Steve Jobs, who has on separate occasions been reported dead and to have had a heart attack (neither of which were true), said goodbye to Apple back in January. He took a leave of absence from the company due to well-publicized health issues.
Upon his departure, Jobs wrote a letter to the Apple staff. In it, he wrote:
I am sure all of you saw my letter last week sharing something very personal with the Apple community. Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought.
In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June.
I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for Apple’s day to day operations, and I know he and the rest of the executive management team will do a great job. As CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out. Our board of directors fully supports this plan.
I look forward to seeing all of you this summer.
According to reports, Apple disclosed at its conference call that Jobs is feeling better, and will indeed be back with the company in June on a full-time basis.
The announcement of his leave of absence was quickly met with scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
