The Kidney Snatchers
Rumors can spread like viruses and are sometimes just as lethal. Case in point: "The Kidney Snatchers."  An overview of the urban legend.

'Travelers Beware!'
1996 email variant of the urban legend, aimed at visitors to New Orleans.

'Reason Not to Party Anymore'
1997 email variant, targeting students at the University of Texas at Austin.

'Crime Against Travelers'
Another 1997 email variant, this one combining rumors targeting New Orleans and Las Vegas.

The Great Kidney-Snatch Myth
Wired News' 1998 update on the unstoppable Internet rumor.

Have guys awakened after a party to find their kidneys gone?
The answer is no, according to Cecil "The Straight Dope" Adams.

Statement From the National Kidney Foundation
"It’s an urban myth run amok," says Fred Herbert, chairman of the National Kidney Foundation. "There is no evidence that such activity has ever occurred in the United States."

Urban Myth Run Amok
Knight-Ridder news article chronicles the legend's rapid spread through cyberspace in the 1990s.

You've Got to Be Kidneying
From Barbara Mikkelson of the Urban Legends Reference Pages, wry coverage of the history of the legend and a credible attempt to trace its origins.