Jacko Parties in Bahrain but Neverland Staff Suffers
Michael Jackson had a perfect, five-star, expensive Christmas in Bahrain, thanks to his host, the prince. But back home at Neverland, his employees wound up waiting until the eleventh hour to get enough money to buy gifts for loved ones.
The Neverland staff was finally paid four weeks' back pay on Friday, Dec. 23, according to my sources. That didn't leave much time for most of the remaining 50 or so zoo workers, groundskeepers, maids, cooks and administrators to do their holiday shopping.
The staff's relief at getting paid on the 23rd was shattered, though, yesterday. Jackson once again missed payroll, leaving the employees right back where they started.
There's talk, I'm told, that the checks may be ready by Monday. But no one's certain and no one's counting on it.
The only bright side to all this is that this week Neverland finally got a gas and propane delivery. For the last couple of months, the ranch has been without heat. There was no cooking, either, because the kitchens have gas stoves.
"When we saw the trucks we were thrilled," says a source. "We thought it was a sign."
Well, it was probably just a sign that Jackson got some royalty money from Sony for the first quarter of the year. He still gets royalties from CDs and videos sold. That's separate from his $270 million loans for which he used his equity in Sony/ATV Music Publishing.
But the employees at Neverland might not be so happy when they find out that Jackson had a very nice Christmas in Bahrain. Using someone's money — presumably that of his host — Jackson flew in his three main surrogate families from different locations, put them up in hotels and got them expensive gifts. The families were: the Schleiters, from Germany; the Bhatti's, from Norway; and the Cascio's from New Jersey.
You will recall that Jackson has had close relations with Anton Schleiter and Omer Bhatti, both of whom are about 21 years old now, for a long time.
Anton's father, Wolfgang, is a German music executive. Michael dedicated the song "Speechless" on his last album to Anton, who used to dress up like Michael and his sister.
Omer Bhatti was the 12-year-old Jackson imitator who Michael picked up in Tunisia in 1996 and essentially kept on and off for years. He told friends that Omer was his natural son, but Omer's parents actually came to work for Jackson in exchange for letting the boy stay with him.
The Cascio family has figured prominently in Jackson's world for years as well. The father, Dominick Cascio, was once a banquet manager at the Palace Hotel in New York. He and his wife, Connie, have five kids, all of whom stayed at Neverland for long stretches. The eldest son, Frank, worked for Jackson and was an unnamed co-conspirator in last spring's trial.
The report from the Jackson holiday was a good one, however. Jackson, according to sources, ate heartily, didn't seem to be drugged in any way and was friendly and upbeat with his guests. The guests did not get to meet the prince, but they did see Jackson's new digs outside the palace at a house he, his kids and nanny Grace Rwarmba are all staying in courtesy of the prince.
If Jackson is not desperately hooked on drugs, then what about all those panic-ridden stories that ran in the supermarket tabloids just a few weeks ago? Speculation is that some members of Jackson's family who feel left out or left back since Michael split the U.S. may be selling stories to make money.
One friend of the family who attended court sessions off and on last year has been mentioned as a go-between who sets up the deals and then kicks back the payments.
(fox news)
tjo...die trucks in neverland ham wohl net viel gebracht... 
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also ohne rechte 
