Jackson memorial receives 1.6 million ticket requests

The more than 1.6 million fans who registered for tickets to Michael Jackson’s memorial service finally got word Sunday on whether they will be among the lucky few to get tickets for Tuesday’s ceremony.

Fans had to register for free at the Staples Center Web site between 10 a.m. Friday and 6 p.m. Saturday for the random drawing of only 8,750 names.

Each person selected will receive two tickets and were to be notified by e-mail after 11 a.m. PDT Sunday, according to a Staples Center news release.

The tickets will admit 11,000 people to Los Angeles’ Staples Center plus 6,500 in the Nokia Theater overflow section next door.

Those without tickets will be able to watch live televised coverage on NBC, ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment starting at 10 a.m. PDT.

Before the drawing, officials of AEG, the owner and operator of the Staples Center, will “scrub” the entries to eliminate duplicates and any suspected of being made by automated systems or “go-bots,” Jackson family spokesman Ken Sunshine said in a statement.

Winners will receive a unique code and instructions on how to pick up their tickets Monday at an off-site distribution center. When they pick up their tickets, they will have wristbands placed on them.

Fans must have both the ticket and the wristband to enter Staples Center on Tuesday. Wristbands that have been ripped, taped or tampered with will be voided.
Sunshine said those steps are being taken to prevent ticket-scalping.

City officials are preparing for huge crowds. Los Angeles Assistant Police Chief Earl Paysinger said as many as 700,000 people might try to reach the arena, even though a wide area around Staples Center will be sealed off to people without tickets.

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jan Perry strongly urged people to stay home and watch the memorial on television. The ceremony will not be shown on Staples’ giant outdoor TV screen, and there will be no funeral procession through the city.

No details were given about the actual memorial events, which come as the nation’s second-largest city struggles with a budget deficit. Perry said the cost of police protection for “extraordinary” events such as the memorial is built into the police department’s budget, but she still solicited help for “incremental costs.”

Last month, donations covered about $850,000 of the city’s $1 million cost for the Los Angeles Lakers’ NBA championship parade. Critics had blasted the idea of using city money when it is considering layoffs to close its budget gap.