Emails shed light on Michael Jackson's mental state

New details of Michael Jackson's mental state as he prepared for his comeback tour in 2009 have emerged.

The Los Angeles Times has obtained around 250 confidential emails sent by promoters from Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), the company financing the King of Pop's "This Is It" concerts, that characterize the star as a "basket case" suffering from a "weakened emotional state" in the days leading up to his death on June 25, 2009.

"There are strong signs of paranoia, anxiety and obsessive-like behavior. I think the very best thing we can do is get a top Psychiatrist in to evaluate him ASAP," the show's director Kenny Ortega wrote. "It is like there are two people there. One (deep inside) trying to hold on to what he was and still can be and not wanting us to quit him, the other in this weakened and troubled state... I believe we need professional guidance in this matter."

In another message, AEG's Randy Phillips told company president Tim Leiweke: "MJ is locked in his room drunk and despondent... I [am] trying to sober him up." 

"Are you kidding me?" Leiweke replied.

"I screamed at him so loud the walls are shaking," Phillips said. "He is an emotionally paralyzed mess riddled with self loathing and doubt now that it is show time."

The leaked correspondence will play an integral role in two lawsuits due to go to trial in 2013. The show's insurers' Lloyd's of London, are alleging that AEG gave false claims about Jackson's health when seeking a US $17.5 million policy, while Jackson's heirs have filed a wronful death suit claiming the star was pressured into the tour even though it was known he was emotionally unstable.

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