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CNN CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT
Friends, Family, the Nation Honor Fallen Columbia Astronauts; Investigators Focus on Possible Damage to Shuttle at Takeoff
Aired February 4, 2003 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CONNIE CHUNG, CNN HOST: I'm Connie Chung. Tonight, a final good bye to the brave men and women of the space shuttle Columbia.
ANNOUNCER: Friends, loved ones and the nation honor the fallen Columbia astronauts.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: OUr nation shares in your society and in your pride and today, I offer the respect and the gratitude of the people of the United States.
ANNOUNCER: The final farewell.
As more debris is recovered, investigators focus on possible damage to the shuttle at takeoff. Columbia: the shuttle tragedy.
What happened in the mansion of legendary music producer Phil Spector?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has been arrested and he is booked for murder.
ANNOUNCER: Living with Michael. Is the latest TV tell-all on Michael Jackson for real?
And our "Person of the Day" -- leading the way in a difficult time.
This is CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT. From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York: Connie Chung.
CHUNG: Good evening.
Beneath the clear Texas sky, thousands came today to say good bye to the Columbia 7 astronauts. The memorial service was held outdoors at NASA's mission control at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Many wept as speaks from President Bush to NASA officials to clergy to friends remembered the skill, the bravery and the enduring personal qualities of the fallen shuttle crew.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG (voice-over): Solemn music from the U.S. Naval Chorus, as they came together, the families, the friends, the president of the United States. All to honor the fallen seven. SEAN O'KEEFE, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: Nearly three weeks ago, we saw our seven astronauts head into space with smiles on their face, as their families have so eloquently said, with hearts full of enthusiasm, pride in country, faith in their God, and a willingness to accept risk in pursuit of knowledge.
CHUNG: His voice, sometimes breaking, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe talked of a journey, a journey shared with men and women who had come together to watch Columbia begin its voyage, now joined together in sorrow.
O'KEEFE: Throughout our proud NASA family, the bond between those who venture into space, our outstanding astronaut corps, and those who make spaceflight possible, our dedicated scientists, engineers, safety and support personnel, this bond is incredibly strong, and today our grief is overwhelming.
CHUNG: hey were joined together too in prayer, in English and Hebrew.
CAPTAIN KENT V. ROMINGER, CHIEF ASTRONAUT OFFICE, JOHNSON SPACE CENTER: The Hebrew poet Bialic wrote, (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
CHUNG: In songs and remembrances that repeated the central word, family.
O'KEEFE: The world lost seven heroes. We lost seven family members.
CHUNG: Captain Kent Rominger, chief of the astronaut's office, knew each of them well.
ROMINGER: Rick, he molded seven individuals from different parts of the world with diverse background, various religious beliefs into an incredibly tight knit and productive family.
Ilan, he was the perfectly poised fighter pilot with a sparkle in his eyes.
Laurel, no matter how hectic the day, she inspired us with her ability to always reserve time and energy for her family.
Kalpana was admired personally for her extraordinary kindness.
Mike, someone you could absolutely count on.
Willie was incredibly humble with exceptional talents.
CHUNG: In these past few days, it was said we have all come to know them personally. Even President Bush.
BUSH: David Brown was first drawn to the stars as a little boy with a telescope in his backyard.
CHUNG: He recalled that these men and women had achieved their dream, and he noted how close they were, so achingly close, to coming back to Earth.
BUSH: The men and women of the Columbia had journeyed more than six million miles and were minutes away from arrival and reunion. The loss was sudden and terrible, and for their families the grief is heavy.
Our nation shares in your sorrow and in your pride. And today, we remember not only one moment of tragedy, but seven lives of great purpose and achievement.
CHUNG: Underlying the grief and sentiment was a clear message, a pledge to find the truth.
O'KEEFE: We also have the tremendous duty to honor the legacy of those fallen heroes by finding out what caused the loss of the Columbia and its crew and to make sure that this never happens again.
