King of Pop Hometown Tour turns Gary, Ind. into tourist thriller

Before there was the sprawling Neverland ranch in California, before he became a superstar with the best-selling album of all time, Thriller, a tiny house in the industrial city of Gary was home for M

Before there was the sprawling Neverland ranch in California, before he became a superstar with the best-selling album of all time, Thriller, a tiny house in the industrial city of Gary was home for Michael Jackson.

Since Jackson’s death, two women from the Chicago area, about 48 kilometres from Gary, have started The King of Pop Hometown Tour taking busloads of tourists on a four-hour trek through Jackson family landmarks in northwest Indiana.

The highlight is 2300 Jackson St, a small white-sided house as big as a two-and-a-half car garage where the Jackson family lived – with nine children – nearly four decades ago.

“This is a tour of motivation and inspiration,” guide Denise Jordan Walker tells riders, as her partner Tecora Rogers readies the bus to leave. “We are not taking you to a gated community. We are not taking you to Neverland. We are taking you to Gary, Indiana.”

On cue, a music video of the Jackson 5 plays on overhead screens as the bus pulls off from Chicago and travels south down the highway. A young Michael Jackson sings, “I’m going back to Indiana. Indiana here I come. I’m going back to Indiana. That is where my baby’s from.”

The women said they always wanted to host a Jackson-themed tour of Gary, but had put the idea aside to focus on a Chicago jazz music tour instead. After Michael Jackson’s death in June, requests started pouring in, Walker said.

“It hasn’t changed that much since the Jacksons lived here,” Walker said. “It’s pretty much like time stood still. We want to paint a picture and let people really feel what the Jacksons went through on a day-to-day basis.”

Off the highway in Indiana, the bus drives through a heavily industrial area along Lake Michigan before stopping in front of the steel mill where father Joe Jackson worked. The tour goes on to the hospital where the Jackson children were born and the elementary school they attended. It also highlights the beginnings of the Jackson 5, with stops at Mr Lucky’s Lounge, where the group first performed, and the house where the Jacksons recorded for Steeltown Records in 1967.

While stuffed animals, cards and signs still decorate the outside of the Jackson home, the inside remains closed. The tour, however, has partnered with the owners of a mirror-image house across the street, allowing for a walk-through to get a feel for the Jackson home.

Details: THE KING OF POP HOMETOWN TOUR: www.thekingofpoptours.com; Saturday and Sunday, pick up 12pm from Matteson, Ill, and 12:45 pm from the Chicago neighbourhood of Hyde Park, specifics online. Special groups by appointment.

PRICE: $55 adults, $45 children age 6-12, children five and under are free.

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

Share to...