Aug 2, 2008 8:00 pm US/Central
Bernie Mac Death Rumors Untrue
Comedian Still Hospitalized
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
-
-
Actor Bernie Mac arrives for the U.S. premiere of "Ocean's Thirteen," June 5, 2007, at the Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.
Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images
Since it was announced that Bernie Mac was hospitalized in Chicago for pneumonia, prank phone calls have been rolling into newsrooms and radio stations alleging the "King of Comedy" has died -- a statement his publicist calls "absolutely untrue."
(UPDATE: Bernie Mac died on Saturday, Aug. 9.
Read the story here.)Mac, 50, who lives in the south suburbs, is responding well to treatment and should be released soon, Mac's publicist Danica Smith said Friday.
Smith said she received multiple phone calls from news outlets Saturday asking her to confirm whether or not Mac has died.
"It is a very horrible rumor," Smith said. "It is absolutely untrue. Nothing has changed from yesterday."
Smith didn't know what day Mac entered the undisclosed Chicago hospital. She said the pneumonia is unrelated to Mac's sarcoidosis, a chronic disease that can inflame tissue, particularly in the lungs. Smith said Mac's sarcoidosis has been in remission since 2005.
Mac's wife, Rhonda McCullough, has been with him at the hospital.
"He's doing great and hopes to get out soon," Smith said. "He's Bernie -- he's one of the best guys you'll meet."
Mac's long list of television and film credits include "The Bernie Mac Show, ""Ocean's 11," "Transformers" and "Charlie's Angel: Full Throttle."
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Celebrity Watcher: Real Or Fake?
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
