Las Vegas

On the first day of a two-day auction of Jackson family at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, memorabilia brought in about half a million dollars, according to the president of Guernsey's auction house.

Arlan Ettinger said one of the priciest items sold was a black, military-style coat with an "M" crest that belonged to Michael Jackson. It fetched 24,000 U.S. dollars, he said. The auction, which wraps up late Thursday, displayed more than 1,100 lots, mostly costumes, documents, awards and other memorabilia. Several awards sold for similar amounts, including gold and platinum albums presented to the Jacksons for sales of "We Are the World," recorded by a group of artists known as USA for Africa. The set sold for 20,000 dollars.