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Paul Is Dead, How The Internet Fed The Beatles Conspiracy Theory

“I am alive, healthy and unconcerned by the rumors of my death. But if he were dead, he'd be the last to know.” - Paul McCartney, 1969.

One day in 1966, a world famous rock musician tragically died. His bandmates were oblivious to his pain, but they cared about his fans enough to hire a surrogate, a musician or actor, who would make up and have plastic surgery to look like him. to the deceased singer. Then, for the rest of the band's career, guilty as they had agreed, the group would weave clues into their songs for only the most die-hard fans to discover and guide them to the truth.

This is the core of the “Paul is dead” myth, an urban legend about the covert death of Paul McCartney, one that innocuously swirled in the late 1960s, saw a brief resurgence in popularity late in the career of the Beatles as a group, and then fell asleep for years. Until the story, in revised form, appeared on the Internet.

Is there any truth to the story? Let's find out.

Wait, Paul McCartney is an Imposter?!

Well, not quite. While the roots of the story are unknown, its proliferation can certainly be attributed to American radio, Russ Gibb. During the summer of 1969 and after the release of The Beatles' final recording, Abbey Road , Gibb received a phone call on the air claiming that Paul McCartney was dead (Gibb produced a radio documentary called The Beatle Plot ).

A track listing was then published in The Michigan Daily on October 14. th , 1969, claiming that the album covers from Rubber Soul onward contain clues to the so-called death of James Paul McCartney (that guy Kanye West fans have never heard of these Kanye fans don't know who Paul McCartney is, and that's okay these Kanye fans don't know who is Paul McCartney , And that's fine Kanye West and Sir Paul McCartney collaborated on a new track. You'll totally believe what happened next. Read More).

Paul Is Dead, How The Internet Fed The Beatles Conspiracy Theory

A few days later, when another New York DJ, Roby Yonge, embarked on a late-night rant on WABC-AM on October 21. S t In 1969, the station was hit by a spate of phone calls, and soon newspapers around the world reported the claims, which had already spread across North American college campuses.

For a long time, the theory was forgotten, regarded in the same amusing tones as Elvis working at the local chip shop or faked moon landings. But, like both phenomena, digital technology would bring “Paul is dead” back to life.

It doesn't take long to find websites publishing photographic comparisons of the pre-1966 Paul McCartney with the presumed replacement in later years, though most alleged comparisons are based on misapplied forensic principles and documented photography.

However, when applied by professionals, facial analysis of various photos of McCartney reveals a definite difference in pre-1966 and post-1967 incarnations. This study was conducted by Francesco Gavazzeni and Gabriella Carlesi for the Italian edition of Wired; Scans are available to read online.

While the original batch of sites seem to have been lost to time and removed from the free hosting of yesteryear (like Geocities), new ones have sprung up to replace them. One site, www.ispauldead.com, presents a detailed view of all the album cover tracks, while invanddis.proboards.com offers believers and skeptics the chance to discuss and learn more about the theory.

The tracks of Paul “Death”

Proponents of the urban myth, which has become so well known that it has been parodied on television and in books, as well as in the music of other groups, base their evidence on a set of hidden clues in the songs of The Beatles and in album artwork. These range from details on album covers to a change in McCartney's appearance and beyond, as illustrated in this video.

Perhaps the most famous is the Abbey Road album cover (one of many Beatles LPs now available on iTunes Apple releases 13 Beatles remastered albums for US 50th anniversary Apple releases 13 Beatles Remaster series albums for US 50th anniversary In the US, Apple just released North American editions of more than a dozen albums available digitally for the first time Read More), which features the group crossing Abbey Road in London. John Lennon appears all white, like a clergyman; Ringo Starr is dressed all in black, like an undertaker; at the back of the group, George Harrison is dressed in denim, perhaps as a grave digger; and in the middle, Paul McCartney is barefoot, dressed in an old suit. Which, if you haven't guessed, could be interpreted as a corpse.

