I happened upon a couple of stories on [W:Wikipedia] last night. One is nonsense that has become widely accepted to be based on some truth…
Legend has it that in 1820 Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson wanted to prove the edibility of the tomato, which many Americans often assumed were poisonous, so he stood on the courthouse steps in [W:Salem County, New Jersey] and ate tomatoes in front of a large amazed crowd assembled to watch him do so… and possibly die.
As the Debunk House points out the story did not appear until decades after the event but somehow managed to become accepted and embellished until it was dramatically reconstructed in a [W:CBS Radio Network] broadcast in the 1940’s which gave it further credence.
The other story is thankfully true…
While Apple were developing the [W:Power Macintosh 7100] they gave it the code name [W:Carl Sagan]. Once Sagan heard about this he sued Apple wanting them to change the name. He lost the case but Apple changed the name anyway… to BHA which meant “Butt-Head Astronomer”. Once Sagan heard about this he sued them again. Again he lost his case. Emboldened by their victories Apple once again changed the name of the project to LAW (Lawyers Are Wimps) but they had no more challengers.
Today the Unreasonable Faith blog has dug up some more interesting stories.