Rumors That Michael Jackson Was Castrated Have Circulated Online for Years

Although he has been dead for more than a decade, Michael Jackson was such an enormous star that he still commands plenty of conversation all these years later. Michael, who was accused of assaulting multiple minors in a multi-part docuseries that aired after his death, has also been the subject to persistent rumors about the abuse he may have suffered when he was a child.

Among the most persistent of those rumors is one that suggests he was castrated by his father. Here's what we know about the rumor, how it got started, and whether there might be any truth to it.

A rumor has long persisted that Michael's father, Joe Jackson, chemically castrated him. The rumor started because many believed that Michael's voice, even as an adult, was unnaturally high and feminine. While Joe may have subjected Michael to other forms of abuse, most agree that this castration theory seems unlikely for several reasons.

One of the most important is that, while Michael's voice may have been high, he was able to grow facial hair, which happens as a result of testosterone in the body. Castration removes the creation of testosterone, so Michael would not have been able to grow facial hair.

Some have also pointed out that Michael is not the only member of his family with an unusually soft and high voice. The whole Jackson clan had similar voices.

The most definitive proof that Michael was not castrated came from his autopsy, though, which should have put this rumor to bed for good. The autopsy found that he had the normal testes of an adult male, and that spermatogenesis was occurring when he died. Michael also had an Adam's apple, and the autopsy reported that his body appeared to have gone through puberty, which would not have been the case had he been castrated. Case closed.

Because he was such a monumental cultural figure, and because he lived such a strange and, at least in parts, sinister life, people's fascination with Michael Jackson may never be fully extinguished.

While discussion around Michael's music or the things he did is certainly fair game, there are some things that are said about him that are provably false.

Michael's voice was one of his super powers, and it seems like nothing was done to make sure that he kept it as he moved into adulthood. Michael Jackson had a strange and at times sad life, but he was not castrated. Speculation that he was ignores basic facts about both his life and how castration works, and it's a rumor that needs to die out.