On This Day in 1969, an Illinois College Town Fueled Rumors of a Major Beatles Conspiracy

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Videos by American Songwriter“Paul McCartney is dead, and the band replaced him with a body double.”How an Illinois College Town Fueled the Conspiracy FlamesOn September 23, 1969, Northern Illinois University’s college newspaper, Northern Star, published a conspiracy theory claiming that The Beatles’ bassist, Paul McCartney, was dead. Armchair historians often trace the “Paul is dead” rumor back to the Northern Illinois University campus. “I talked to others who might know about the rumor or something about The Beatles,” he explained. However, he ended his respite early to respond to the growing Beatles conspiracy that he was actually dead. “We truly apologize for our contribution to supporting an unfounded conspiracy theory.”Photo by Mark and Colleen Hayward/Redferns