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My father, David Michael Frank, has been a composer in Los Angeles for 30 years. He received his first of three Emmy nominations for musical arrangements for a tribute to Sammy Davis Jr. at the Shrine Auditorium. It was there, in late 1989, that he had his first encounter with Jackson.

After a rehearsal, Jackson accidentally bumped into my 9-months-pregnant mom on stage. Jackson felt so bad about it that he got on his knees, put his hands on her belly and kissed it while apologizing profusely. My parents like to joke that my brother was “blessed” by Michael Jackson.

Twenty years after that encounter, my dad was asked to orchestrate two pieces of classical music that Jackson wrote. They met April 29 at Jackson’s Beverly Hills mansion.

“He was dressed impeccably,” my dad said. “He was very skinny, but not frail looking at all.”

My dad was hesitant to shake his hand, considering rumors about Jackson’s germ phobia. But Jackson gave have him a firm handshake and a warm greeting. To my dad’s disbelief, Jackson remembered him from the Sammy Davis Jr. tribute. He told my dad that he never forgets a face.

They spent two hours together, talking about Jackson’s vision for the music. He wanted my dad to turn his simple piano pieces into something for a large orchestra. My dad left the house with a recording of Jackson humming some of his music while my dad accompanied him on keyboard, possibly Jackson’s last recording.

When my dad heard that Michael Jackson died, he was devastated. Mostly, he felt terrible for Jackson’s three kids, whom he met.

“They worshipped their father and loved him to death,” my dad said. “I feel so sorry for them.”

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