in Gary, Ind., in the mid-1960s to international acclaim, acting as the launchpad to superstardom for his son Michael. Their paths, however, would be revealed through the decades as ones paved in checkers.
Joe Jackson, born in Arkansas on July 26, 1928, was the eldest of five children of Samuel and Chrystal Jackson. Jackson’s parents separated in 1942, leaving Joe to travel between his father in Oakland, Calif. and his mother in East Chicago, Ind., before settling in the latter.
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