(CNN) -- Michael Jackson's upbringing was shaped by two very different parents. An image of Michael Jackson and his parents was on the big screen during his funeral in Los Angeles. His mother, Katherine Jackson, has been portrayed by her children as the loving glue that bonded the family together, while her husband, Joe, was the harsh disciplinarian whose iron hand not only shaped one of the most successful musical families in the world, but also elicited enough fear in his superstar son that it sometimes made him ill. Now the couple of 60 years stands at the center of a custody drama surrounding their grandchildren.
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Joseph and Katherine Jackson had different parenting styles, observers say
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Katherine viewed as family backbone while Joe reportedly a harsh taskmaster
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Author: Katherine Jackson "kept everyone pretty well grounded"
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Michael Jackson's mother is seeking custody of his children
Katherine Jackson
Katherine Jackson
Katherine
Katherine Jackson
By many accounts, @placeholder, 79, shared a special bond with her second-youngest son.
Joe
Joseph
Joe
She was a teenager when she met @placeholder, an aspiring musician and a boxer whose first marriage dissolved.
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Joseph
Joe
"He said [@placeholder] taught him and his brothers an awful lot about discipline and performance."
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
"If as a small child @placeholder was involved in making business decisions and had to have the burdens in some ways of the financial responsibility for the family, then it can turn around who's the caretaker and who's being taken care of," Aferiat said.
Joe
Joseph
Joe
The drive for stardom and perfection that @placeholder reportedly instilled in his children would have long-lasting effects, Aferiat said.
Katherine Jackson
Katherine Jackson
Katherine
Katherine Jackson
"We're not together all of the time," @placeholder said in footage from the planned reality show.