Just a few days after a local UPN television station in Los Angeles reported that George Harrison died at a Beverly Hills residence owned by fellow Beatle Paul McCartney, McCartney's rep vehemently denied the story, calling it "complete and utter fiction."
"The fact is that Paul McCartney does not own a home in the state of California, never mind Beverly Hills," Paul Freundlich, McCartney's spokesman, told Reuters on Thursday.
Freundlich says Paul had rented a house a few months ago while in town to complete work on his Driving Rain album, but he did not purchase such a home, nor lend it to Harrison's family to use while the late Beatle was seeking treatment for lung cancer at UCLA Medical Center.
Trying to get to the bottom of the controversy surrounding where Harrison died, Los Angeles affiliate UPN News 13 reported on Tuesday that McCartney had visited his "baby brother" a few weeks before his death and offered the use of his secluded residence--hidden by a long, gated driveway and tucked away in the Hollywood Hills.
McCartney's denial, however, only deepens the mystery that's been growing since the 58-year-old Harrison died November 29 after a long battle with cancer.
The legendary guitarist's death certificate listed a Coldwater Canyon address as the place where Harrison passed away--an address said to be a residence of his wife, Olivia. But county health officials later determined no such address exists, leaving fans to wonder: Just where did the youngest Beatle die?
Harrison initially was believed to have died at the home of family friend and noted celebrity security expert Gavin de Becker, the person who broke the news of the death. But de Becker doesn't own any property in Coldwater Canyon--and may have floated the fake address to keep the death site from becoming another stop on Hollywood's ghoulish celebrity death tours.
Falsifying public documents is a misdemeanor offense under California law, but the District Attorney's office often looks the other way when it comes to celebrities' deaths and their families need for privacy.
That didn't stop noted celeb attorney Gloria Allred from filing a complaint last week with the Los Angeles County District Attorney. Her grievance? No one, not even the rich and famous, should be above the law and file false information.
(A spokeswoman for the District Attorney's office says they're looking into it, but admits it's not a "priority.")
While the address doesn't match the death certificate, the alleged McCartney property was also in Coldwater Canyon. The UPN station reported that Sir Paul purchased the 4,200 square-foot, four-bedroom French Country-style manor for $4 million, from rocker Courtney Love to use as an L.A. retreat when he was in town.
The house was originally built in 1938 and attracted previous owners like Love, Ellen DeGeneres and (it was thought) McCartney and Harrison, because its stone walls, mature trees and gated entrance can keep gawkers away.
UPN news director Larry Peret refused to comment on the statement issued by McCartney's rep.