Who were the vultures that preyed on Jackson's weaknesses? The druggies and surgeons that fed his insecurities

"It was like watching a clumsy robot. There he was, one of the most talented guys on the planet, unable to even eat because he was so doped up."

Meanwhile, Michael's friend David Gest has revealed he begged the 50-year-old star not to have any more cosmetic surgery.

"I begged him not to have any more, I said, 'Your nose is perfect', but the plastic surgeon kept encouraging him to have more procedures," David, who first met Michael when they were teenagers, is quoted as saying.

SHOOT: And Michael of course. He probably surrounded himself with 'enablers', and in the interview with Oprah in '93, you can tell, Michael was a subtle manipulator. Kind hearted, soft hearted, but not very strong willed off the dance floor. Personal responsibility was low, but he probably learned that bad habit from his father Joe, who had even less.

clipped from www.news24.com Los Angeles - Michael Jackson's former manager claims his drug taking was out of control since 2003. Dieter Wiesner - who worked for the late pop legend from 1996 to 2003 - alleges the star used medicinal drugs for years, but became addicted to them in the wake of Martin Bashir's 2003 documentary, in which Michael revealed he slept in the same bed as young boys. When Living with Michael Jackson was aired, Dieter says Michael "died" and never recovered from it. "It broke him. It killed him. It took a long time to die, but it started that night," he said. "Previously the drugs were a crutch, but after that they became a necessity. They got him through his days and insomnia-riddled nights. And the people who gave them knew what they were doing. They should never have been around." Dieter also claims Michael - who died last Thursday after a suspected cardiac arrest - was once so spaced out on drugs he couldn't even lift a fork to put food in his mouth.