What the Beatles said

In an interview with Playboy magazine in 1980, Lennon commented:“Some people like ping-pong, some like to dig graves. Some people will do anything instead of being here right now.”

It is clear that The Beatles and their associates had a dim view of so-called death; hardly surprising, given that they had lost their manager Brian Epstein around the same time Paul McCartney was said to have died. It's worth remembering that the origins of the myth can be traced back to a car accident involving McCartney's car in early 1967, an event that led to the Beatles star being featured in newspapers to convince concerned fans and the public. that he was still alive..

Those who believe in the body-swapping scenario refuse to accept any explanation from former members of The Beatles. When asked for his opinion in 1969, Ringo Starr said:"I'm not going to say anything because nobody believes me when I do.."

Paul Is Dead, How The Internet Fed The Beatles Conspiracy Theory

LIFE magazine actually tried to track down Paul McCartney, who had retired to his Scottish farm for several months in late 1969. He was aware of the gathering storm, but after the earlier incident he had decided to avoid the press for fear of simply fueling the history. It is also likely that his stay in his remote home was the result of The Beatles splitting up, which would not be disclosed for several more months. The LIFE team was initially met with anger, but McCartney soon gave them an interview.

McCartney revealed how disappointed he was in the conspiracy theorists… “The people who are making up these rumors should look a little harder at themselves. There is not enough time in life. They should worry about themselves instead of worrying about whether I'm dead or not.”

The sinister side of “Paul is dead”

Of course, Paul McCartney is alive and well and is the same man who stepped on the boards in Hamburg in 1960. If there was a game though, an added layer to the work of the Beatles that saw them embrace other mediums and avenues such as music. . Movies, poetry, books and art, then the proliferation of an infamous fictional scandal that was covered up would be perfect for capturing the imagination of his fans. This may be the case, but none of the Beatles have admitted anything to date.

The reason for this could be the real tragedy of the mass slaughter of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and other wealthy Americans on the nights of August 9. th and 10 th , 1969 by the cultist "Family" of Charles Manson in San Francisco, California. Attempting to spark a war between the black and white races, Manson called the impending catastrophe Helter Skelter , The title of a Beatles song from 1968. The White Album . Manson would later claim that the Beatles were directly instructing him to commit their crimes through coded messages in his songs. Charles Manson was sentenced to life in prison..

If the Beatles had formulated the "Paul is dead" myth and all the associated clues, there's no way they could admit it in light of a madman attributing their mass murder plot to the records of him..

Paul Is Dead, How The Internet Fed The Beatles Conspiracy Theory

John Lennon believed that, “Manson was just an extreme version of the people who invented the 'Paul is Dead' thing or who discovered that the initials for Lucy in the sky with diamonds they were LSD and I concluded that he was writing about acid. ”

Down the rabbit hole

Incredibly, “Paul is dead” isn't even the pinnacle of weird beliefs associated with the Beatles. Along with the suggestion that a Canadian won a Paul McCartney look-alike competition and was recruited as his replacement, there's the equally clumsy plot that suggests ALL of the Beatles were, in fact, replaced.

Why?

Because the Beatles never existed. Not really.

Esta trama va más allá de afirmar que The Beatles tenía un ejército de duplicados, reemplazos si fuera necesario, que tenían sus propias carreras paralelas para entretener a las adolescentes y hacer apariciones públicas. Las teorías de reemplazo / clonación son comunes en el mundo de las teorías de conspiración, por lo que no debería ser una sorpresa ver esto introducido en el “Paul está muerto” mundo.

Después de todo, los Beatles siguen siendo muy queridos más de 40 años después de su separación. Son una religión para algunas personas, y todas las religiones tienen sus extremistas. A lo largo de los años, algunos incluso han atribuido una “confesión de lecho de muerte” hasta el difunto George Harrison, que afirma incluir los detalles que rodean la muerte de Paul y el reclutamiento de William Campbell como su reemplazo. Muy desmentido, esta declaración forma la columna vertebral de una película que dice ser un mockumentary, Paul McCartney realmente está muerto:el último testamento de George Harrison .

