Steve Jobs: I'm still alive, enjoy the new iPod!

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs joked about rumors of his ill health today. At the "Let's Rock" event in San Francisco, he flashed a quote from Mark Twain on the screen: "The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated."

Bloomberg accidentally published an obituary for Jobs in late August, feeding fears that Jobs was sick again. It quickly retracted the obituary, claiming that it was an accident that occurred during an update of the 17 page article. Even so, some analysts are worried about Jobs' health.

By one report, Jobs looked "thin but energetic" at today's event. Jobs announced several new Apple products, including a thinner iPod Nano and an updated iPod Touch. According to macrumors.com, Apple hopes to sell the iPod Touch as gaming device, and a number of games were displayed to the audience. There is also a software update for the iPhone, and a new iTunes (version eight for those keeping count).

But the best news for Apple investors was probably the simple fact that Jobs was up on the stage, joking about his health and looking reasonably vigorous. More than most, the health of the company and the CEO are deeply entwined.