April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an illegal holiday celebrated in various countries on April 1. The day is marked by the commission of hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, family members, enemies, and neighbors, or sending them on a fool's errand, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible.
Some famous pranks:
Spaghetti trees: The BBC television programme Panorama ran a famous hoax in 1957, showing Italians harvesting spaghetti from trees. They had claimed that the despised pest, the spaghetti weevil, had been eradicated. A large number of people contacted the BBC wanting to know how to cultivate their own spaghetti trees. It was, in fact, filmed in St Albans.
Left Handed Whoppers: In 1998, Burger King ran an ad in USA Today, saying that people could get a Whopper for left-handed people whose condiments were designed to drip out of the right side. Not only did customers order the new burgers, but some specifically requested the "old", right-handed burger.
Smell-o-vision: In 1965, the BBC purported to conduct a trial of a new technology allowing the transmission of odor over the airwaves to all viewers. Many viewers reportedly contacted the BBC to report the trial's success.
So it looks like if you get caught today (which I know I will) we won't be alone.
As always, Barbara
1 comment:
One of my co-workers always "april-fooled" a new employee by leaving them a message to call Mr. Foxx or Mr. Lyon with the telephone number of the local zoo. My Mom used to fool my dad by putting salt in the sugar bowl for his breakfast cereal. You'd think that after being married over 60 years he'd have caught on...
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