THE CHANDLERS: the history of lies and distortion 2

THE FIRST MEETING

We are not yet finished with Larry King’s talk with RAY CHANDLER on November 25, 2003. Now the interview is taking us to the circumstances under which Michael Jackson met Jordan Chandler for the first time:

KING: Give me as best as you can remember the circumstances under which Michael befriended your nephew?
CHANDLER: Well, it was a simple twist of fate, really. Michael was driving down (unintelligible) Boulevard incognito and — as he would often do to go out without getting mobbed, his car stalled. He was having car trouble. An office worker on the side saw a man in trouble, asked if she could help. He said, yes. Going up to the floor in an elevator. She realized who it was and he said, yes, I’m Michael Jackson. She said, you know, my husband works for a car rental company, this was Rent-a-Wreck in Santa Monica. I’m sure they’d be glad to help you. Well, she called and her husband’s boss was my nephew’s step brother. My brother and mother were separated, had different (unintelligible). And he said, yes, I’ll send a limo for him, I’ll send a tow truck and then called his wife and said you’ll never guess who’s coming down here. Bring the kids down.

KING: That’s how they met?
CHANDLER: That’s how they met. Michael took the boy’s phone number.
KING: Took it right there? The mother no complaint about or stepfather had no complaint of the taking of the number by Jackson? There was no reason to think of anything?
CHANDLER: No, at that point it was very innocent. Or seemed innocent.

What an outrageous way to discuss the innocent procedure of getting anybody’s telephone! If they go on in the same manner they will soon describe a simple handshake as a sign of an abuse! The way they speak of this ‘taking the boy’s number’ issue it looks really sinister – something like “a sexual predator spotting an easy prey and unsuspecting parents falling into his trap”.

Why would Larry King ask this crazy question about the mother and stepfather not complaining about Jackson taking their number? Had Michael’s reputation been harmed so irreparably by the time of the interview that Larry couldn’t even imagine the way the exchange of telephones would have taken place back in the 90s, if someone had  had a chance meeting with a star like Michael Jackson then?

Well, to be able to see the way it really happened let us compare the accounts of the first meeting made by three different members of the family – Ray Chandler, Jordan Chandler and his mother June Chandler.

As to Ray’s/Larry’s story we are already familiar with their sinister version, so let’s see what JUNE CHANDLER has to say about that telephone incident (see her testimony at the 2005 trial):

Q. …do you recall how long you were with Mr. Jackson and Jordan that day?

A. Briefly. Five minutes. Ten minutes.

Q. And did — was there any information exchanged between you and Mr. Jackson that day?

A. Yes.

Q. And what was that?

A. I said, “If you would like to see Jordie or if he could call you or if you’d like to speak to him, here is our number, and you can give him a call.”

Q. And you gave that to Mr. Jackson?

A. Yes, I did.

Q. Now, let me go back in time. Before this meeting that you had at your husband’s place of business in 1992, had Jordan ever expressed, to your knowledge, some admiration for Mr. Jackson?

A. Oh, very much so, yes.

And this is how JORDAN CHANDLER describes the same situation in his talk with psychiatrist Dr. Gardner in October 1993 .

– My stepfather took him [Michael] outside to choose a car for him to use. And I guess when my stepfather was outside he said, ‘You don’t have to pay for the car if you just take Jordie’s number and give him a call’.
– Why would your stepfather say that?
– Because my stepfather knows I was interested in Michael Jackson and his music.
– And this was in your presence?
– No. I was told this by my stepfather.

Wait, are these three stories about one and the same thing or are they about three different events?  Would you know that these people were describing one and the same episode if I hadn’t told you in advance?

And what do you think of the cool and matter-of-fact version by June Chandler who seems to be emphasizing the idea that Michael “CAN give the boy a call” – as if she were the boss of the situation, weren’t thrilled by this chance encounter and weren’t looking forward to Michael calling them back at all?

Interesting how this small example gives you an insight into the character of each of the people involved in this play?

I don’t know which variant is preferable to you – to me Jordan’s version seems to be the most credible of all. It is only natural to imagine the excitement of their first meeting and the lucky chance taken by dear old David Shwartz who asked Michael for a favor – call my stepson, who is your diehard fan, and I’ll give you a car free in exchange for it…  No wonder Michael thought he was somehow bound by that goodwill gesture, kept his promise and called the boy back.

Oh, my God – how far is the real story from that sinister innuendoes we’ve just seen in Ray Chandler’s interview!

