Michael Jackson died yesterday after reportedly being found unconscious in his Bel Air, Calif., home. Paramedics rushed the 50-year-old icon to UCLA Medical Center, where he was declared dead. Jackson was in Los Angeles rehearsing for a 50-date run of concerts at London's O2 Arena that was to begin July 13.

Born Aug. 29, 1958, in Gary, Ind., Jackson was the seventh of nine children born to Katherine and Joseph Jackson. Along with older siblings Jackie, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon, Jackson first rose to fame as the pint-sized lead singer of the Jackson 5.

Later Jackson began to come into his own as a creative force. Teaming with legendary producer Quincy Jones, Jackson released his first solo album for Epic, "Off the Wall," in 1979. It was a pivotal step in Jackson's evolution into "the King of Pop." But it was on his second solo album, the 1983 mega-hit "Thriller," when Jackson left his contemporaries in the dust. The album earned the singer a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards in 1984. His 1983 performance of "Billie Jean" on the "Motown 25" TV special became an iconic moment when he introduced his James Brown-inspired moonwalk to a national audience.

Though well short of achieving the record success  of "Thriller," the follow-up albums "Bad" and "Dangerous" reached No. 1 on the pop chart in 1987 and 1991, respectively. So did the 1995 compilation of hits and new material, "HIStory: Past, Present and Future-Book 1." In the years since, Jackson's star lost some of its luster in the wake of child molestation charges (he was exonerated in a trial), two divorces and financial problems.