I have just gotten around to this thread and find it interesting that two things are not mentioned: Bobbameissen and actual events. For a few years, I wrote a column in a boating magazine of tall tales. I quit because too many of the tales turned out to have a significant base in reality, usually after the stories were published.

Bobbameissen [grandmother's tales] are still a feature of cultures where the family has not dispersed and where generations still live in proximity. Even when they haven't stayed near, the oldies are a repository of the old materials, including material that came from the Old Country. As a Jew, I am aware that my relatives have traveled, often involuntarily, all over the world, carrying their tales with them. Travelers of all sorts carried their culture with them, both formally/professionally and also as part of their personal traditions.

When I do a story set in a home, I often end up listening to the residents more than I talk. Usually, the staff come to me as I get ready to leave and say "I didn't know that about X."

The stories are out there; they always were. Someone just has to listen.