Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson's grieving mother Katherine has hit back at the tragic star's longtime friend Mark Lester - insisting allegations he donated his sperm to the King of Pop "lack legal standing".
Lester is the godfather to Jackson's two children with ex-wife Debbie Rowe - Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11 - and seven-year-old Prince Michael II, aka Blanket - delivered by an unknown surrogate.
The 51 year old claims he could be Paris' biological father, after he agreed to give a sample of his sperm to the late superstar in 1996.
The former child star has revealed Jackson, who married Rowe the same year, spoke to him at length over the phone as they discussed his request.
In an interview on Friday (21Aug09) he told U.S. TV show Today, "We had conversations on the telephone and Michael was very shy when it came to women and he confided in me that he found it very difficult to actually do the sexual act.
"He knew I had three, at the time, lovely girls (daughters), so I jokingly said, 'Michael if you don't want to do it, why don't I do it for you.'
"(I don't know) whether he just wanted to increase the chances of the artificial insemination, but he just said he was very, very nervous and said he wasn't up to going through with the act."
However the Jackson family matriarch, who was awarded permanent custody of her son's children earlier this month (Aug09) following his sudden death in June (09), is challenging Lester's motives.
A statement from her lawyer reads: "These newfound efforts appear to be self-serving, lack legal standing and do not serve the best interests of the children."
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