Celebrity Hoax Deaths

Celebrity Hoax Deaths - The Video

2010-01-22T17:55:00.000-08:00

Bill Gates

2010-01-21T07:57:00.000-08:00

Thursday, December 02, 1999

The Story

At 11:40 a.m., PST, on Thursday, December 2, 1999, a Microsoft Corporation jet carrying William H. Gates III, his assistant, three public relations representatives and a plain-clothes security team landed at Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena airport. A chauffeured driven car carried Gates, his assistant, the three public-relations representatives and two members of the security team toward Los Angeles. Scheduled to appear on a public band shell in MacArthur Park in the Westlake District, Gates was to present an oversized prop check to representatives of Literacy for Life; the prop would represent his $1 million donation to the non-profit literacy foundation. Later, Gates was to address leaders of the Los Angeles area high-technology industry at a banquet at the downtown Bonaventure Hotel.

Two days prior, several members of Gates' private security staff had scouted the MacArthur Park location and had conferred with Leticia Copley-Smith, the director of Literacy for Life, and Sergeant Nino Perez of the Rampart Division of the Los Angeles Police Department. The private security staff, Copley-Smith and Sgt. Perez determined the route Gates' car would take into the park, designed a secure waiting area for Gates and other ceremony guests, and chose locations that members of Gates' security team would take during the ceremony. As Gates had insisted that his appearance not be publicized in advance, a crowd of no more than 200 invited guests and approximately 20 journalists was expected. Gates' team expressed satisfaction with the security to be offered by Rampart Division officers and with the other details of the security plans.

Shortly after 12:15 p.m. on December 2, Gates' car and the follow-up car carrying additional members of his security team entered MacArthur Park via a driveway on the east side of Park View Avenue. The two vehicles were directed to park in a designated location behind the band shell. Gates was escorted by his own security team and community leaders into a backstage waiting area, where he was greeted by Copley-Smith, Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Hernandez and other members of the foundation and city government. Gates drank coffee and spoke with his hosts for approximately ten minutes, then requested that the ceremony begin on schedule as he was expected at the Bonaventure Hotel by 1 p.m. Copley-Smith stated she would begin the ceremony immediately and proceeded onto the stage.

At 12:29 p.m. Copley-Smith entered the stage, approached the podium and addressed the approximately 200 guests on the benches in front of her. She thanked the guests for their presence and quickly introduced Gates, who walked onto the stage carrying an oversized prop check. The crowd immediately stood and applauded. Gates, following the arranged choreography, walked towards Copley-Smith, intending to hand the check to her. But just as Gates reached the midpoint of the stage, a gunshot struck him in the right shoulder. Gates immediately dropped the prop and fell to his knees. Approximately 3.2 seconds after the first shot, a second gunshot struck Gates in the top left side of his head about two inches above the hairline.

Initial Aftermath

There was none. I only learned of this 2 days ago when the details were emailed to me.

Proof/Clues

Supposedly the Garcetti Report, completed by the LA County District Attorney - (Link here).

True Or False

False. Although the whole thing has been completely covered even with a BillGatesIsDead website.

Britney Spears

2010-01-18T08:06:00.000-08:00

Saturday, June 27, 2009

The Story

Via Britney Spears' official Twitter account it was announced: "Britney has passed today. It is a sad day for everyone. More news to come."

Initial Aftermath

There was none, as Britney's official Twitter announced almost immediately that it was untrue. It was later discovered that a hacker had gained access via Britney Spears' Twitpic account.

Proof/Clues

Which was almost immediately followed by:

True Or False

Although Britney's career may be dying slowly Britney is very much alive.

Miley Cyrus

2009-12-20T20:22:00.000-08:00

Friday, September 05, 2009

The story

In early September 2008, reports began circulating that claimed that popular teen singer and TV star Miley Cyrus had been killed in a car accident. According to the reports, Miley succumbed to her injuries during surgery after the accident on the morning of Friday 5th September.

The reports gained momentum after a Yahoo news article was posted online.

Initial Aftermath

Although many people were fooled, subsequent legitimate news reports exposed the reports of Miley's death as a hoax. The story circulated quickly Friday, despite the fact that the teen star performed at New York’s Fashion Week "Fashion Rocks" later that day.

Proof/Clues

Other than reports, which were proven as false there was no clues or proof.

True Or False

Obviously false as she was performing the night of the accident.

Rick Astley

2009-12-20T16:53:00.000-08:00

Monday, June 30, 2009

The Story

Rick Astley was found dead in a hotel room in Berlin; Germany. The hotel in question was the Angleterre, which is semi-amusing when you consider it is the French for England, and Rick is English.

