<p>On May 5, 1907, The New York Times published a column written that same morning by Mark Twain on the news of his death the day before. "You can assure my Virginia friends," said Twain, "that I will make an exhaustive investigation of this report that I have been lost at sea. If there is any foundation for the report, I will at once apprise the anxious public." The event led to the oft-misquoted phrase: "The report of my death was an exaggeration."</p><p>Everyone it seems, loves a good untimely death</p><p>So much so, the Wikipedia maintains a list of 219 famous erroneous death reports. Paul McCartney was reported dead on a radio show in 1966, with fans convinced he'd been replaced by an impostor. Pope John Paul II is on the list with the distinction of being the only known triple recipient of early death news reports. And the US House of Representatives cemented its reputation as the best comedy show in town when news of Bob Hope's death was reported on the floor and broadcast on C-SPANfive years too early. And so it goes with taking news at face value.</p><p>Even me</p><p><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/forrester/2013/04/12/is-windows-8-killing-pc-sales-read-the-fine-print-the-report-of-windows-death-was-an-exaggeration/">Keep reading...</a></p>