'Thriller' jacket sells for $1.8mln

A leather jacket worn by Michael Jackson for his "Thriller" video sold for $1.8 million at an auction on Sunday to a Texas gold trader who plans to use it to raise money for children's hospitals worldwide.

The black and red calf leather jacket with winged shoulders was one of two used for the shoot. The other one, in scuffed condition, is owned by the Jackson estate.

The one sold by Julien's auction house in Beverly Hills is in better shape and is signed on the sleeve by Jackson. It was designed by Deborah Landis, the wife of "Thriller" director John Landis. Jackson presented it to the vendors, Dennis Tompkins and Michael Bush, his longtime costume designers.

It sold to Milton Verret of Austin, Texas, who showed up in person to triumph over about a dozen bidders from around the world.

"It is one of the most important pieces of rock 'n' roll memorabilia in history," Verret told .His collection also includes another Jackson jacket and guitars signed by members of U2.

Plans are underway to show the "Thriller" jacket at Dell Children's Hospital in Austin, before sending it around the world to display during charity events. A portion of the auction proceeds will benefit an animal reserve where Jackson's two Bengal tigers reside.

Jackson, who died two years ago on Saturday, filmed the video for the title track to his blockbuster album "Thriller" in 1983. The 14-minute clip, in which Jackson turns into a zombie and dances with other undead types, is considered one of the most influential music videos ever made.

Michael Jackson's Thriller jacket sells at auction

 

A leather jacket worn by US singer Michael Jackson in his renowned Thriller video has sold at auction in California for $1.8m (£1.1m).

Jackson wore the jacket in the 1983 video, in a scene with a troupe of zombies who rise from their graves and break into a dance routine.
It was bought by a Texas commodities trader who said he planned to use it to raise money for children's charities.
The sale was organised by Julien's Auction in Beverly Hills.
Some of the proceeds will go to an animal preserve in California where Michael Jackson's two Bengal tigers, Thriller and Sabu, are living.
Other items sold at the auction include one of the singer's wigs and a glove he wore to the American Music Awards in 1984.

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Suicide attack on Kabul police station kills nine

 






Suicide bombers in army uniform attacked a Kabul police compound on Saturday, killing nine people in the second major assault inside the Afghan capital in less than a month, the Interior Ministry said.

The Taliban, which claimed responsibility for the assault, vowed last month to carry out attacks on foreign and Afghan troops and government officials, and have assassinated several senior police commanders since the start of the year.

Three policemen, an intelligence agent, and five civilians -- including two finance ministry employees who worked in an office beside the police station -- were killed in the attack, said officials. Two other policemen and 10 civilians were wounded.

Despite the presence of up to 150,000 foreign troops, violence across Afghanistan is at its worst since the 2001 overthrow of the Taliban government. May was the deadliest month on record for Afghan civilians, the United Nations said.

"One bomber blew himself up at the gate to pave the way for the others to enter, and a second one was shot dead by the police," said Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi.

The last attacker was holed up in a building on the compound where he fought for around an hour before he was also shot dead.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said three of their fighters carried out the attack, but gave no further details.

The insurgents were wearing Afghan army uniforms, a Kabul police spokesman said, a trademark of recent attacks which has led the government to clamp down on a once-flourishing black market in security uniforms.

The police station is in the heart of the old city. Nearby riverside streets that are normally bustling with shoppers and stall holders were emptied by the attack.

At the site of the attack, the body of one of the bombers who was shot before he could detonate his suicide vest lay on the ground dressed in green camouflage trousers and a jacket, beside pools of blood and pieces of flesh.

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