CEBU, Philippines - Someday, they will be very rich.
But a year after their father Michael Jackson’s death, Prince, Paris and Blanket Jackson are normal kids full of fun and pranks, devoted to each other and to their grandmother, who is their guardian.
According to a lawyer, who sees the family frequently, they talk about their father a lot, and his presence is everywhere in their ranch-style house in the San Fernando Valley with pictures and memorabilia adorning the walls.
“The children are seemingly as normal as normal can be under pretty extraordinary circumstances,” says Adam Streisand, the lawyer who represents Katherine Jackson.
The large Jackson family, including eight of Michael’s siblings and their families, has been a source of emotional support for the children, who frequently play with their cousins, Streisand says.
In an interview with London’s Daily Mail published on Sunday, Katherine Jackson said she misses her son every day but sees his spirit in his three children, whom she is raising “a little less strict” than her son would have.
Prince, born Michael Joseph Jackson Jr, is the oldest.
At 13, he has developed an interest in filmmaking, and his brother, sister and cousins have been starring in their own home movies.
“They have props and sets, and one of them acts as director. They all have role,” says Streisand.
Katherine Jackson told the Daily Mail that Paris, who has a photo shrine to her father on her wall, wants to be an actress.
Since Michael’s death, the kids have continued home schooling.
But Prince will soon go to private school.
“He is ready to branch out and have a more socialised experience,” Streisand says.
Whether his 12-year-old sister, Paris Michael, will join him is undecided, although in the Daily Mail interview Katherine Jackson suggested they all would.
On the anniversary of Michael’s death, he said the family will gather for a quiet, private memorial.
As for Katherine, who recently turned 80, life has become a whirlwind.
She is busy overseeing the children’s activities, but is also involved in the administration of Michael’s estate.
Although not an executor, she is kept informed by the estate administrators, John Branca and John McClain, on projects that are undertaken.
“She is energetic and active. Her health is perfect,” says Streisand.
“She has very clear ideas about what she wants and does not want as to estate matters.”
She is also putting out a book, Never Can Say Goodbye: The Katherine Jackson Archives, filled with photos of her son.
“I’d like him to be remembered as the loving person he was,” she told the Daily Mail.
Streisand says Katherine Jackson has made it clear that she does not want Neverland to be sold, but the 3,000-acre spread costs millions to maintain and a decision to sell could be reconsidered.
Katherine’s husband, Joe, lives in Las Vegas but stays at the family home when he is in California.
Other members of the Jackson clan have their own homes.