Pop-culture drama FAQ
Quick answers about the stories in our music, screen and internet drama guides, plus how we choose stories, check facts and keep things fair to the real people involved.
How we tell these stories
Where do the facts come from? Every story is based on public, widely reported accounts: interviews the people involved gave, court records, official announcements, contemporary news coverage and books by credible authors. When accounts differ, we say so rather than picking the juiciest version.
Do you take sides? No. Our goal is to explain what happened and why people still talk about it. We avoid speculation about private lives, health or motives that nobody has stated publicly.
Why do some stories include "the person disputes this"? Because memories differ. For example, Bill Murray has told a story about how he came to voice Garfield, and the screenwriter involved has disputed parts of it. Both sides go on the record. See Bill Murray and Garfield.
Do you use photos of celebrities? We only use freely licensed images, and we never use photos of private individuals.
Music drama questions
Did a record label really turn down the Beatles? Yes. The Beatles auditioned for Decca Records on January 1, 1962, and were turned down. They signed with EMI's Parlophone label later that year. See the Decca rejection.
Why did Van Halen ban brown M&M's? The clause was buried in a technical contract rider. If the band found brown M&M's backstage, it suggested the promoter had not read the rider closely, which could mean safety problems with the stage setup. See Van Halen's brown M&M's.
Did Oasis get back together? Yes. Noel and Liam Gallagher announced a reunion in August 2024, fifteen years after the band split. See the Gallagher feud.
Why did Dolly Parton say no to Elvis? Elvis Presley's manager asked for half of the publishing rights to "I Will Always Love You." Parton kept her rights. See Dolly Parton and Elvis.
Screen drama questions
What happened at the 2017 Oscars? La La Land was announced as Best Picture because the presenters were handed the wrong envelope. The real winner was Moonlight, and the mistake was corrected on stage. See the envelope mix-up.
Did the Hollywood sign always say Hollywood? No. It went up in 1923 as HOLLYWOODLAND, an advertisement for a housing development. See the Hollywood sign.
Which live-TV mistakes were the biggest? Compare them side by side in award show drama compared.
Internet drama questions
What is the Streisand effect? When trying to hide or remove information makes it spread much further. The name comes from a 2003 lawsuit over an aerial photo. See the Streisand effect.
Did a dress really lead to Google Images? Google executives have said the huge number of searches for Jennifer Lopez's green Versace dress after the 2000 Grammys helped inspire Google Image Search. See the green dress.
Did "Gangnam Style" really break YouTube? Not exactly. It came close to the maximum number the view counter could store at the time, so YouTube upgraded the counter in 2014. See Gangnam Style.
What is a Rickroll? A prank where someone is tricked into opening Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up." See the Rickroll.
Lessons from the drama
Many of these stories share a few lessons:
- Read the fine print. Contract riders and licensing deals matter. See the Grumpy Cat lawsuit.
- Credit creators. Uncredited samples can lead to settlements and new songwriting credits. See Ice Ice Baby.
- Handle mistakes openly. Live-TV slip-ups are remembered less harshly when they are corrected quickly and graciously.
- Fighting attention can attract more of it. See the Streisand effect.
If you spot a factual error in any story, tell us through our YouTube channel and we will check it against the public record.