An Associated Press statement was released; and later found to be a fake:

"Singer-Songwriter Rick Astley Found Dead in Berlin Hotel Room

By LIZ SIDOTI
The Associated Press
Monday, June 30, 2009 1:00 AM

Berlin — Known for his 80’s pop hit “Never Gonna Give You Up,” the 43-year-old Rick Astley has been pronounced dead today. Astley’s body was found at the Angleterre Hotel in Berlin after an ambulance responded to an emergency call from his hotel room.

Astley was found unconscious in his hotel bedroom and was unable to be resuscitated. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Astley was in the middle of a concert tour that would have ended in late August of 2009. He was to return to the United Kingdom at that time.

© 2009 The Associated Press"

Initial Aftermath

There was no aftermath as the fake news statement was proven to be fake within a few minutes.

Proof/Clues

There was no proof other than the fake statement.

True Or False

Rick is still alive and kicking.

Oprah Winfrey

2009-12-19T08:52:00.000-08:00

Saturday, September 20, 2008

The Story

At 8:21AM Oprah Winfrey was found dead in her home. Winfrey "appeared to have a bloody area around her eye, a bullet wound in her stomach and some cuts and bruises up and down her body."

Initial Aftermath

Shortly after the anonymous claim on Wikipedia, an anonymous post turned up on Wiki News stating: "that she had been found dead." Then Digg users posted links to screen shots of websites allegedly carrying the news of her death via an alleged Associated Press report. Other Digg users left comments claiming to have seen it on their local news stations. Another screen shot apparently shows a BBC News article on her death which states that police released the claims.

Proof/Clues

Other than the Internet there was no actual proof.

True Or False

As Oprah Winfrey is still doing her daily TV show, and at present preparing to launch her own TV network, the whole thing is false.

Wikipedia Article

Eminem

2009-12-17T10:21:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 17, 2000

The Story

At approximately 2:30AM Eminem (real name Marshall Mathers) was killed in a car crash; he was on his way to a late-night party and was drunk and high on drugs.

Initial Aftermath

The initial report was on a spoof site which resembled CNN. Then within a couple of hours it was on a spoof site which resembled MTV.

Then emails, and newsgroups started spreading the news:

"Rapper "Eminem" Dies in Car Accident.

Multi-platinum artist Marshall Mathers, known by the stage name "Eminem", was killed at 2:30AM EST while driving a rental car on his way to a late-night party.

Mathers, who authorities believe was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, was behind the wheel of a Saturn coupe that witnesses say swerved to avoid a slow moving vehicle, then lost control and slammed into a grove of trees.

The car was crumpled by the impact, making extraction of Mather's body very difficult. He was declared dead on the scene by paramedics who arriced a short time later.

Authorities would not comment on details surrounding the accident other than to confirm the identity of the victim.

Mathers was 26."

Proof/Clues

There were none.

True Or False

The whole thing was false with the following statement appearing on Eminem's official website:

"Despite sick-minded ne'er do-well attempts to create a state of panic in this grand country by virtue of a well-crafted CNN.com fake news story prank, our beloved Slim Shady is alive and well," the statement reads. "Marshall is alive and at home with his family for the holidays in Detroit. And he wishes all of you shady holidays and a dirty new year."

Jim Morrison

2009-12-16T16:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday, July 03, 1971

The Story

Jim Morrison flew to Paris in March 1971, took up residence in a rented apartment, and went for long walks through the city, admiring the city's architecture. During that time, Morrison grew a beard, and by all accounts, became depressed and was planning to return to the United States.

It was in Paris that Morrison made his last studio recording with two American street musicians — a session dismissed by Manzarek, The Doors keyboard player, as "drunken gibberish". The session included a version of a song-in-progress, "Orange County Suite", which can be heard on the bootleg The Lost Paris Tapes.

Morrison died on July 3, 1971. In the official account of his death, he was found in a Paris apartment bathtub by Pam Courson. Pursuant to French law, no autopsy was performed because the medical examiner claimed to have found no evidence of foul play.

The absence of an official autopsy has left many questions regarding Morrison's cause of death.

Initial Aftermath

What immediately followed was a series of bizarre and convoluted events, probable conspiracies, strange coincidences and surreal news reports surrounding the death of Jim Morrison. Following the death there was a three day news blackout. This was reported on and questioned widely in the media, including articles in The Berkeley Barb, Esquire, the LA Free Press, Sounds, The Baltimore Morning Sun, and many others.

Robert Hillburn writing at that time in The LA Times, called his obituary of Morrison "Why Morrison Death News Delay??" igniting a spark that has yet to smolder.

The blackout prevented Morrison's close friends from getting at the principals, witnesses, and the corpse for close inspection. Even Jim's parents and his in-laws were prevented from seeing the corpse.

