# Andy Kaufman returns: is this a hoax, or what? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 19, 2004, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016 "2004-05-19T19:09:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/21 "2004-05-19T21:31:29Z")
I wouldn’t be suprised if it is true, since it sounds like something he would do, but until confirmation comes through(Apparently he’s submitted samples for testing), it’s a hoax. I also find it interesting that no other news outlet has apparently mentioned this yet. ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/22 "2004-05-19T22:24:07Z")
> [@Papermache Prince](#): > > When come back > bring Belushi. Oh god, so poignant, and so true. I am in awe. Well done, **Papermache Prince**. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/23 "2004-05-19T23:09:57Z")
I have to second **ArchiveGuy** ’s recommendation of _God Told Me To_. What a _great_ movie! It’s a B picture, for sure, but very effective and thought-provoking. A bit of trivia about Andy’s appearance: Cohen didn’t have anywhere _near_ the budget required to pull off such a big spectacle – they just took a unit down to the actual St. Patrick’s day parade, and smuggled their people into procession. No permit, no permission, no notification, no explanation. It’s a good thing they didn’t cause a panic when Andy did what he did.He played a uniformed police officer who broke off from marching and pulled out his service revolver, intent on shooting people in the crowd. As to Andy’s “return,” I wish it _was_ a twenty-year-old prank, and not a current one. That would be really nice. The prankster is a good one, though. “Sorry to all those I had sex with while posing as Ann Coulter.” Priceless. ---
**Author:** ![moi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@moi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moi)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/24 "2004-05-19T23:37:43Z")
Too good to be true. I’m a fan but not a believer. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/25 "2004-05-19T23:42:29Z")
Quick! Somebody come up with a quote that means the opposite of “good riddance to bad rubbish!” Well, the opposite of the ‘good riddance’ part. ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/26 "2004-05-19T23:45:12Z")
[The original release](http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2004/5/emw127003.htm) has been put on hold. On the Blogspot site, they now have pictures of “Andy” as Tony Clifton. I hope they don’t feel this is proof of Andy’s return as it’s known that either Bob Zmuda or Michael Kaufman (Andy’s brother) have been playing Clifton for the past twenty years. If this is a hoax, it’s probably Bob Zmuda pulling it off. I wonder whatever happened with that party they had in New York City on the night of the 16th, where Andy was suppose to go to if he was alive. I’d be cool if Snopes did an article on this. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/27 "2004-05-20T04:00:06Z")
The press release on the Yahoo link mentions “a recent interview with ABC News at his apartment.” There’s absolutely no interview with Andy Kaufman on [ABCNews.com](http://ABCNews.com). I would think scoring an interview such as this would be put on their website. But maybe they’re just waiting to air it, until after May 20. Hmm, this post really doesn’t add much to the discussion, does it? ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/28 "2004-05-20T10:24:04Z")
It’s a hoax. PRWEB allows anyone to release a press statement. Look at this: [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1441&ncid=1440&e=7&u=/040519/234/726km.html](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1441&ncid=1440&e=7&u=/040519/234/726km.html) ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/29 "2004-05-20T10:28:16Z")
> [@Rabid Child](#): > > I’d be cool if Snopes did an article on this. [Ask and ye shall receive.](http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/kaufman.asp) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/30 "2004-05-20T12:59:12Z")
> [@+MDI](#): > > It’s a hoax. PRWEB allows anyone to release a press statement. Look at this: > > [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1441&ncid=1440&e=7&u=/040519/234/726km.html](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1441&ncid=1440&e=7&u=/040519/234/726km.html) Clever way to promote an email service. ---
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/31 "2004-05-20T13:28:51Z")
Interestingly, R.E.M.'s song “Man on the Moon” alludes to people who believe that the moon landings were faked. So now we have a fake story, about a man faking his death, himself the subject of a song and a movie dealing with the subjects of fakery and performance. My head hurts. ---
**Author:** ![dasgupta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e56c9b/32.png) [@dasgupta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasgupta)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/32 "2004-05-20T13:57:23Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > [Ask and ye shall receive.](http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/kaufman.asp) Whoops. Looks like the Mikkelsons know something we don’t know! > [@](#): > > But the end did come — on 16 May 2004, a 35-year-old Andy Kaufman died of lung cancer at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. So he came back from the dead only to die again? ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/33 "2004-05-20T15:50:10Z")
[andykaufmanlives.com](http://andykaufmanlives.com) is registered to a “Stephen Maddox”. Stephen Maddox is the name of a character in the 1963 movie “The Running Man” who is an insurance salesman on the run after faking his death and defrauding his company. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/34 "2004-05-20T20:14:35Z")
[obligatory]He’s dead, Jim[/obligatory] ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/35 "2004-05-20T23:26:01Z")
I’m surprised they don’t just try to rally to have his remains exhumed. And if someone did truly pull off a stunt, wouldn’t that be an incredibly assholish thing to do? ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016/36 "2004-05-20T23:30:21Z")
> [@dasgupta](#): > > So he came back from the dead only to die again? It’s been corrected. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/andy-kaufman-returns-is-this-a-hoax-or-what/246016.md?page=1)