If the whole of his “All that Glitters” book is slanted in the same manner (which I never doubt for a second) and if the book is not a deliberate attempt to drug Michael through all this mud and the feeling displayed by the author is genuine (which I do doubt very much indeed) it means that we are at best looking into Ray or Evan Chandler’s own dark world of dirty suspicion, ill motivation, evil thought and cynical behavior…

To make the picture of the first meeting complete let me quote to you the remainder of Jordan’s conversation with psychiatrist Dr. Gardner about the period following their chance meeting in May 1992 – just to give you some insight into Jordan’s character too.

But before that here is what Ray Chandler writes in his book about Jordan’s adulation for Michael Jackson even before he met him in person:

“By age 6 Jordie had memorized the words to half a dozen Jackson songs and taught himself many of the star’s dance moves. One evening Jordie generated in instant crowd when he launched into his MJ routine to the sound of Beat It blasting from a radio Dave had bought.”Wow, look at him go”, one onlooker shouted as she threw a dollar into the hat that Dave had jokingly placed on the ground.

Two weeks before his 8th birthday Jordan strutted his stuff for the entire family. No sooner had he hit the dance floor when a circle gathered around the boy, three generations whooping and cheering as he twirled and moon-walked to The Way You Make Me Feel. Jordie’s grandmother was so impressed she went home that evening and knitted him a sequined glove to add to his routine.”

And this is how the same boy recounts to the psychiatrist the phone calls that followed his first meeting with Michael Jackson in the period from May 1992 to February 1993  when he met him again:

–   My stepfather took him [Michael] outside to choose a car for him to use. And I guess when my stepfather was outside he said, ‘You don’t have to pay for the car if you just take Jordie’s number and give him a call’.
–   Why would your stepfather say that?
–   Because my stepfather knows I was interested in Michael Jackson and his music.
–   And this was in your presence?
–   No. I was told this by my stepfather.

– “So what happened then?”-

– “Then he left.”

– “Did he agree to the deal, Jackson?”

Yeah.”

– “Okay, then what happened?”

– “I don’t remember how many days later, but he called me.”

– “What did he say?”

– “He said… I don’t really remember, but I remember the conversations we had on the phone around the early days of our relationship.”

– “That was the beginning of the relationship, is that correct?”

– “Right.”

– “How long did the first call last?”

– “I don’t remember. I don’t remember the very first call.”

– “In this first phase, let’s call it the telephone call phase.  I would like to try to break it down into phases.  This first phase was started around May of ’92; that phase which was confined just to telephone calls.  How long did that phase last?”

– “I would say sometime in late January of this year [1993].”

– “How often were the calls during this phase?”

– “Well, see, he went on tour during the summer so that was when I got off of school, so I would say June or so. But before that he called – – I don’t know, I don’t want to guess wrong.  I don’t know.”

– “If you could guess the total number of calls during that first phase, over that seven or eight month period?”

– “I don’t know.  Do you think I could tell you – get more specific in the phase – and let’s see there?  So, well, I remember – – he called over there at my dad’s house but my step-father had gave him my mom’s number.”

– “You were living primarily with your mother at that point.”

– “Yes.”

– “Okay.”

– “And so, I assume he – – I can’t really remember but I assume he was used to calling my mother’s house.  And so he called my dad’s house.  I don’t know, I think my mother gave him the number.  We spoke for, I remember, for like three hours.”

– “You had conversations for three hours?”

– “Well, that one call.”

– “There was one phone call for three-hours; we’re talking about the telephone phase now.”

– “Well, I’m trying to be specific and then when I’m finished – –

– “Was it all in that time frame now, I want to stick with that time frame?”

– “Right, I know, well I have to remember what happened.”

– “Sure, but I’m going to interrupt you to clarify.  Was there more than one three-hour telephone call during the telephone phase?”

– “Yes.”

– “About how many, roughly, were there?”

– “I don’t know, it could be – – ”

– “More than ten?  Was it roughly 5-10 such calls to the best of your ability?  Would that be an accurate statement?”

(Inaudible.)

–         “Okay, that’s all.  I don’t expect you to (inaudible) but if you could narrow it down to a rough guess and we’re able to indicate that that’s a guess then that’s fine.”

–         “Okay, well – – – – ”

What impression does Jordan Chandler produce on you here? STRANGELY UNEMOTIONAL, INDIFFERENT, DISINTERESTED, BORED AND A LITTLE  BOSSY, isn’t he?

Why is he that way?

Is it because he is forced to play some kind of a role? And understands his importance too?

And isn’t it surprising that when speaking to FBI agents ten years later he would refuse to testify, saying something which would strangely remind us of this role ?

“I’m not interested in testifying against Michael Jackson. I’VE DONE MY PART”