Truth and Rumors: The Reality Behind TV’s Most Famous Myths explores over 150 rumours that include Star Trek, I Love Lucy, The Simpsons and The Sopranos.

Author and former TV Guide-er Bill Brioux dispels the biggest, craziest, most ridiculous rumours, which also, coincidentally enough, happen to be his favourites.

1. Rumour: Frequent Tonight Show guest Zsa Zsa Gabor once sat on Carson’s couch with her Persian cat on her lap. She asked the host if he wanted to pet her pussy. To which Carson replied, "Yeah, but the damn cat’s in the way."
 
“Many people I talked to swear they saw it, including Tonight Show sidekick Ed McMahon,” says Brioux. “(But) it never, ever happened and both Carson and Gabor repeatedly denied it.”

2. Rumour: Hundreds auditioned for the 60s series The Monkees, and one of them was future serial killer Charles Manson.
 
“Former Monkee Micky Dolenz says this is an ‘urban myth, I’m afraid.’ There were around 400 people who auditioned to be one of the pre-Fab four, with Stephen Stills and Paul Williams among the actual hopefuls,” says Brioux. ”Manson, already trouble, was locked up in prison atr the time of the auditions.”

3. Rumour: Mikey, the kid from those Life cereal spots, died from eating Pop Rocks and drinking soda.
 
“This is one of those ‘so ridiculous it must be true’ rumours, (and) the guys on Discovery’s Mythbusters debunked this in an episode.”

“As for Mikey, he grew up to be an advertising executive!”

4. Rumour: Newlywed Game host Bob Eubanks once asked, "Couples, where is the most unusual place you’ve ever made whoopee?" A woman replied, "That would be in the butt, Bob."
 
“This one is TRUE! You can see for yourself on YouTube, where the scene plays out,” laughs Brioux. “Eubanks denied it for years, offering anyone $10,000 at one point if they could prove it was true. Now its in my book, Bob.”

5. Rumour: Steve Burns, the original host of the children’s show Blue’s Clues, died of a drug overdose.
 
“There are dozens of rumours in the book dealing with TV stars who supposedly died, everyone from Scott Baio to Jared the Subway guy to Barney Miller‘s Abe Vigoda to former Family Feud host Richard Dawson,” answers Brioux. “They’re all still with us, as is Burns who didn’t die – he simply went bald and was replaced with somebody with a full head of hair.”
 
6. Rumour: Marisa Tomei won the 1992 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress because Oscar presenter Jack Palance read her name by mistake.
 
“This one still sticks, although the Academy claims there is no name for presenters to read on the teleprompter – just inside the envelope,” says Brioux. “If a presenter still screws up, two accountants from Price Waterhouse are standing in the wings to make sure the right person wins.”

7. Rumour: Lee Marvin appeared on The Tonight Show in the 70s and told Carson that the bravest man he ever knew was Bob Keeshan (Captain Kangaroo) who fought beside him during one of the biggest battles of the Second World War.
 
“This is an example of a rumour spread on the Internet,” reports Brioux. “This one played into our willingness to believe the best of our childhood heroes. In Keeshan’s case, though, he enlisted in World War II too late to see any action.”

8. Rumour: Tommy Hilfiger made racist statements about African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians on The Oprah Winfrey Show and was tossed off the show.
 
“Oprah herself finally had to put an end to this rumour, telling viewers that she’d never ever even met Hilfiger, let alone had him on her show,” says Brioux. “The suspicion here is that this rumour was spread by competitors trying to harm Hilfiger’s business.”

9. Rumour: CBS cheated Amazing Race contestants Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich out of a sure fire win by having a flight delayed on the last leg of their race, allowing the good guys, Uchenna and Joyce, to win.
 
“This is one of a handful of rumours in the book to remain unsubstantiated,” replied Brioux. “CBS says there is no way they would or could have interfered with the actual outcome of the race, pointing the finger at "an understanding gate agent.” Sure, we’ve all met one of those…

10. Rumour: Joanie Loves Chachi was the biggest TV hit ever in South Korea because "Chachi" is Korean for "penis."

“While it is true that the Korean word for penis sounds like Chachi, this horrible 70s sitcom was never a hit in Korea – or anywhere else.”