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http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/video/19873317/index.htmlPITTSBURGH -- Prior to his unexpected death Thursday, pop icon Michael Jackson had been training for a comeback and upcoming European tour with bodybuilder and star of The Incredible Hulk TV Series, Lou Ferrigno.
Ferrigno was at the Days Inn in Butler on Friday for the 2009 Monster Bash Convention, and as the man popularly known for portraying an unstoppable superhero greeted fans, he did so with a heavy heart.
Video:Ferrigno 'Distraught, Upset' Over Jackson Death
"I'm just very upset, distraught. I'm just upset about it," said Ferrigno of Jackson's death. "I just really don't want to talk about him."
Wecht Weighs In
WTAE Channel 4's Bob Mayo spoke via satellite on Friday with former Allegheny County coroner and forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht, who likened Jackson's death and the impact of prescription medication to that of Anna Nicole Smith and Elvis Presley.
Video:Cyril Wecht Weighs In On Jackson Death
"By virtue of their status, they can pretty much get whatever they want. There's always some doctor around who will do anything to please them, to be the celebrity physician. With Elvis Presley, you had good 'Dr. Nick' [Nichopoulos]. Anything that Elvis wanted -- he wanted to play handball at three o'clock in the morning -- he wrote a prescription for an upper."
Wecht noted the reports that Jackson collapsed after an injection of the powerful painkiller Demerol.
"I would consider this to be an accidental death. That doesn't mean that you can't take actions against physicians who prescribed the medications," said Wecht. "Therein lies the tragedy. These great talents, these celebrities, one more famous than the other and these deaths keep occurring. It's amazing how they continue to play out. They, the people using the drugs and so many physicians prescribing the drugs, do not seem to get the message."
But Wecht said the problem extends beyond celebrities.
"While we only hear about Anna Nicole Smith, Elvis Presley Heath Ledger and now Michael Jackson, every minute in America, and I think I'm not exaggerating, probably every minute, certainly every other minute, someone is dying in America from the cumulative effect of three, four, five, six drugs," said Wecht.
Wecht was also intrigued by questions as to what those around Jackson did in the moments after they believed he went into cardiac arrest.
"You call the paramedics, and in the Michael Jackson case, they called the private doctor. I don't know the details, I don't know the chronological events, but it may well be that if they had called the paramedics immediately, who knows, they might have saved his life," said Wecht.
Wecht said he anticipates legal battles stemming from the findings of an autopsy.
"This is going to be one incredibly complex, multifaceted legal mess, just as it is right now a real serious medical legal forensic pathological puzzle," said Wecht.
Promoters of Jackson's upcoming planned concert tour had taken out millions in insurance on him, but could face even higher losses.
"They took out all kinds of insurance policies -- you can be sure -- to cover their rear ends, understandably. If this is an accidental death, then there might be double indemnity," said Wecht.
Local Promoter Remembers 'King Of Pop'
Former concert promoter Rich Engler hoped to bring Jackson to Pittsburgh for a show at the then Civic Arena in the mid-80s, but the deal fell through.
Still, Engler got a nice compensation for his efforts -- a collector's edition of Jackson's all-time best selling album, Thriller.
Engler said Jackson's manager, Frank DiLeo, gave it to him at Jackon's Beverly Hills office.
Engler had hoped to bring Jackson's Thriller show to the arena, but it fell apart when bigger stadium shows in bigger cities lured the pop icon away.
But Jackson still wanted to say "thank you," and gave Engler the album, which he never took out of its cover until after Jackson's death.
"Unfortunately we lost one of the greats -- Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Michael Jackson.
Engler said he plans to frame the album.
