20 Things You Didn't Know About The Legendary Michael Jackson

#1 MJ was a victim of physical abuse from his father as a child.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, he shed tears and claimed that he was so terrified of his father that he would often vomit when he saw him.

#2 His favorite animated character from childhood was Pinocchio.

#3 When MJ listened to the songs from his days in The Jackson 5, he said he sounded like "Minnie Mouse."

#4 His middle name was Joseph - Michael Joseph Jackson.

#5 "Billie Jean" is allegedly based on a true story. MJ claims an obsessive fan tried to say he was the father of her child.

#6 His first song to hit the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart was "Ben" in 1972.

#7 MJ was a huge Beatles fan.

He paid $47 million for the publishing rights to the Beatles back catalogue in 1985 and sold a share of it to Sony in 1995 for $95 million.

#8 Get this… The costumes for the "Thriller" video came from the Salvation Army.

#9 Jackson invented and owns the patent for the special anti-gravity boots

...he wore that allowed him to lean forward extremely far in live performances of "Smooth Criminal."

#10 MJ loved animals, and had several…strange pets.

He had a python called Crusher, two llamas called Louis and Lola, and his most famous pet was Bubbles, the chimpanzee.

#11 Sources say MJ "borrowed" the Moonwalk from street dancers he saw outside a hotel.

#12 The original song title for "Thriller" was "Starlight."

#13 Sources say MJ slept in an oxygen tent to live longer and for cosmetic purposes.

#14 MJ was a proud owner of a 2,700-acre Neverland Ranch that has a theme park, a menagerie, and a movie theater.

#15 "Home Alone" star Macaulay Culkin was one of MJ's closest friends, and is the godfather of two of Jackson's children.

#16 MJ's estate signed a deal with Sony that gave them access to his unreleased recordings for $250 million.

#17 MJ often wore a black armband to remind people of the suffering of children around the world.

#18 The Los Angeles mansion he was renting just before he passed away once belonged to Sean Connery.

#19 MJ was allegedly a pretty avid reader… He was once accused by a library of owing $1 million in overdue book fines.

#20 Wikipedia, Twitter, and AOL's Instant Messenger all crashed at 3:15PM on the day MJ died: June 25, 2009.