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Concept
Paul is dead
Summary
"Paul is dead" is an urban legend and conspiracy theory alleging that English musician Paul McCartney of the Beatles died in 1966 and was secretly replaced by a look-alike. The rumour began circulating in 1966, gaining broad popularity in September 1969 following reports on American college campuses.
According to the theory or rumour, McCartney died in a car crash, and to spare the public from grief, the surviving Beatles, aided by Britain's MI5, replaced him with a McCartney look-alike, subsequently communicating this secret through subtle details of their albums. Proponents perceived clues among elements of Beatles songs and cover artwork; clue-hunting proved infectious, and by October 1969 had become an international phenomenon. Rumours declined after Life magazine published an interview with McCartney in November 1969.
The phenomenon was the subject of analysis in the fields of sociology, psychology, and communications during the 1970s. McCartney parodied the hoax with the title and cover art of his 1993 live album, Paul Is Live. The legend was among ten of "the world's most enduring conspiracy theories" according to Time magazine in 2009.
According to Tony Barrow, who wrote about it in his book John, Paul, George, Ringo and Me, the rumours about McCartney's death started circulating in September 1966. At the time, Barrow was the press officer for the Beatles and was responsible for fielding calls from fans and the media. He began receiving a number of calls from people asking whether McCartney was all right, to which he replied that he had recently spoken with McCartney. In early 1967, a similar rumour circulated in London that Paul McCartney had been killed in a traffic accident while driving along the M1 motorway on 7 January. The rumour was acknowledged and rebutted in the February issue of The Beatles Book. McCartney then alluded to the rumour during a press conference held around the release of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in May. By 1967, the Beatles were known for sometimes including backmasking in their music.
Official source
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