Birkhead: I'll sue over Anna Nicole Smith book

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Photographer Larry Birkhead, who was proved in April to be the biological father of former Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith's daughter, said Tuesday he will sue the author and publisher of a new book on Smith's death that contains allegations he called "pure fiction."

"I've instructed my attorney to sue Rita Cosby, the publisher and any source that spits out some of that false, defamatory information that's in there," Birkhead said Tuesday on CNN's "Larry King Live." "If I were Rita Cosby, I'd be very concerned."

Among the allegations in Cosby's "Blond Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith's Death," are that Birkhead and Howard K. Stern, Smith's attorney and companion, had an affair -- and that an intimate moment between the two was caught on videotape.

"That's totally false and it's defamatory," Birkhead said. "I've heard the sources from that, and those sources are people that don't -- that haven't been in Anna's life and haven't even met me." Watch Birkhead describe why he plans to sue »

Cosby, a former MSNBC anchor, and her publisher, Grand Central Publishing, did not provide statements to CNN on the matter despite requests to do so.

Birkhead said Cosby's sources on the Stern allegations were two maids, whose reliability is questionable, and Jackie Hatten, a woman who claims to be a friend of Smith's -- and who, according to the book, says she is the one who walked in on Stern and Birkhead.

"Jackie Hatten has never met me," Birkhead said. "There was nothing to walk in on because, you know, nothing like that's ever happened, and there's definitely no video of it." And by the end of her life, Smith was no longer in touch with Hatten, he said.

In a statement issued to TMZ.com, Hatten said she has not read the book, but "Rita Cosby is such a reputable reporter and person, I can only assume it is true and credible. I am happy the American public will finally know the truth."

Smith, 39, died February 8 in a Florida hotel room of an accidental drug overdose. Her death sparked a legal battle between Stern and Birkhead over the paternity and custody of her infant daughter, Dannielynn.

A Bahamian court, citing DNA tests, declared Birkhead the father of Dannielynn in April. At that point, Stern, who was listed as the girl's father on the birth certificate, said he would not fight for custody.

Ron Rale, a former Smith attorney and a friend of Stern's, told "Larry King Live" Stern would "absolutely" join in the suit against Cosby. Stern's attorney, Lin Wood, "is a monster," Rale said, "and this guy is going to go after Rita Cosby and the publisher."

Asked by TMZ.com about the video earlier Tuesday, Cosby said, "I have not seen the videotape, but I will say that we have enough corroborating people who say that they have. We know people who clearly have been told there is a videotape that exists and have talked to people who have seen the videotape."

Stern and Birkhead, she said, were previously engaged in a legal struggle against each other and appeared to be enemies, but "now they're friends ... and it begs the question why. I think the American public should be concerned about the state this little girl is in. If you read the book and they believe these guys are in cahoots and are in it for fame and money and not this little girl's interests at heart."

Birkhead said Cosby's comments are "crazy ... she says she's never seen the video that she reports in her book that exists, and now she's backpedaling, saying, 'How else could you explain two guys that are enemies now get along?' and trying to make sense out of something that she never verified in the first place."

Birkhead told CNN Cosby never called him to verify the allegations or told him she was writing a book. Birkhead also noted that he has only temporary custody of Dannielynn and that he is still seeking permanent custody in a Bahamian court.

He also angrily denied other allegations in the book. E-mail to a friend

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