US comedian Tim Allen has taken to social media to rubbish claims shared on Twitter that the 67-year-old had died.
The Home Improvement and Last Man Standing star started trending on Twitter on Thursday, after sports bloggers promised followers free codes for NFL video game Madden if they could correctly identify Mr Allen from a picture posted on the platform.
The picture competition then prompted the actor's name to start trending on the platform along with the hashtag "RIP Tim Allen".
Speculation concerning Mr Allen's demise spread so far and wide that it eventually piqued the interest of the man himself, who in fact was, and is, very much alive.
Taking to Twitter on Thursday, he said: "Imagine my surprise when I woke up this morning to a beautiful day in Michigan only to find out I'm dead?!"
"How did it happen? Can anyone tell me? I'm DYING to know..." Mr Allen joked.
In a later post, the comedian claimed to have "figured out" the hoax, suggesting an onlooker had spotted his choice of pre-packaged hot dogs for lunch and concluded that he wasn't long for the world.
"Ok, I figured it out. Some nosey neighbor saw what I was having for lunch and 'figured' I was going to die," Mr Allen said.
His reassurances came after bemused fans had earlier responded in their droves to the rumours of his death, with several Twitter users suggesting they were scrambling to find out the truth and others offering premature tributes.
Fortunately, the latter aren't required after all.
