Those Elephants Parading to Staples Center Aren't for Jackson

(AP Photo/Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, Stefano Paltera)

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He may have been the King of Pop, and his public memorial service at Staples Center an unprecedented spectacle featuring live tributes from Motown stars, pro athletes, and celebs, but a set of parading pachyderms aren't on the guest list.

In the pre-dawn hours, elephants shared the road with early attendees for the Jackson "circus" at Staples Center, but they weren't headed to the venue to be part of the memorial. As part of a years-old tradition the night before the Ringling Brothers/Barnum and Bailey Circus opens, the elephants are transported on the typically-silent city streets to the venue. The actual Circus opens tomorrow at Staples. But, oh--what timing!