CHUNG: Also, a pledge for the future.
BUSH: America's space program will go on. We find that the best among us -- send them forth into unmapped darkness, and pray they will return, yet some explorers do not return, and the loss settles unfairly on a few.
The families here today shared in the courage of those they loved, but now they must face life and grief without them. The sorrow is lonely, but you are not alone.
CHUNG: Comfort surely to the families who listened, grieved, and clung tightly to each other, especially to the 12 children of shuttle astronauts.
BUSH: And to the children who miss your mom or dad so much today, you need to know they love you and that love will always be with you. They were proud of you. And you can be proud of them for the rest of your life. The final days of their own lives were spent looking down upon this Earth, and now in every continent, in every land that they could see, the names of these astronauts are known and remembered. They will always have an honored place in the memory of this country.
CHUNG: Finally, the poignant Air Force flyover and the naval bell ringing, seven rings for seven souls.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG: One of those attending the memorial service for the Columbia astronauts was singer Steve Green. He was a good friend of shuttle Commander Rick Husband and joins us now from Houston.
Thank you so much for being with us.
STEVE GREEN, FAMILY FRIEND OF SHUTTLE COMMANDER: You're welcome, Connie.
CHUNG: As we said you were at the memorial. Can you tell us about the Rick Husband family and some memorable moments from the memorial?
GREEN: Well, they're a very great family, an exemplary family and it was a very emotional time, but a wonderful service. I don't know who put it together but I couldn't have done a better job, it was wonderful.
CHUNG: Was there any moment that struck you? Perhaps when they were talking about your friend, Rick Husband?
GREEN: You know, to see our president there seated right among the astronauts was a very touching -- and his compassion. But I think when the T-38, the jets flew over in formation, I heard just a very visible outbreak of emotion from all the folks.
Rick was a pilot, but somehow, the sound and emotion of it was overwhelming.
CHUNG: Tell us a little bit about him.
GREEN: Rick is a man of faith. He lived with the Christian hope of a better place, a place called heaven. But he also had a very fond affection for this place, for this world. And that was his zeal, to spend his life making a difference.
In fact, the mission of STS-107 was a scientific mission designed to benefit people everywhere. He was an accomplished professional, and loved life and spent his life for the benefit of others.
CHUNG: He even e-mailed you from space, which I'm sure was a big kick for you. But he also took you into a tour of a simulator at one point.
GREEN: He did. He let me experience as much as possible from a simulator, a liftoff, but also let me land the shuttle, the simulator, and after I was finished, I said, All right, let me see the master at work. And the technicians programmed in some failures, and it was remarkable to see all the training and experience -- these guys and women are just tremendous human beings, and a privilege to know him.
CHUNG: We always hear about these pieces of music that are played to wake up the astronauts, and Rick's wife, Evelyn, picked the following to wake them up one morning. Let's listen to it.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
(MUSIC)
(END AUDIO CLIP)
CHUNG: And tell us why did she pick this song?
GREEN: It's on my recording, and I metric and Evelyn in fact at one of the concerts they came and attended, and I met them afterwards, and one of Rick's favorite songs. I mean, the last e-mail I received from Rick was a statement of his faith. He was looking out the window of the shuttle, and, in fact, said his eyes filled with tears. If there's a story, there's a storyteller. If there's a work of art, there's an artist. And he marveled at creation and worshipped the creator.
CHUNG: You can tell us how Evelyn and his two children are coping, Laura and Matthew? How old are they?
GREEN: Matthew, seven, and Laura, 12. They're just remarkably well. A strength I know comes from their faith, but also from the family and friends that have so loved them and surround them even at this moment.
CHUNG: Steve green, I thank you so much for being with us. And thank you for helping us remember Rick Husband.
GREEN: Thank you, Connie.
CHUNG: Even as the memorial service for the astronauts was take placement the search for the debris from Columbia continue. And there was a potentially significant development today.
