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Up to 250,000 fans are expected to descend on Neverland Ranch, where Michael Jackson's body is to be put on public view.
The singer's corpse will be taken to Neverland tomorrow, a journey of about 130 miles from its current secret location in Los Angeles.
It will travel in a 30-car cavalcade that will bring traffic in the Californian city to a standstill. It is claimed the body will be transported in a white carriage led by two horses and will be displayed in a glass coffin on Friday allowing well-wishers to file past.
The Jackson family will hold a private service on Sunday at the ranch, also likely to be attended by close friends and celebrities. It is not clear when the funeral will take place nor where Jackson will be buried - amid fears that he will be a target for grave robbers.
Jackson fans are already queuing at the ranch, which he made his home until being accused of child molestation in 2005. There have been suggestions he will be laid to rest at Neverland although laws governing where bodies can be buried could scupper that.
The public viewing coincides with the 4 July Independence Day holiday. A Los Angeles police chief said: "We are preparing for an event of historic proportions. We will be co-operating closely with the family once they have decided where to hold the funeral."
The singer's birthplace town of Gary, Indiana, has also expressed an interest in laying the star to rest.
Thomas Barrack, whose company Colony Capital owns Neverland, asked residents to be patient with the influx of fans. Calling the ranch Jackson's "true home", he said: "The universal curiosity about Neverland and its connection to Michael is unchangeable fact."
In New York thousands of fans paid homage in Harlem. Political activist the Rev Al Sharpton and film director Spike Lee spoke at a packed Apollo Theater, where Jackson sang in 1967 when The Jackson 5 won its amateur night contest, launching their career.
In the latest blow to Jackson's credibility since he died last Thursday, it was claimed he was not the father of his children. Us Weekly magazine today named the father as Arnold Klein, the singer's skin specialist who worked with Debbie Rowe, biological mother of Jackson's two elder children. A source described as a Jackson insider told the magazine: "He and Debbie signed an agreement saying they would never reveal the truth." Ms Rowe's lawyers denied reports saying she was a surrogate.
Jackson's tour promoter said the star's London show could become a tribute gig featuring his family. Randy Phillips, president of AEG Live, denied Jackson was suffering from stage fright, saying he would release footage of his rehearsals: "The world needs to see this production and I would imagine it could be done as a tribute with the family."
Reader views (2)
Will it be put on display in Britain before the funeral? There are lots of fans who would wish to pay homage.
- Prototypical Englishman, Wormwood Scrubs, 01/07/2009 12:08
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I pity the poor morticians who have to prepare the body.
- Man In The Street, London, UK, 01/07/2009 08:28
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