Michael Jackson fans came from near and far Tuesday to say last goodbyes to their pop music hero, some traveling from across the US and Europe for his public memorial in Los Angeles. Near the service site in downtown's Staples Center, vendors sold Jackson memorabilia such as T-shirts, collages, buttons and bouquets of snapdragons and dahlias. “His music will live forever. That's why I'm here today. It's like closure. I'm a person who believes in miracles, and I'm witnessing one today,” said Jenee Huitt of Los Angeles, referring to her gold wristband allowing her to be among the lucky fans to attend the memorial service. Huitt, an etiquette teacher, said she met the Jackson 5 as a girl in the early 1970s. “Diana Ross brought the Jacksons in to this event, introduced them and said, ‘They're going to be stars,”' Huitt said. Fans inside Staples Center wept during the many emotional highlights during the service, which included spoken tributes and performances of Jackson tunes. “I cried, and I was like, I'm not going to cry because I did not know him. But it was very moving,” said Morgan Bryant, 15, of Los Angeles. “By them performing his songs, it made it so real, and seeing the casket there, it made it like he's really not coming back.” Bianca Reyes, 41, San Diego, said one of the most moving moments was when Jackson's daughter, Paris, broke down as she told the audience how much she loved her father. “This was amazing to be part of history,” Reyes said. “They're just regular family. It was so sad.” Crowds were tiny compared to those expected by police, who had issued statements leading up to the service asking people without tickets to stay away. Deputy Police Chief Sergio Diaz, operations chief for the event, said authorities had projected a crowd of 250,000 or more. Besides reporters and those with tickets to the memorial service, the crowd around the Staples Center perimeter numbered only about 1,000, he said. “We asked people not to come out and just be on the street and spectate from a distance, and it seems to have worked,” Diaz said. Police had based their projection of 250,000 people on turnouts for the funerals of Princess Diana and Elvis Presley, along with the recent Los Angeles Lakers NBA championship parade, Diaz said. Fans drove or flew in from near and far, some just to be outside the event. – AgenciesEver since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine, and I just wanted to say I love him so much. – Jackson's 11-year-old daughter Paris Katherine Jackson I think like Elvis, like (Frank) Sinatra, like the Beatles, he became a core part of our culture. – President Barack Obama Whenever we were out together and a picture was taken there would be caption of some kind, and the caption usually said something like, ‘an odd couple' or ‘an unlikely pair.' But to us it was the most natural and easiest of friendships. – Actress Brooke Shields, a longtime friend of JacksonThis is a moment I wished I wouldn't live to see ... As much as we may feel that we need Michael here with us. – Singer-songwriter Stevie WonderI want to thank Michael for opening up so many doors for African Americans, to be on daytime shows, late night shows. He allowed Kobe and I to have our jerseys in peoples homes across world, because he was already there and he opened all those doors for us. – Former basketball great Earvin “Magic” Johnson __
