Warhol painting of Michael Jackson goes on view

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The legal wrangling continues over Michael Jackson’s estate and proposals to put his name and picture on hundreds of products – clothing, trading cards, wine decanters, virtual tattoos, books, screen savers, you name it – but there’s no need to wait. You can join the buying frenzy now.

All you need is $800,000.

Actually, that will only get you in the game as an opening bid on Andy Warhol’s 1984 painting of the entertainer, which is being auctioned by the Vered Gallery. Vered hasn’t identified the seller. Bidding ends Tuesday.

Is it worth it? You can judge for yourself. The 30-by-26-inch painting, commissioned by Time magazine, will be on view to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday at Los Angeles Art Assn. Gallery 825 at 825 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood. But here at Culture Monster, we can’t help but think it would be pretty cool to own, as Reuters put it, a portrait of “the King of Pop by the King of Pop Art.”

Of course, if Culture Monster had that kind of money, do you think our parent company would be in bankruptcy court?

-- Lee Margulies