Jacko was just a normal guy, says childhood pal

London, June 30: Michael Jackson might have been known for his wild behaviour, but for music producer and King Of Pop’s childhood pal David Gest, he was a loyal friend who made him laugh.Gest spilled the bean on his 40-year friendship with Jackson, who died last Thursday aged 50.

“There is nobody who knew Michael like I did. He was so gifted, it’s hard for me to picture him gone. There is a whole side to him people never saw,” the Sun quoted him as saying. “For instance, people always think of him as talking in that high, soft voice, but he didn’t really speak like that — it was a facade. “Still to this day I am not sure why he did it. The Michael I knew talked like a real man, acted like a real man and shook a hand like a real man,” he added. Gest revealed that despite enjoying enormous fortune at the peak of his career, the ‘Thriller’ hitmaker loved to bargain. “He loved haggling over the price in stores. If something was 4,000 dollars, he would cheekily start them at 200 dollars. “He was an arch negotiator. People thought he was absolutely nuts but he actually got away with it sometimes,” Gest added. Jackson also loved to read especially classic literature. “What a lot of people don’t know about Michael is that he was always reading. He was an intelligent man. His favourite poet was Robert Burns and he was obsessed with the novels of Charles Dickens,” Gest said. Meanwhile, it has been revealed that the body of late superstar could be put on display in a glass coffin so that fans can bid adieu to the star before his burial. According to reports, the King of Pop’s family has discussed the idea of a see-through casket to allow the public to see him one last time. ANI