And joining us with the latest on the shuttle investigation, our ever present expert space correspondent Mile O'Brien.
Miles, thank you, again. Tell us, apparently the investigators believe indeed that the debris that fell over California was significant.
Can you explain that significance?
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it still needs to be checked out. But the investigators are telling us they have some credible sources telling us there might be pieces of Columbia's wing in California, in Arizona, and New Mexico. Much farther west of that swath of Texas and Louisiana where most of the debris has fallen.
let's listen in to associative administrator Mike Kostelnik.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL KOSTELNIK, NASA ASSOCIATIVE ADMINISTRATOR: Early in the debris field is extremely important to the early events of the recovery that would shed important light what the ultimate cause was. We've had reports and that there are pieces on the ground in California and Arizona, and we have dispatched because we feel these results are potentially credible. We have dispatched a NASA recovery teams to go and take a look at this material.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: Here's why that's significant. The investigators here in Houston say that all those unusual temperature readings on the left side of Columbia as Columbia was coming in screaming across California. It occurred just as it was coming across the coast, and heading west to east. Now, clearly something very bad was going on with the orbiter at that point. This is where the trouble began. So whatever fell off the orbiter at that time, and we have a lot of witness accounts that's did, whatever fell off is at the source, the very origins of the problem.
And here's why this is key -- because if you could match the tiles and each of these tiles has a serial number on it, unique to the location on the orbiter, if can you match its location with the place where the foam hit, 16 days prior, when Columbia was launched, then you're starting to link those two event, and then you're getting closer to coming up with a cause.
CHUNG: Were more important pieces of debris also found today?
O'BRIEN: There's been significant pieces found in the Texas/Louisiana part of the search. Among the things they found today was the nose cone, this nose cone is made of carbon, that gray material there. It's gray leading into the edges of the wings. That's where the carbon gets hottest and the re-entry is this carbon, which is much heavier then tiles. Protects it up to 3,000 degrees. It should come as no surprise that it survived.
Also perhaps more significant depending exactly what it is, they found piece of landing gear and wheel well. The question is which landing gear, which wheel well. Left main gear is obviously the big focus. The right main gear and the nose gear will be of less interest to the investigators. They wouldn't discount it completely. If they can find the left landing gear and the wheel well around, it they would know a lot more what's going on there.
CHUNG: Miles, one question I've been wanting to ask you for a couple of days now and that is that investigators believe that foam insulation caused damage to the tiles and all of us would normally think that foam insulation would be very light in weight and unable to cause damage?
O'BRIEN: First of all, you have to remember how fast it's going. That's one thing to consider there, and already the shuttle, 81 seconds after launch is doing multiple times the speed of sound. That's the first thing.
The second thing to consider is was it just foam?
Quite frequently on that giant external tank, which is nothing more than a giant thermos bottle for super cold rocket fuel, ice develops on there, and there are all kinds of teams that go out there during the launch to ensure there's not enough, not so much ice building up on the external tank that they shouldn't launch. If there was ice built up that didn't get caught or built up later during the inspection, and if the ice was a part of the debris, the debris would be much heavier and could cause quite a bit more damage than they assessed during the mission.
CHUNG: Miles O'Brien, thanks so much.
And still ahead, showdown day, Secretary of State Colin Powell prepares to unveil the U.S. evidence against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Stay with us.
ANNOUNCER: Next; His vision gave us dozens of hit records, but now Phil Spector has to face the music on a much different note. CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT will be right back.
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CHUNG: He's been called legendary. He's been called eccentric, but tonight, it's not about Phil Spector's past, but more about what the legendary music producer may face over the next weeks and months. Spector could face a first-degree murder charge after police discovered the body of a 40-year-old woman inside his Los Angeles mansion. He is out on $1 million bail. In a moment, I'll talk to people know who Phil Spector best, but first, a look at why you may not know him by name, but you certainly know him by his music, and the big question of just what happened inside his home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TINA TURNER, ENTERTAINER: I'm very happy to say the rock'n'roll hall of fame welcomes Phil Spector.
