Ex-wife of Michael Jackson says she partly blames herself for his death in old clip: 'I should've...'
Michael Jackson's ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, feels partly responsible for the singer's death! During an interview for a documentary titled 'TMZ Investigates: Who Really Killed Michael Jackson?' Rowe broke down in tears while stating that she regrets not making more efforts to help out Jackson as he continued to battle his addiction. "I should have done something, and I didn’t. There are a number of people that died from addictions, and in some way I was part of it," Rowe said at that time, as per the Daily Mail. The 'King of Pop' passed away at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009, following a drug-induced cardiac arrest. Following Jackson's death, his personal physician, Conrad Murray, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison. However, he served nearly two years in prison before getting released in October 2013.
Rowe, an American nurse, tied the knot with Jackson in a secret ceremony in Sydney, Australia, in 1996. Later on down the line, Rowe served as the surrogate mother to Jackson's eldest two kids, Prince Jackson and Paris Jackson. Rowe and Jackson's marriage wasn't meant to last forever, as they pulled the plug on their romance in 1999. Back in the day, Rowe worked as a nursing assistant in Dr. Arnold Klein's dermatology office. Rowe first met Jackson 15 years before their marriage while he was getting treated for his skin condition called vitiligo from Klein, who died in 2015.
Klein would often give Jackson some strong painkillers and wrinkle filler drugs such as Botox and Restylane. In the documentary, Rowe shared, "I was basically as bad as him [Klein], and I am so sorry I participated in it." While filming for the documentary, Lowe didn't talk much about Jackson, but her main focus was Klein, well-known as the 'Father of Botox.' Over the years, Rowe has candidly spoken about being a nurse to Jackson and an assistant to Klein while he treated the 'Billie Jean' hitmaker. In a 2013 civil trial, Rowe blamed her former boss for nurturing Jackson's drug habit.
Back in the day, Rowe supported Jackson when he was trying to figure out things following his split with Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley. Eventually, the two became good pals. During a 2003 TV special called 'Michael Jackson: The Footage You Were Never Meant To See,' Rowe revealed how her and Jackson's whirlwind marriage took place and stated that at that point, Jackson was eager to become a parent. "I did it for him to become a father, not for me to become a mother," Rowe shared, according to The US Sun.
Rowe further elaborated, "You earn the title parent. I have done absolutely nothing to earn that title. That is because Michael did all the parenting. I didn't do it to be a mother. I didn't change diapers. I didn't get up in the middle of the night, even when I was there; Michael did it all." The former couple had two kids together: son Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., aka Prince, who was born on February 13, 1997, and daughter Paris Jackson, who was born on April 3, 1998.