Her 60s work is some of the greatest in the soul canon

The lawyers are also arguing that a retraction, printed after representations from Franklin, had made matters worse.

"It just exacerbated the original article," said Barry Langberg, one of the singer's legal team.

The lawsuit was filed in the US court for the eastern district of Michigan.

A spokesman for American Media, which publishes the Star, said that the company had not read the lawsuit and could not comment on it.

Gospel singer

Franklin, 59, has often been dubbed the Queen of Soul.

She has had more million-selling singles than any other woman in pop history and was the first female performer inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

She started out as a gospel singer but made series of classic soul singles in the 1960s for the Atlantic record label, including Respect, I Say A Little Prayer and (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.

Born in Memphis, she grew up in Detroit - where her voice has been designated a natural resource by her adopted state of Michigan.