CHUNG (voice-over): You may not recognize Phil Spector, but you probably have heard his work. During a 40-year career, the hall of fame music producer has worked with the Beatles, Ike and Tina Turner and Cher. Producing dozens of classics including the John Lennon song, "Imagine," which Lennon performed on a Showtime special, "John Lennon Live in New York City."
(SINGING)
CHUNG: Monday life changed for the 52-year-old Spector. Police responded to a phone call that shots were heard from Spector's house. Authorities say the call came within the mansion.
LT. DAN ROSENBERG, LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF DEPARTMENT: When we arrived at the location we found a female white adult suffering from a gunshot, and unfortunately she had expired at the scene.
CHUNG: Police identified the woman they found as Lana Clarkson, 40 years old.
ROSENBERG: Also at scene was Mr. Phil Spector.
CHUNG: He was arrested and later released on a $1 million bond. His attorney, Robert Shapiro declined comment.
With familiar classics like the Righteous Brothers "You Lost That Loving Feeling," Spector's influence redefined pop music in the '60s and '70s.
The Crystals "Da Do Ron Ron" was among the slew of hits benefiting from Spector's now famous Wall of Sound approach to pop music.
The victim was a minor actress.
RAY CALVIERI, CLARKSON'S AGENT: She was always very positive and always just kind of lit up a room whenever she came into it.
LANA CLARKSON, VICTIM: What are men good for?
CHUNG: Lana Clarkson had small roles in films such as "Amazon Women on the Moon," "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "Scarface."
Authorities are not commenting on the relationship between Spector and Clarkson.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG: Joining us now is Carol Conners who recorded Spector's first hit, "To Know Him is to Love Him." And famed Los Angeles attorney Marvin Mitchelson, one of the Spector's closest friends. Thank you both for with us.
Marvin, what did you think when you heard that your friend has been arrested?
MARVIN MITCHELSON, SPECTOR'S FRIEND: Shocked beyond belief, and just not able to even accept it. Not the Phil Spector I know, particularly in the last four years. A man who's never had a drop of liquor, never had a drug...
CHUNG: You mean in the last four years?
MITCHELSON: Well, the four years -- I've known him for 13 years, and he's never had a drug, but in the last four years, he hasn't had a drop liquor.
I've been to many affairs with him, many parties. Been in his home countless times. Traveled with him. Last year we went to -- took us on the jet to London where he has a new band he was trying to introduce to America.
I've gone to the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame with him every year. And I know him well. I got three e-mails from him last week. I get e-mails every week with -- where he's very intelligent in coming up with marvelous thoughts and original thoughts. And he's just -- he's a different man than anyone ever knew him before.
CHUNG: But, Marvin, he has been dogged with accusations of domestic abuse and accusations of drinking too much and public drunkenness.
MITCHELSON: We're going back to 1960s and the early '70s and sometimes after that. But Phil Spector that I know and been with so many times has never drawn a gun, I've never seen a gun. Had never insulted anyone, never abused anyone, treats women with the greatest respect, kind, sweet person.
He lived alone in the castle. I've been there many times, and had a happy e-mail from him on Friday. I can't imagine him shooting and killing someone that he probably just met on Sunday night.
CHUNG: We'll get back to that in just a moment and we'll talk about guns in just a moment. But let's go over to Carol.
Carol, what did you think when you first heard that he had been arrested?
CAROL CONNERS, RECORDED SPECTOR'S FIRST BIG HIT: Well, at first I just -- I couldn't believe it. My first thoughts are always that we are all innocent until proven guilty. That always seems to be where my head goes.
I was distraught over it. I go back a lot of years with Phil, from when we were both kids together and did "To Know Him is to Love Him."
And -- I mean I've seen many sides of Phil over the years.
CHUNG: And he has acted bizarre in your presence, has he not?
CONNERS: Yes, he has. But we all have moments, and Phil has some moments.
