There are many urban myths about television shows and their casts. In my fourth article on the urban myth series, I take a look at five of the more famous ones.

 

A curse led to the early deaths of the cast of Bewitched - Elizabeth Montgomery and both actors who played Darrin all died within a three year period in the 90’s. Rumors floated around that a curse had been placed on all the cast. The average lifespan of an American is 77.9 years. Of the 20 cast members, 9 died before they reached 78 and 9 died beyond that benchmark. The two actresses who played Tabitha are in their 40’s and are still alive. This hardly seems to be the results of a curse.

 

“Joanie Loves Chachi” was the highest-rated American TV show in Korea because Chachi is Korean for penis – This story has been repeated by both Garry Marshall and Scot Baio. Chachi is not the Korean word for penis, although the pronounciation is very close. “Joanie Loves Chachi” was only broadcast in Korea in English with no subtitles. It is hard to imagine that the show could have received any measurable ratings at all.

 

The Zsa Zsa Gabor “cat” quote on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson – One of the most infamous stories about the Tonight Show is the one involving Zsa Zsa Gabor. The story states that Zsa Zsa was sitting in the guest chair holding a cat and asked Johnny Carson if he would like to pet her pussy. Supposedly Carson replied that first she would have to “remove that damn cat”. This story has also been told about Raquel Welch. The show was not shot live during the Carson years so that conversation would never have made it past the censors.

 

Ernie and Bert will marry in an upcoming episode of Sesame Street – The rumor that the Sesame Street characters Ernie and Bert are gay have been circulating for years. Now it has been rumored that they will get married on a future episode. The Children’s Television Workshop has flatly denied this urban legend and said that Ernie and Bert will not be made into gay characters. However it has been confirmed that an HIV-positive muppet was added to the South African version of Sesame Street. You might want to keep an eye on this show.

 

Intimidating an elderly woman in the elevator - Here is a great urban myth as it has been told on the internet: 

 “An older woman took her first trip to Las Vegas last year. She had done very well playing the slot machines, winning a bucket full of quarters. Karen needed a break, and she left the casino heading toward the elevators, taking her bucket with her.

 

This story supposedly happened after he left Saturday Night Live. Although there is no truth to this urban legend, it still makes for a great story.