( CNN ) -- Will Michael Jackson stop the world ? Fans have set up impromptu shrines to Michael Jackson , including this one at his family 's house . Thousands are expected to swamp Los Angeles , California , to mourn him Tuesday at the Staples Center , and the accompanying media crush will be enormous . The tribute to the King of Pop at Harlem 's Apollo Theater earlier this week drew coverage from all over the world , along with a public turnout in the thousands . Given the feverish interest in all things Jackson , the Los Angeles memorial could be one of the most-viewed events of all time . `` This will obviously be a huge media event , and with Web streams of the funeral , it may be impossible to say for sure how many people watched once all is said and done , because there 's still no comprehensive way to measure Web viewing , '' said Toni Fitzgerald , of Media Life , in an e-mail interview . A handful of events have earned the kind of worldwide coverage to put the world on pause , if only for a moment . The 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy `` had the nation locked in a trance for two or three days , '' recalled TV critic Ed Bark of UncleBarky.com . The world audience for the Apollo 11 moon landing has been estimated in the hundreds of millions . The BBC estimated 2.5 billion people watched the 1997 funeral of Princess Diana . Watch Jermaine Jackson talk about his brother 's legacy » . The numbers are easily exaggerated -- nobody knows how many people are watching in groups or in public places -- and the Web has complicated matters further . But in a multichannel , satellite TV , computer-and-cell phone world , the Jackson memorial could have an audience in the hundreds of millions . It was first believed the event would take place at Jackson 's Neverland Ranch . But the family announced Thursday that it will hold a private ceremony Tuesday , and then a massive public memorial service at the Staples Center . Fans had until 6 p.m. Saturday to register for free tickets to the memorial service . Organizers used a computer to choose 8,750 names from 1.6 million who registered since Friday . Watch a tour of Neverland » . `` You have to go back to the Beatles , the death of John Lennon perhaps , and the death of Elvis Presley to find a comparable figure in , not just pop music , but pop culture , '' said Entertainment Weekly critic-at-large Ken Tucker . ( EW , like CNN , is a unit of Time Warner . ) `` And Jackson so self-consciously turned himself into not just an American pop icon but a global pop icon . I think this does have worldwide implications and interest . '' See how interest in Jackson 's music has skyrocketed » . The circumstances of Jackson 's death have led to comparisons with Presley 's in 1977 , but in terms of coverage , the two ca n't compare . The news was n't even the top story on CBS ' `` Evening News , '' Bark recalled , and there certainly was n't wall-to-wall nationwide live coverage of his funeral . A public viewing drew about 30,000 fans ; the funeral , two days after his death , was held in Graceland 's living room . But Bark said there are parallels , at least in terms of coverage , with the Kennedy assassination . `` These days it 's so much harder to get a bulk audience on any given venue the way the [ broadcast networks ] did back then , but still the enormity [ of the event ] -- it 's the syndicated tabloid shows ... and TMZ and all the cable networks devoting lots of attention to it , [ and ] the broadcast networks ca n't seem to do enough specials in prime time , '' said Bark . `` I do think it 's comparative but in a very different way . '' Officially , the sorts of events that have attracted the largest mass audiences have been scheduled entertainment or sports programs . Sixty percent of America watched the 1983 `` M*A*S*H '' finale ; more than half watched the 1980 `` Who Shot J.R. '' episode of `` Dallas '' and the 1977 `` Roots '' conclusion . The Beatles ' first appearance on `` The Ed Sullivan Show '' in 1964 drew about 45 percent of the country . The Super Bowl is routinely the year 's most watched program , with audiences north of 80 million -- about 40 percent of U.S. television households . Although interest in Jackson has been high , the number of viewing choices ( and , perhaps , the traditional decline in summer viewing ) has kept the ratings for individual Jackson-oriented shows down . `` Jackson 's death came up in just about every conversation I had from Thursday to Sunday , and yet only 5 million people tuned in to some of those broadcast specials , '' Media Life magazine 's Fitzgerald observed . Still , the public memorial service might be different . `` I expect you 'll see very big tune-ins on the cable news networks and on BET , if they cover it ; they had huge numbers for their BET Awards focused on Jackson over the weekend , '' Fitzgerald said . The BET Awards was watched by 10.7 million , the most ever for a cable awards show . `` With the celebrity factor thrown into the funeral , who 'll be there , who 'll talk , I would guess tens of millions in the U.S. will watch it on TV , '' she said . It is certain is that the news media will be there in force . `` I guess we 're all going to wait and see what the spectacle is , '' Bark said . `` There may be no precedent for this . ''
Public ##ation ##s could be one of the most - viewed events of all time . It could have a television and online audience in the tens of millions . Jackson 's death has led to comparisons with Elvis Presley 's death . Some see parallels , at least in terms of coverage , with the Kennedy assassination .