His pallbearers were each wearing a single, sequined glove in a tribute to one of Jackson's signature styles, as a gospel choir sang.

The elite of pop music performed tributes for Jackson, from Mariah Carey and Stevie Wonder to John Mayer and Usher.

'The title King of Pop is not big enough for him,' said Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown who discovered Jackson and guided his early career. 'I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived.'

But for some in the entertainment world, the endless fawning and hagiography was a little much. Media columnist Brian Lowry could barely wait for the event to end as he blogged it live for entertainment trade paper Variety. He juxtaposed the reverential tones with the bizarre behaviour that Jackson often displayed and which 'makes the worshipful tone characterizing much of this coverage even more questionable.'

African American activist Al Sharpton, in his eulogy for Jackson, tried to explain the pop star's mass appeal. 'You would have to understand the journey of Michael to understand what he means to us,' said Sharpton.

'When Michael started it was a different world but because he kept going, because he refused to let other people decide his boundaries, he opened up the whole world. It was Michael Jackson who brought blacks and whites and Asians and Latinos together. It was MJ who made us say 'We Are The World' and 'Feed the Hungry'.'

Only one reader of Variety, commonly regarded as the Bible of the US entertainment industry, bothered to post a comment - and he obviously did not agree with Sharpton. 'A grotesque and vulgar display,' noted reader Jack Henry of the ceremony. 'The US is not only financially bankrupt, but morally and culturally bankrupt as well. God help us.'