Jacko often forgot to eat and had to be ‘force fed’ while preparing for O2 gigs

London, July 02: One of Michael Jackson’s closest confidants has revealed that the star was so immersed in his preparations for his O2 Arena comeback gigs that he often forgot to eat, and had to be “force fed”. If AEG Live boss Randy Phillips is to be believed, Jackson’s calorie intake had fallen to dangerously low levels in the days before his death.

The promoter behind the 50 shows at the O2 Arena also said that he and director Kenny Ortega often cut Jackon’s food up into bite-sized potions so that he could be fed quickly. However, despite trying their level best to keep Jackson healthy, the ‘Thriller’ hitmaker survived on just one meal a day. Phillips revealed that Jackson continued his gruelling rehearsal schedule eating meagre portions of his favourite dishes—vegetarian lasagne, steamed broccoli, nut loaf or tofu with chilli sauce. “He used to forget to eat because he was so focused and Kenny Ortega and I used to cut up his food and physically feed him,” the Mirror quoted Phillips as saying. The promoter was with Jacko at rehearsals the morning of his cardiac arrest. He revealed: “He did a three-hour rehearsal and we all finished up at 12.30am on Thursday morning. He was really excited. He was super-charged and did a group hug with the director Kenny Ortega and his manager. He was like a kid in the candy store – he was so up for it.” He added: “I walked him out to the car and he put his arm around me and, speaking softly like he always does, he said to me: ‘Do you know what – we are here, we are going to make it. I love you for doing this and now I know I can do it.’ That was the last thing he said to me and I never heard from him again.” Just hours later Jackson, 50, was found dead in his exclusive Holmby Hills home after suffering a massive heart attack. ANI