Lennon tooth owner hopes to clone late beatle

Cloning a Beatle

John Lennon died in 1980 but Dr. Michael Zuk, a dentist who purchased one of the singers molars in 2011, is determined to resurrect the singer. This resurrection will not happen in a Jesus bringing back Lazarus sort of way, instead the dentist hopes to gather DNA from the tooth to clone the singer. The tooth was given to the daughter of Lennon’s housekeeper and eventually the tooth was auctioned off.

Zuk hopes that the methods used to clone other mammals can be used to clone Lennon. In fact, Zuk already has scientists on the case and believes that Lennon’s DNA will soon be fully sequenced. Once the full DNA sequence is available, theoretically a Lennon clone could be created. It is unclear how long it will take to fully sequence the DNA from Lennon’s tooth.

Dr. Michael Zuk of Red Deer, Alta, has started up a website, JohnLennonDNA.com and put out a press release with all the gory details.

“I am nervous and excited at the possibility that we will be able to fully sequence John Lennon’s DNA, very soon I hope,” Dr. Zuk said in the release. “With researchers working on ways to clone mammoths, the same technology certainly could make human cloning a reality.”

“To potentially say I had a small part in bringing back one of rock’s greatest stars would be mind-blowing,” he added.

Apparently the tooth has been used extensively for various causes. In fact a fragment of the tooth was used in a sculpture of John Lennon. Whatever the outcome, the possibility that one of the greatest musicians of the twentieth century may be cloned is both fascinating and disturbing. Such cloning could also set a precedent for the cloning a celebrities, especially gifted artists and musicians.

According to Rolling Stone, in the mid-1960s, Lennon gave one of his extracted molars to his housekeeper for disposal — but that was just the beginning of the tooth’s extremely odd journey. He then suggested she pass the tooth to her daughter, who was a big Beatles fan, and the artifact stayed in the family until November 2011, when it sold at auction for more than $30,000.

Dr. Zuk, who published a book titled Confessions of a Former Cosmetic Dentist last year, told the BBC, “Once I heard [the tooth] was up for sale I had to have it.”

On The Web:

Lennon tooth owner hopes to clone late beatle
http://www.today.com/entertainment/owner-john-lennons-tooth-hopes-clone-late-beatle-6C10975692

Alberta dentist buys John Lennon’s tooth for $32,000 20
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/11/06/alberta-dentist-buys-lennons-tooth-for-32k

Owner of Lennon Tooth Plans to Clone Late Beatle
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/john-lennons-tooth-continues-odd-journey-owner-seeks-beatles-dna-20130821