HONG KONG: The King of Pop, Michael Jackson, is soon to reappear as a 12-inch, limited edition, flexible action figure that comes with two heads.

And he will come at a price befitting a pop star - about HK$1,150.

An action-figure manufacturer jumped on the Michael Jackson craze that sprang up after Jackson's death last month - announcing its plans for the action figure on what would have been the pop star's 51 birthday.

Germaine Tse Hill-chong, marketing executive of Hot Toys, said the figures can be shaped and adjusted at 32 points. About those two interchangeable heads: one is the likeness of a smiling Jackson, the other wears charcoal zombie make-up in Jackson's hit Thriller. There are two sets of costumes, an original with red jacket and pants and then the zombie suit. There are also 11 interchangeable hands affecting different poses, and just to ensure there is no mistake, a Michael Jackson nameplate.

Tse said that the action figures are individually made, with Korean sculptor Kang In Ae spearheading a design team in the creation of a realistic-looking Jackson.

Another set of Jackson action figures with oversized heads called "MJ Cosbaby" will sell for HK$530.

June, 37, a Michael Jackson fan, said she thinks the price is a bit high, and said not all fans could afford it. But she would consider buying the figure because the face is so realistic. She said if companies lowered the prices of Jackson memorabilia, fans could better afford them.

More than a month after Jackson's death, a shopping mall in Whampoa plans a series of Jackson-related events in August, including a "Moonwalk Dance Workshop", a Break Dance show and an "MJ Memorabilia Exhibition", that will showcase the late entertainer's records, books and souvenirs.

The release of the detailed action figure comes as circumstances of the Pop star's untimely death remain unclear and a police enquiry into his death continues.

(HK Edition 07/30/2009 page1)