I’m all for rubbing salt in wounds, but I’m not entirely trusting that story about Eddie Murphy allegedly leaving the Kodak auditorium last night after he didn’t win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. A reader named Michelle wrote about 100 minutes ago that she had heard KTLA movie guy Sam Rubin report about Murphy’s abrupt departure this morning, but I talked to Rubin about 40 minutes ago and he said, “I didn’t talk about that.”

I spoke to a Paramount publicist who was working at the Kodak last night, but said he was doing something else when the Best Supporting Actor Oscar was given to Alan Arkin and that he didn’t notice if Murphy had left the auditorium early or not.

I called Murphy’s publicist, Arnold Robinson of Rogers and Cowan, for a confirmation or denial,. Robinson’s reply (passed along by an office assistant) was, “We don’t know when Murphy left the auditorium” and “We have no comment.” An hour later I spoke to another Paramount publicist who told me it’s not unusual for a star’s publicist to leave the Kodak early if their client hasn’t won, and to therefore not be aware when the client left.

It sounds like Murphy might have left the auditorium early and that no one near him wants to confirm or deny, but it hasn’t been confirmed that Murphy bolted so this is neither here nor there. (Wasn’t Bill Murrray on the verge of leaving when he didn’t win Best Actor for Lost in Translation?)

Fox 411‘s Roger Friedman went with the Murphy-bolted story this morning. No stated sources, no quotes — he just says it happened.