Paul is Alive

[BeatleBoot]

And Super Popular

http://www.detnews.com/2005/screens/0502/03/E01-78112.htm

<snip>

Thirty-six years ago Detroit disc jockey Russ Gibb found himself at the center of a burgeoning conspiracy theory. Was Paul McCartney of the Beatles dead?

The human love of a mystery, a fascination with death and Beatlemania all came together to whip U.S. teenagers into a frenzy over what seems today a laughable urban legend. In the past month, Gibb has been interviewed by two crews, one from a Russian TV production company, and one from the Netherlands, about his role in kicking the "Paul is Dead" rumor into overdrive by airing "clues" to his death on his WKNR-FM radio show.

Why the renewed interest decades later? The rumor of McCartney's death, raised and debunked in the fall of 1969, now wends its way across the Internet, where there are scores of "Paul is dead" Web sites.

[ghostsofgiants]

1. I always found that whole thing fascinating.

[drumwolf]

2. I'm not sure the urban legend ever went away at any point

I remember when I was a little kid in 1980 and going through my rabid Beatles fan phase, and I became fascinated with the "Paul is Dead" rumors. I distinctly remember talking about it with others at the time.

Judging from some of the very obvious "clues" left on their album covers, I strongly suspect the Beatles themselves were in on the joke and were more than happy to stoke the rumors.

[noonwitch]

4. My brother and I tried to play the white album backwards

We didn't have the right stereo equipment for it. We also tried to do it with Led Zep albums, as it was rumoured that they had put satanic messages in backwards masking.

The Beatles had to be playing along by the time "Abbey Road" came out. The cover is funny, in that sense.

[Joe Power]

3. It would explain his solo career

What's wrong with silly love songs, indeed. :puke: