Background: Not really important, but it's more or less modern day small town America. My main character is a mortician called Lyle.
What I'm Looking For: Myths/legends/folklore/fables/tall tales which contain a protagonist who somehow cheats Death or strikes a deal with Death for his own benefit, only to be bitten in the ass by his choice. I'd prefer American stories, but non-American is okay too. My problem to date hasn't necessarily been too few results so much as too many results, and of those, many are too short or don't involve a real deal per se.
Terms Searched: death folklore, death lore, death fables, USA death tall tales, etc.
Thanks!