Health rumours dog former pop star Michael Jackson
Last Updated: Tuesday, December 23, 2008 | 2:22 PM ET
CBC News
A spokesman for Michael Jackson, seen here visiting Japan in 2007, denied a controversial author's allegations that the former pop star is seriously ill. (Itsuo Inouye/Associated Press) Is he or isn't he? Reclusive former pop star Michael Jackson is being plagued by rumours, this time over his health.
A spokesman for the 50-year-old performer issued a statement late Monday denying that Jackson is ill.
Spokesman Tohme Tohme denounced Canadian-born writer Ian Halperin's claims about Jackson's health, made to media outlets in the U.K. and U.S. earlier this week.
Originally from Montreal, Halperin gained notoriety for a book purporting that Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was murdered and for exposés on the fashion industry. He is working on an unauthorized biography of Jackson.
In interviews with British newspaper Sunday Express and U.S. celebrity magazine In Touch, Halperin claimed that Jackson suffers from the genetic disorder Alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency, required a lung transplant, has practically lost the sight of one eye and can barely speak.
The Sun also quoted the singer's brother, Jermaine Jackson, as saying his younger sibling was "not doing so well right now. This isn't a good time." In recent months, Jackson has occasionally been photographed being transported around in a wheelchair.
However, Tohme released a statement blasting Halperin, saying his "wild allegations concerning Mr. Jackson's health are a total fabrication."
Tohme claimed that Jackson "is in fine health and finalizing negotiations with a major entertainment company and television network for both a world tour and a series of specials and appearances."
Through various spokespeople, Jackson has often said in recent years that he is working on new musical projects. However, he has yet to actually release any significant new material in years.
Rather than his music, he has become better known for his troubled life and his legal and financial woes, which include battling a variety of lawsuits from a host of former business associates and creditors.
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