The white lighter or white lighter curse is an urban legend based on the 27 Club in which it is claimed several musicians and artists died while in possession of a white disposable cigarette lighter, leading such items to become associated with bad fortune. [1] [2] The myth is primarily based on the deaths of Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain. [3] [4] The myth has been integrated with cannabis culture. [5]
In 2017, Snopes.com published an article discrediting the theory, noting that Bic did not begin producing white disposable lighters until 1973, several years after the deaths of members of the 27 Club (including Hendrix, Joplin, and Morrison) and that disposable lighters produced by other companies were not widely available at that time. [6]
Urban legends is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not.
There are multiple urban legends centering around the fast-food chain McDonald's. These legends include claims about the food and allegations of discrimination by the company.
Snopes, formerly known as the Urban Legends Reference Pages, is a fact-checking website. It has been described as a "well-regarded reference for sorting out myths and rumors" on the Internet. The site has also been seen as a source for both validating and debunking urban legends and similar stories in American popular culture.
Pass by catastrophe is an academic urban legend proposing that if some particular catastrophic event occurs, students whose performance could have been affected by the event are automatically awarded passing grades, on the grounds that there would then be no way to assess them fairly and they should not be penalized for the catastrophe.
The Curse of Tippecanoe is an urban legend about the deaths in office of presidents of the United States who were elected in years divisible by 20. According to the legend, Tenskwatawa, leader of Native American tribes defeated in 1811 at the Battle of Tippecanoe by a military expedition led by William Henry Harrison, had cursed the "Great White Fathers".
"Love Street" is a song performed by the American rock band the Doors. Sequenced as the second album track on Waiting for the Sun (1968), its lyrics were written by lead singer Jim Morrison and as with other songs, it was dedicated to his girlfriend Pamela Courson.
The destruction of musical instruments is an act performed by a few pop, rock and other musicians during live performances, particularly at the end of the gig.
Société Bic S.A., commonly called Bic and stylized as BiC, is a French manufacturing corporation based in Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine. It was founded in 1945 by French aristocrat Marcel Bich and produces specifically disposable items; namely stationery, lighters, and shaving razors.
"If 6 Was 9" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix and recorded by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. It was released on their second album Axis: Bold as Love (1967). It appeared on the soundtrack for the 1969 film Easy Rider and the soundtrack for the 1991 film Point Break.
Many urban legends and misconceptions about drugs have been created and circulated among young people and the general public, with varying degrees of veracity. These are commonly repeated by organizations which oppose all classified drug use, often causing the true effects and dangers of drugs to be misunderstood and less scrutinized. The most common subjects of such false beliefs are LSD, cannabis, and PCP. These misconceptions include misinformation about adulterants or other black market issues, as well as alleged effects of the pure substances.
Howard Sounes is a British author, journalist and biographer.
The 27 Club is an informal list consisting mostly of popular musicians, often expanded by artists, actors, and other celebrities who died at age 27. Although the claim of a "statistical spike" for the death of musicians at that age has been refuted by scientific research, it remains a common cultural conception that the phenomenon exists, with many celebrities who die at 27 noted for their high-risk lifestyles.
There are many coincidences with the assassinations of U.S. Presidents Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy, and these have become a piece of American folklore. The list of coincidences appeared in the mainstream American press in 1964, a year after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, having appeared prior to that in the GOP Congressional Committee Newsletter. In the 1970s, Martin Gardner examined the list in an article in Scientific American, pointing out that several of the claimed coincidences were based on misinformation. Gardner's version of the list contained 16 items; many subsequent versions have circulated much longer lists.
James Douglas Morrison was an American singer, songwriter and poet who was the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band The Doors. Due to his energetic persona, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, erratic and unpredictable performances, along with the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and early death, Morrison is regarded by music critics and fans as one of the most influential frontmen in rock history. Since his death, his fame has endured as one of popular culture's top rebellious and oft-displayed icons, representing the generation gap and youth counterculture.
The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll is a music-themed drama film starring Kevin Zegers and Jason Ritter and directed by Scott Rosenbaum. The screenplay was written by Scott Rosenbaum and Jasin Cadic. The film was released on-demand & in limited theatrical release on August 5, 2011.
The 27s: The Greatest Myth of Rock & Roll is a 2008 book about the 27 Club, authored by Eric Segalstad and illustrated by Josh Hunter. Structured as a non-fiction narrative, it tells the history of rock & roll as seen through the lives and legacies of 34 musicians who all died at the age of 27. It was independently published, and distributed by Random House.
A Japanese urban legend is a story in Japanese folklore which is circulated as true. These urban legends are characterized by originating in or being popularized throughout the country of Japan. These urban legends commonly involve paranormal entities or creatures who encounter and attack humans, but the term can also encompass widespread, non-supernatural rumors in popular culture. Urban legends in the former category rarely include the folklore yōkai, instead of being primarily based on contemporary examples of yūrei. Modern Japanese urban legends tend to occur in schools or urban settings, and some can be considered cautionary tales.
Fame: an art project is a combined book and series of 100 paintings which were created by British artist Robert Priseman between 2012 and 2013. The paintings first went on public display at Art Exchange, UK in November 2013. WhiteBox AC New York City, in a show curated by Tony Guerrero in January 2014. and in 'Re-cycling Religion' at the Dukely Center, Miami in 2016.