Hollywood's Most Absurd Rumor, Investigated | Gerbil's Allen Salkin

From the Poltergeist curse to The Wizard of Oz, Hollywood runs on urban legends. But few have been snickered about longer than the baseless rumor involving Richard Gere and a gerbil. Journalist Allen Salkin spent six years investigating it for Gerbil, a new 12-episode podcast from The Hollywood Reporter. He tracked down sources, ordered obscure magazines off eBay and visited Cedars-Sinai in person. Along the way, he debunks much of the story and uncovers an apparent earlier version of the rumor out of Philadelphia. Salkin talks with Newsweek about why the rumor has survived four decades, what Gere's silence has meant for its staying power and what its durability says about the rest of us. Plus, why he doubts a single person started it and why he believes he knows the answer. "What can we learn from the durability of this rumor?" Allen Salkin Gerbil is available now from The Hollywood Reporter. Subscribe to the For the Culture newsletter: https://for-the-culture.beehiiv.comFollow H. Alan Scott: https://linktr.ee/halanscottSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.