In another example of how you can't always believe what you read, an Internet rumor that circulated earlier this month has caused great concern at the Days of Our Live studios.

Over the Labor Day holiday, a rumor began circulating that Drake Hogestyn (John Black) had been let go. Within days of the initial post, the story of the 17-year DAYS vet's firing was all over the Internet.

With the recent firings of Matthew Ashford (Jack Deveraux), James Reynolds (Abe Carver) and Peggy McCay (Caroline Brady), it didn't seem out of the realm of possibility that Hogestyn could be fired. But this time the Internet chatter was just that - nothing more than idle chatter.

According to a spokesperson for Days of our Lives, the 'net rumors are "not true." How, where or why the rumors started isn't entirely clear, however, this is not the first time that DAYS has been the subject of "mass firing" tall tales. In March 2001, the firing of Bryan Dattilo (Lucas Roberts) set off a wave of "who's next?" speculation.

DAYS newly re-instated head writer James E Reilly has admitted to wanting to pare down the size of the show's cast, thereby being able to focus on fewer characters and produce higher quality storylines. There have also been behind-the-scenes changes

As for whether or not there will be additional cast cutting measures in the near future, a DAYS spokesperson had no comment.