CHUNG: Marvin, let's get back to you. Marvin, have you ever seen him with a gun? Or did he collect guns in his home?
MITCHELSON: I've never seen him way gun. I understand that he might have collected guns in the past.
You know, Phil is a sought after person by many, many people, and you know, I know this rock 'n' roll business, I've represented so many people in divorces and from, you know, the top on down, and defended the Beatles myself.
And there's a different temperament with these people. Phil was a genius. I know Carol Conners knows he was. He was way ahead of his time, and he probably drove the musicians hard to get the kind of sound he wanted. That's why they had this sound and everyone else wanted to adopt it and work with him.
And he had a temperament, of course he did. You know, 65 percent of people in this country are divorced. They fight all the time, they say bad things to each other...
CHUNG: Marvin, have you ever heard him talk about Lana Clarkson, this actress? You believe they just met, but how do you know that?
MITCHELSON: I talk to him all the time. I went with him to a party in December and before Christmas,a party in Bel Air, and just he and I were there.
He would take a lady along many times we went out together. But it was, you know, it was just something -- he liked company, he liked certain people. I don't know, but I know and I understand that this lady that he met her the night before at House of Blues. I think she was in the VIP Room where she just took over a couple of weeks ago, and that's where I understand he met her.
I don't know that for a fact. I know by Friday I had an e-mail and I heard from him, and I know of him, and he never mentioned this woman. I know almost everyone that he's met, and as a matter of fact, I've had eight calls on my cell phone of women that liked him and cared about him, and begged to find out how he was.
Those are the probably semi-girlfriends, you might say, or people who adored him and liked him. To know him was to love him too, and that's his famous song.
And yes, Phil had another side that's way in the past. He was a kind, polite, wonderful human being particularly in the last four years.
CHUNG: Carol, could you imagine him being accused of shooting someone and actually doing it?
CONNERS: I can't imagine anybody doing that in the world. But I do know Phil, and I do know that there are many sides to Phil. I absolutely agree that he is a genius when I speak of Phil.
I say I don't speak of him often but when I do, I say that he is 100-plus as a man of genius of music. But there are many, many sides to Phil.
Now I have not been in his presence in years because I did not want to be in his presence, because of an incident that I saw, and I just -- and that particular time, I said I don't -- I don't want to be around Phil.
CHUNG: What was that incident?
CONNERS: I don't care what a genius he, is I really don't care.
CHUNG: What was that incident?
CONNERS: It was just an incident that took place at Beverly Hills Hotel. And I found it to be very disturbing and very frightening, and I just -- I just -- I just opted that was -- not that I had been in his presence that much before...
CHUNG: Did it involve some violence? Are you suggesting this incident involved some violence?
CONNERS: It involved -- it didn't become violent, but there was the side to Phil of his anger, which we all have. And there was immense anger and frustration. And I saw that and I witnessed it, and I saw his -- his inner rage, in a sense.
And I just opted that Phil and I just obviously had gone separate ways after "To Know Him is to Love Him" and it was going to stay that way. And I'm sure it was on both our parts.
CHUNG: Carol Conners, I thank you so much for being with us. Marvin Mitchelson as well.
CONNERS: Thank you, Connie.
MITCHELSON: Thank you.
CHUNG: Now to showdown Iraq. Secretary of State Colin Powell addresses the United Nations tomorrow to make the case for a military action against Iraq.
Powell is expected to present evidence that Iraq does indeed have weapons of mass destruction and has repeatedly ignored calls to disarm. While the secretary officially addresses the international community and skiddish allies, he will also be making his case for war with Iraq to the American public.
Meantime, tonight, a major U.S. ally prepares for war. That tops "Our Look at World in 60."
As a possible war against Iraq looms one of Iraq's neighbor, Kuwait, declared more than half the country, a military zone effective February 15.
Iraq's President Saddam Hussein insists he's not in cahoots with al Qaeda. He denied any such link in a televised conversation with left-wing British politician Tony Benn.