Pam had called a local French medical examiner, Dr. Max Vasille, to take charge upon finding her husband's body. Dr. Vasille listed the cause of death as "heart failure". Several people viewed the sealed coffin, including Doors manager Bill Siddons, who apparently chose not to view the corpse. Siddons official statement to the press was that "Jim Morrison died of natural causes" and that "the death was peaceful".

Although Jim's death was listed officially as "heart failure", his personal physician, Dr. Derwin, stated to the press that "Jim Morrison was in excellent health before travelling to Paris".

Proof/Clues

The Doors drummer, John Densmore, upon visiting Morrison's grave for the first time, is said to have remarked that it was too short.

More recently - 1999, Gerald Pitts, Jim Morrison's agent, has released a DVD stating that Jim Morrison is alive and living in Oregon. The DVD is available on Gerald Pitts website.

Jim Morrison as he is now - Living in Oregon

True Or False

With only two people viewing the dead body, Pam and the doctor, it does seem strange. Add that to the three day delay in reporting the death to the media.

If Gerald Pitts could get a DNA test done then it would confirm that Jim Morrison, Mr Mojo Risin, is alive and living in Oregon. Until then it is merely speculation; although in an interview Pitts said that John Densmore, Doors drummer, realized it was Jim Morrison after talking to him on the phone.

Paul McCartney

2009-12-14T18:40:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, November 09, 1966

The Story

Paul got into his white Austin Healey car and drove off in the rain. During his travel he noticed a woman walking on the pavement, and seeing that she was cold and miserable, he pulled up alongside her and offered her a lift. At first, the woman (who it transpired was called Rita) did not know who the person was driving the car, but when it dawned on her she went hysterical; grabbing him and pulling him in a fan-frenzy.

This inevitably caused Paul to lose control of the car. He sped through a red light and his car rammed into a yellow lorry causing it to flip and smash into a telegraph pole. Rita survived and managed to get out of the vehicle and turned to try and rescue Paul, but the car caught fire and Rita was forced to back off. Paul's fingers were broken and so he couldn't pull the handle that would open the car door and ensue his escape. He was trapped inside, and nobody in the already gathering crowd could do anything until the fire engines came to extinguish the blaze. They duly came and tried to put out the fire, but suddenly the car exploded, decapitating the trapped victim. Paul was dead at 5am on Wednesday 9th November, 1966.

The crowd that had turned up to see what was going on was oblivious as to whom they were watching. They all thought that he looked familiar, but since his hair was burnt off in the fire they couldn't tell for sure. Later, it also transpired that identifying the Paul using dental records would be impossible since all of his teeth were knocked out during the crash.

Initial Aftermath

The rest of the group were shocked, and contemplated disbanding in respect of their friend. However, it was counter-argued that the Beatles were at the top of their creative peak, and that they were tied to too many agreements and contracts to end it, so the decision was made to stay together. Then the problem came up as to how they were going to fill in the bass player spot. This would prove tricky. If a new person appeared in the line-up then fans would be hysterical over the demise of 'The Cute Beatle' and would be angry over the groups choice not to let this information public. There was only one option - replace Paul with a look-a-like to take over.

Finding a look-a-like was difficult, but was possible under the guise of an innocent looking 'Paul Look-a-like' competition that was judged by people who were unaware of the overall seriousness of their task. The eventual winner of the competition was a person called William Campbell, and just after he had won reports of his mysterious disappearance began appearing on local news. William Campbell lived in Ontario, Canada and worked for the Ontario Provincial Police. He had disappeared because he was no longer William Campbell - he was Paul McCartney.

Although William looked a lot like McCartney, there were a small number of imperfections that needed to be eradicated. Amongst these improvements the top lip had to be fattened up a little, but there was a doctors error which left a scar. The eyebrows were also worked on. At the end, the new McCartney was pretty much indistinguishable from the old McCartney, and it was only then that the group were beginning to believe that their plan would work.

But there were other problems. William spoke with a Scottish accent, and so he had to undergo speech therapy to give him the trademark Liverpudlian accent. He was also right handed and so had to literally swap hands! He could already play bass guitar, and so in the studio he could play however he liked. However, in public and in music videos he'd have to mime whilst playing left handed.

Proof/Clues

Album covers, Single covers, EP covers, Lyrics, Videos, and Movies (Link Here)

True Or False

There is no record of a William Campbell, who supposedly took Paul's place, and the story has been denied by all 4 Beatles.

Material from: Officially Pronounced Dead Website

Although all 4 Beatles have denied the rumor, when John Lennon went solo, and released the album "Imagine" the track entitled "How Do You Sleep?" does contain the following lines:

"Those freaks was right when they said you was dead, the one mistake you made was in your head."

It is believed by some, as this song was clearly aimed at Paul McCartney, that this was an admittance that McCartney had died and been replaced.