Origins: The above-quoted false news report of a former child star's death by suicide was spread within the online world via a fabricated Associated Press story passed from inbox to inbox. It Jaleel White, an actor best known for his portrayal of Steve Urkel, the nerdy young neighbor in the television sitcom Family Matters (1989-1998), was said to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. (The poorly-written "AP" article both had the victim being found dead in his home and pronounced dead following admission to a Los Angeles-area hospital. While California is famed for its laid-back attitude toward a great many things, said easygoing philosophy does not extend to its hospitals admitting the dead for treatment.)

According to the story, White took his own life after becoming obsessed with the Steve Urkel character he'd played on Family Matters and growing dispondent, presumably over the cancellation of the show. It was all a send-up, though. Although Jaleel has been out of the public eye for a while, he is alive and well, most recently having appeared in an episode of TV's 24. No news outlets, including the Associated Press, the purported source of the article, have published accounts about Jaleel White's death.

White is far from the first celebrity to be made the butt of a "He's dead!" joke. The quintessential hoax of this ilk is the "Paul is dead" belief attaching to Paul McCartney it began in 1969 and at least among some

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continues to this day. Other famed personages scuttlebutt had pushing up daisies even as they themselves continued to traverse this mortal coil include William Hung of American Idol fame, Subway pitchman Jared Fogel, children's television host Steve Burns of Blue's Clues, Jon Heder of Napoleon Dynamite, and even the dog from the Taco Bell commercials.

As to why it was Jaleel White this time around, the answer is perhaps found in the suicide note he supposedly left behind. "Did I do that?" was the wide-eyed humorous pronouncement associated with Steve Urkel, the character's signature catchphrase. Under that theory, the "news account" of the former child star's suicide serves as the set-up for that line.


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word..i was bout to say...i admit tho it was sposed to be sad but i laughed at the suicide note part