Los investigadores han pasado años estudiando detenidamente cada entrevista, foto y concierto en busca de la magia. “responder” Para el misterio de Pablo es Muerto, tristemente en vano. ¿Quizás puedas hacerlo mejor? Spotify es el lugar para comenzar, ya que encontrará algunas entrevistas y cintas de demostración. Spotify Music Streaming:The Unofficial Guide. Spotify Music Streaming:la no oficial. Spotify is the biggest music streaming service out there. If you're not sure how to use it, this guide will walk you through the service and offer some crucial tips. Leer más (McCartney, Starr, Yoko Ono Lennon y Olivia Harrison se han resistido hasta ahora a permitir los lanzamientos oficiales de los Beatles en Spotify).

La verdad:los Beatles mueren, pero Paul está vivo

El disparate que rodea al “Paul está muerto” El mito también resta valor a la verdadera tragedia que fue el asesinato de John Lennon en el vestíbulo del edificio de apartamentos de Dakota en Nueva York el 8 de diciembre. th , 1980 por un individuo solitario, Mark David Chapman. Sigue cumpliendo una condena a cadena perpetua años después de que finalice el mandato que se le ha entregado, y se le ha negado la libertad condicional en numerosas ocasiones..

George Harrison también fue objeto de un ataque por parte de un individuo solitario, dentro de su casa en Henley-on-Thames, en la víspera de Año Nuevo, 1999. Harrison fue apuñalado repetidamente y su pulmón fue perforado. El atacante, Michael Abram, fue posteriormente absuelto por motivos de locura, alegando que estaba poseído por George Harrison y que Dios lo había enviado a matarlo. Harrison sobrevivió al ataque, pero murió de cáncer de pulmón el 29 de noviembre th , 2001, de 58 años..

Paul Is Dead, How The Internet Fed The Beatles Conspiracy Theory

McCartney, mientras tanto, continúa burlándose del rumor, más famoso con su álbum de conciertos., Paul esta en vivo , lanzado en 1993, que presenta al músico replicando el Abbey Road portada del álbum con un número de “secreto” pistas sobre su existencia continuada.

Habiendo dicho eso, una entrevista con Heather Mills en 2007 sugiere que la segunda esposa de McCartney descubrió que el hombre con el que se casó no era exactamente quien pensaba que era..

Por supuesto, puedes leer en eso lo que harás ...

Paul está muerto en 2015

Es notable que un rumor que tiene sus raíces en un evento en 1966 se haya convertido en una bola de nieve en algo tan grande que, incluso ahora, a McCartney todavía se le está preguntando al respecto..

Y los engaños siguen llegando. En marzo de 2015, los sitios de noticias falsas Faux News:10 mejores sitios web para Fake News &Satire Faux News:10 mejores sitios web para Fake News &Satire Read More afirmaron que Ringo Starr había admitido que Paul McCartney realmente murió en 1966, y que el grupo Había usado un reemplazo para el resto de las grabaciones de los Beatles. Por supuesto, esto fue recogido por algunos sitios web legítimos, pero pronto fue desmentido.

Dudamos que esta sea la última vez que Internet da más vida a “Paul está muerto,” pero que piensas de todo esto? ¿Es esta la primera vez que escuchas este rumor? ¿O te acuerdas de tu primera exposición? Quizás tenga pruebas convincentes de que el verdadero Paul McCartney murió hace casi 50 años.?

Vamos a hablar de ello en los comentarios. Mientras tanto, si todo esto te ha asustado, pasa algo de tiempo disfrutando de The Beatles 10 sitios web para The Beatles Fan &His Beatlemania 10 sitios web para The Beatles Fan &His Beatlemania Leer más .