France says it still opposes war with Iraq, until U.N. weapons inspectors have had time to finish their work. British Prime Minister Tony Blair toady failed to draw French President Jacques Chirac into the U.S.-led coalition against Baghdad.
On the phone with President Bush today, Russian President Vladimir Putin also stressed the importance of the U.N. inspectors. Russia also says it's against any U.S. military buildup for the Korean Peninsula.
A radical cleric who called the space shuttle disaster a "punishment from God has lost his job at a London mosque. Sheikh Abu Hamza is suspected of direct links to Osama bin Laden.
ANNOUNCER: Next -- the other woman takes the stand in the murder trial of Clara Harris. What did she see in the hotel parking lot? CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT returns in a moment.
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CHUNG: An emotional day in a Houston, Texas courtroom, as the so-called other woman, Gail Bridges, took the stand today in the murder trial of Clara Harris. Harris ran over her husband after a confrontation with Bridges. The defense says it was an accident, but prosecutors say it was cold-blooded murder.
CNN investigative correspondent Art Harris has the latest on the trial -- incidentally, no relation.
Art, tell us. It might have been quite dramatic to see the so- called mistress testifying at this trial. What did Gail Bridges say about that confrontation that she had with Clara Harris in the hotel lobby?
ART HARRIS, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: It was very emotional, Connie. It was charged in that the last time that these woman had seen each other was in a fight in the hotel lobby. Gail Bridges described getting on the elevator with David Harris, Clara's husband, that they were holding hands as they went down in the elevator to the lobby, got out. And, all of a sudden, there was Clara Harris and David's daughter, Lindsey.
Clara Harris charged at her, she said and -- quote -- "She attacked me." But she hit David first. Then, the next thing she knew, she was down on the ground. And other witnesses have described this fierce fight on the floor of the Nassau Bay Hilton in Houston, Texas, where Clara Harris ripped off her blouse and fought her and scratched her and punched her.
And, at that point, Gail Bridges said that she got up and, the next thing she knew, she was at her Navigator. Previous testimony has said that David Harris helped her to the car, but Gail Bridges said she didn't know how she got. She just got there.
CHUNG: Art, did Gail Bridges see Clara Harris hit her husband, David, with the Mercedes?
HARRIS: Connie, she described getting to her Navigator in the parking lot and getting in between the door and the passenger seat. She didn't really see much. She said she didn't remember. The next thing she knew, she was there. She remembered David being behind her and the Mercedes struck her Navigator. And the next thing she knew, Lindsey Harris was hysterical. And she, ironically, was comforting her boyfriend's daughter right there.
CHUNG: So, that critical question was not answered. Here you had the mistress in that parking lot. And she says that she didn't see the car hit her boyfriend?
HARRIS: Her memory seemed to be very shaky today.
And whether she's suffering from post-traumatic stress, as some of her friends are saying, she did not recall a lot of things, asked the lawyer who interviewed her -- this was George Parnham's associate, Emily Munoz, who about did an artful job of ripping her apart in many ways. But she kept saying: Could you please explain? Could you say that again?
So, she was struggling to stay in the moment. And, at times, you wondered if she was there.
CHUNG: Now I think I understand why the defense called her to the stand, because I kept thinking to myself, why would she be a defense witness? Can you explain?
HARRIS: Well, she was on both lists, defense and prosecution.
The defense called her, Connie, but she's part of the overall strategy to take the focus off Clara and portray her as a sympathetic woman who was desperate in this last week. And only a week before did she find out her husband was having an affair, and, in this last week, went through a litany of efforts to win him back, a tanning salon, put down $5,000 on a cosmetic surgeon, bought new sexy clothes, just went out of her way.
And, all of a sudden, this other woman takes the stand for the first time. And it really made a lot of people sympathetic to Clara's case who I talked to afterwards. For the first time, you saw this woman, in effect, demonized. And the jury was paying very close attention.
