MICHAEL JACKSON 1958-2009:

Michael Jackson’s funeral Thursday at Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park was, for all its anticipation, a relatively subdued affair — absent of the chaos that poured into streets for his Los Angeles memorial in July.

The crowd that amassed outside the cemetery’s South Glendale Avenue wrought-iron gates was largely made up of local and international media, who were confined to the area immediately outside.

The funeral service, which was to begin at 7 p.m., started late, with the 26-vehicle Jackson motorcade arriving about 8:30 p.m.

Dozens of fans carried signs and cheered as the motorcade passed Los Feliz Road and Glendale Avenue as Jackson’s music played in the background.

Las Vegas native Wan Ali devoted three days to creating a suit adorned with faux jewels and sequins for the funeral. Ali said he was once the Jackson family’s wardrobe designer.

He wasn’t able to enter the funeral, so he gathered with fellow admirers outside the gates.

“I am enjoying the fans because that’s one thing Michael enjoyed, the fans,” Ali said.

Police warned the public to stay away from the cemetery because they would be enforcing tight security, Sgt. Tom Lorenz said.

The only real fan incident came when three people tried to climb a nearby building to gain access to the heavily guarded cemetery. Police quickly caught the trio.

The Jackson family earlier in the week canceled media access to the private funeral, choosing to use a private videographer and photographer to broadcast images from inside.

Footage of family and friends, including Elizabeth Taylor, Lisa Marie Presley and the Rev. Al Sharpton, was broadcast on major TV networks for a portion of the service, but was terminated as the service began.

In an homage to one of Jackson’s most famous fashion statements, ushers wore one white glove for the outdoor service.

Six bouquets of white lilies and white roses adorned a stage, where Gladys Knight sang a gospel hymn and songwriter Clifton Davis sang a Jackson 5 number, according to a family spokesperson.

Jackson’s five brothers served as pallbearers.

His children placed a crown on his casket, which signified “the final resting place of the King of Pop,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Outside the gates, hundreds of TV crews and reports sent live dispatches, many of which included Glendale officials who patrolled the media line throughout the afternoon to comment on the event.

“Just about every major network, every country on every continent is represented,” Lorenz said. “It’s amazing how many are here.”

About 460 media representatives had received credentials by Wednesday, he said.

Mayor Frank Quintero said he was surprised by the scores of international media lined up outside the cemetery’s gates, noting he spoke to French, Belgian, Chinese, British and Taiwanese news agencies.

While police were working overtime to secure the funeral, Quintero said he was confident that the city’s ability to provide services wouldn’t suffer.

“Fortunately, the issue surrounding the La Crescenta fire calmed down somewhat, so it has been a minimal impact on the Police Department and actually no impact on fire,” he said.

Sixty officers — some of whom were in plain clothes — two police dogs and a helicopter were assigned to the funeral, Lorenz said.

“What we have done has so far been really successful with the family,” he said.

“The family is happy with us, Forest Lawn is happy with us, and the media are happy with us.”

Lisa Burk, a local grave historian and enthusiast, was at the Michael Jackson funeral media pool, commenting for a German TV station on the history of Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

“I am giving a perspective for German viewers what Forest Lawn is and what it means to the Los Angeles area and to give them the history,” she said, adding Forest Lawn’s Great Mausoleum has 11 terraces, each with its own building.

Jackson’s funeral is unlike burials of past Hollywood celebrities, such as Jean Harlow, because he has more international fame, she said.

The cost of providing public security for the event would be roughly $150,000, to be covered by the Jackson estate, Lorenz said.

On Wednesday, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge cleared the way for the estate to cover the costs after seeking assurances from attorneys that the tab could be absorbed.

After the funeral service ended, the Jackson family adjourned to Villa Sorriso, an Italian restaurant in Pasadena.

— Jason Wells contributed to this report.