Michael Jackson's hair to be turned into diamonds

Those who seek a tasteful, restrained tribute to Michael Jackson may soon have an alternative – diamonds made from the singer's charred hair. A company called LifeGem has announced plans to make jewellery from Jackson's seared locks, recovered at the scene of a Pepsi commercial where the King of Pop's head caught fire.

"Our plan is to give people an opportunity to own a diamond made from Michael Jackson's DNA," Dean VandenBiesen, founder of LifeGem, announced.

But LifeGem's tissue sample hasn't come directly from the Jackson family, rather the source of the company's DNA was collected at the 1984 commercial shoot where Jackson was severely injured by faulty pyrotechnics. Executive producer Ralph Cohen used his Armani jacket to extinguish Jackson's burning head – and then saved the charred hair that fell to the floor.


Michael Jackson's hair ... soon to become a girl's best friend. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Corbis



Twenty-five years later, collector John Reznikoff acquired the hair from Cohen and contacted Chicago-based LifeGem to make a deal. Reznikoff had worked with them in 2007, making gemstones from tresses that once belonged to Ludwig van Beethoven.

"The provenance and authenticity of this lock of hair is impeccable," Reznikoff said, citing "the highly publicised video" that shows Cohen putting out the fire with his jacket. Jackson suffered second-degree burns during the shoot, introducing him to painkillers. An addiction to these drugs may be linked to the singer's death.

"We are currently evaluating the sample to determine how many diamonds can be created," VandenBiesen said. "This will be a limited collection and we anticipate great interest."

Jackson died on 25 June.