CHUNG: All right, Art Harris, thank you.
Coming up: Jackson confidential. Stay with us.
ANNOUNCER: Still ahead: a guided tour of Michael Jackson's bizarre life, led by the king of pop himself, a TV tell-all. What did they see in Britain that we didn't? -- when CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT returns.
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CHUNG: Still ahead: our "Person of the Day," his task, to inform and to console.
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CHUNG: New disturbing details tonight about the bizarre and strange life of singer Michael Jackson, they emerge in a documentary, "Living With Michael Jackson," filmed over an eight-month period.
In it, the singer reveals that he allows young children to sleep in his bed. Jackson also discusses the way he looks and claims he has had no cosmetic surgery. And here's one. Jackson also claims he wrote many of his hit songs while setting on the branches of a magic tree.
The documentary was shown in Britain for the first time last night. And, earlier, I spoke with "Daily Express" reporter Martin Evans from London, who has not only seen it, but has written about it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG: Martin Evans, thank you so much for being with us.
MARTIN EVANS, "DAILY EXPRESS": It's a pleasure.
CHUNG: Martin, at the end of this 90-minute documentary, what was your impression of Michael Jackson?
EVANS: Well, my impression was that he's a deeply disturbed and quite a sad character.
The documentary, as you say, 90 minutes, it takes us through various chapters over the last eight months in Michael Jackson's life. And it begins with a fairly sympathetic and generous portrayal of him as a guy who is very much a Peter Pan character. That's how he describes himself, a boy who never grew up. And that is the image that, initially, the documentary paint, a fairly sweet and charming and, at times, quite humorous character.
But, as the documentary progresses, we begin to see another side of Jackson, very much a side sometimes that appears to be very disturbed and not really one with the world outside his own sort of bizarre existence.
CHUNG: When you say disturbed, do you mean psychologically disturbed?
EVANS: I certainly think the documentary leaves us with the impression that he's psychologically disturbed.
He talks at great length about the problems he experienced as a child, particularly the abuse that he suffered at the hands of his father, and the effect that that had on him. And he's clearly taken a long time to try to come to terms with the fact that he had his childhood taken away from him.
And he very much paints the image of himself as a child now. And he constantly refers to the fact that he sees himself, as I say, a Peter Pan character, a boy who never grew up. His home is packed with childhood toys and arcade games. And there's indeed a fairground, which he doesn't just use to entertain the children he invites to Neverland, but he uses himself. And he actually says at one point he often goes out on his own on an evening and takes to the rides.
And it's all the behavior of somebody who clearly has deep-seated psychological problems.
CHUNG: I think one of the most alarming revelations in this documentary is that he admits to allowing children to sleep with him in his bed.
EVANS: He admits to having slept with a number of children in his Neverland mansion.
But I think what's most shocking is the appearance in the documentary of a 12-year-old called Gavin. This is a child who Jackson met when the youngster was suffering from cancer. Since then, they've become very close friends. And Gavin spends a lot of time at the Neverland mansion. And Jackson admits that he often sleeps in his bed, although, I must point out, in the documentary, Jackson insists that, when this happens, he sleeps on the floor next to him.
But he does admit, furthermore, to having slept with a number of children over the years in bed, in his bed in the Neverland mansion. And I think this is the one revelation that is probably going to cause many people to feel that Jackson is a deeply disturbed character.
CHUNG: What did he tell Martin Bashir about his so-called first sexual encounter?
EVANS: This is quite a sweet story that he tells about when he was in relationship when he was a teenager with Tatum O'Neal.
And she calls him up and invites him over to her house one evening and tells him that she intends to make love to him. And Jackson heads over there, but he's petrified. He's terrified with fear. He arrives at the house and she starts to undress him. And he's so scared that he puts his hands over his face. And she realizes that he's far too shy and he's just not ready for this situation. And he goes home.
And it's quite a sweet story and it paints him in quite a human light, I think.
CHUNG: One part of the interview that is just so hard to believe is that Michael Jackson claims he hasn't had any cosmetic surgery, only some work on his nose.
EVANS: This is absolutely unbelievable, because, when pressed on the issue, and very close up to the camera, he absolutely, resolutely denies ever having any cosmetic surgery.
And he gets quite hurt when pushed on the issue by Martin Bashir. And he insists that the only surgery he has ever had done was on his nose. And that was actually to allow him to breathe more easily, so that he could reach higher notes when singing. But I think the denial of this is something that explodes any credibility he may have developed earlier on in the documentary.
CHUNG: All right, Martin Evans, I thank you so much for being with us.
EVANS: It was a pleasure. Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG: When we come back: the latest twist in the mystery surrounding the woman who is still missing from her home in Modesto, California.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHUNG: New information about the husband of Laci Peterson, the pregnant woman who disappeared on Christmas Eve from her home in Modesto, California.
According to Sacramento station KOVR, Scott Peterson reportedly put their house up for sale shortly after his wife's disappearance. And there are also reports that Peterson sold his wife's SUV and used the money from the sale to buy a truck. Police have not named Scott Peterson as a suspect, but they say they have not ruled him out either.
Some eyebrow-raising news about a top U.S. soldier begins tonight's "Snapshot."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHUNG (voice-over): The man who would lead any U.S. military strike against Iraq is under investigation for possible misconduct and misuse of office. The Pentagon has had Army General Tommy Franks under investigation for some weeks. Sources say one of the allegations is that he let his wife in on discussions of highly classified material. Franks' boss, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, has issued a strong statement in support of General Franks.
New York officials selecting a design to rebuild the World Trade Center plan to make a choice later this month. They will be between two finalists selected today. Both plans call for the buildings replacing those destroyed on September 11 to be the world's tallest structures.
Researchers are calling for restrictions on ephedra, an herb found in popular weight-loss and body-building supplements. They say it's unsafe even if you take it in recommended doses.
And singer and actress Courtney Love is under arrest in London after her alleged bad behavior on an airplane. Officials say she verbally abused the crew on a Virgin Atlantic Airways flight from Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Still ahead: our "Person of the Day," leading the way in a difficult time -- when CONNIE CHUNG TONIGHT continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHUNG: Tonight, a man who has one of the hardest jobs in the world is our "Person of the Day."
In the hours and the days following the Columbia disaster, it was Ron Dittemore's job to tell the nation what was happening. He had to do this even as his own heart was obviously breaking.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON DITTEMORE, SHUTTLE PROGRAM MANAGER: We're devastated because of the events that unfolded this morning. There's a certain amount of shock in our system because we have suffered the loss of seven family members, and we're learning to deal with that.
There's certainly a somber mood in our teams as we continue to try to understand the events that occurred. But our thoughts and our prayers go out to the families of Rick and Willie and David and Kalpana, Michael, Laurel and Ilan, true heroes. And we are suffering for the events that have happened this morning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHUNG: And unlike the Challenger event, there was little hesitation in putting out information.
Dittemore, the manager of the space shuttle program, spoke honestly about what NASA knew and did not know about the Columbia disaster, no obfuscation, no trying to protect the image of NASA. Ron Dittemore suspended his briefings today, so that he, along with the rest of the nation, could say a final goodbye to the men and women who were not only his co-workers, but his friends and family.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DITTEMORE: As you know, we're going to pause and reflect upon the crew of Columbia, their lives, their contributions, their memory.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHUNG: For doing his job of helping people cope with tragedy, while helping them understand what might have caused it, Ron Dittemore is our "Person of the Day."
And tomorrow: How will the world react as Secretary of State Colin Powell makes the U.S. case against Iraq at the U.N.?
And coming up next on "LARRY KING LIVE": family and friends of the Columbia crew.
Thank you so much for joining us. And for all of us at CNN, good night and we'll see you tomorrow.
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