The mayor took the prank in good humor, and minutes later the official torchbearer arrived. The Olympic-sized prank was the work of a college student named Barry Larkin and eight of his friends. When Larkin returned to college, his fellow students gave him a standing ovation. Even the head of the college could appreciate a prank well done: “Good job, son,” he said.
THE BEST PITCHER WHO NEVER EXISTED
In 1985 Sports Illustrated magazine asked the writer George Plimpton to write an article about April Fools’ jokes in sports. When Plimpton complained that most of the pranks he found didn’t translate well into print, his editor suggested he pull his own prank. The resulting story was one of the best sports hoaxes of all time.
Plimpton invented a young pitcher named Sidd Finch who he said was training with the New York Mets. According to Plimpton’s article, Finch could throw a fastball at the mind-boggling speed of 168 miles per hour. His unusual background and eccentric habits made him stand out, too: Finch had learned how to throw a baseball in a monastery in Tibet, and he liked to pitch while wearing just one hiking boot.
When the story appeared on April 1, 1985, many readers fell for it—and so did a few baseball pros. Two major league managers called the commissioner of baseball to complain that it would be unsafe for hitters to stand at the plate when Finch unleashed his fastball.
Sid Finch: The amazing pitcher who never was.
DUDE, WHERE’S MY CAR?
One spring day in 2008, as the Chicago Cubs were beginning practice, third baseman Aramis Ramírez walked over to a coach named Tim Buss and asked him what his car was doing up on a ramp next to the bullpen. Buss looked up and saw a wrecked 1995 Nissan: The body was dented and all the windows were smashed. “That’s not my car,” said Buss. Then he did a double take: “Dude,” he said, “that is my car!” He knew the Cubs pitching staff was famous for its pranks, but this time he thought they had gone too far. It was his wife’s car, and now he had to tell her it was destroyed. The pitchers all kept a straight face throughout the practice. Later, pitcher Ryan Dempster told him to stop pouting and come “see something.” He brought Buss to where a brand-new SUV was waiting for him. Buss was nearly moved to tears. “They’re great guys,” he said. And great pranksters, he might have added.
THE THRILL OF VICTORY
French prankster Rémi Gaillard has been pulling daring stunts in public and posting them online since 1999. In 2002 Gaillard fooled French TV reporters and the president of France into thinking he had helped win an important soccer tournament called the Coupe de France. Dressed in the uniform of Lorient, the winning team, he ran onto the field at the end of the match. Jumping up and down, he celebrated with the rest of the team, shook hands with President Jacques Chirac, and even signed autographs without anyone realizing that he wasn’t on the team.
FOUL PLAY
After WNBA star Diana Taurasi was named to the 2012 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team, she pulled a prank on her Phoenix Mercury teammates worthy of a gold medal. Taurasi and three teammates were doing a video interview for a local sports news website. The interviewer asked Taurasi if it was true that an Olympic rule prevented her from playing with the Mercury until after the Olympics. Taurasi got very angry and stormed off the set. Seconds later, she stormed back and explained to the interviewer that her teammates did not know about the rule, and she had been planning to break the news herself.
Meanwhile, Taurasi’s three teammates did not look good. Their faces were frozen in shock and anger at the news that they would be playing without their star. About a minute later, though, they came back to life when Taurasi smiled and said, “You just got punk’d.” Player Nakia Sanford leaped out of her seat and started pounding Taurasi—playfully, of course. It turns out Taurasi had teamed up with the interviewer and invented the story about the Olympic rule. Based on that performance, Taurasi might want to consider an acting career after basketball.
the prank
Everyday objects like drinking straws often make excellent materials for pranks. With a little practice, you can use a straw to magically transform a glass of apple juice into soda and leave your victims thinking they are losing their minds!
what you need
* 2 drinking glasses
* 2 different colored beverages
* 2 plastic drinking straws (not the see-through kind)
what you do
THE SETUP
1 Offer your friend or sibling a choice of the two beverages, making sure each drink looks and tastes very different from each other. For example, one drink could be cola, and the other apple juice.
2 Prepare the drinks where your victim can’t see you. Fill your victim’s glass almost to the top with whatever she asks for. This is drink #1. Now fill another glass about three-quarters full with the other beverage. This is drink #2.
3 Place a straw in drink #2 and let it touch the bottom of the glass. Put your index finger over the top of the straw so it’s completely covered. This will keep the liquid inside the straw.
4 Carefully remove the straw from the glass, keeping your index finger over the opening, and put it in drink #1. Don’t remove your finger until the straw is touching the bottom of the glass.
5 Now put the second, clean straw in beverage #2. That’s your drink.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Serve the drinks. Your victim will be shocked when she takes the first sip and the drink doesn’t taste a bit like what she asked for. You can add to the confusion by saying, “So what does it taste like?” When she says it tastes like beverage #2, say, “But it doesn’t even look like it. Maybe because you are looking at my drink, your brain cells got mixed up and that’s what you’re tasting!”
the prank
Most people use the little ketchup packets at restaurants to add some tomato flavor to their hamburger or fries. Tasty, but not much fun. The real appeal of ketchup packets is that they fit nicely on the end of a straw—which means you can use them to add tomato zest to your victim’s soda. Perform this sneaky switcheroo when eating out with your family or friends.
what you need
* A drink with a straw in a paper or plastic cup (not the see-through kind)
* A ketchup packet
* A straw
what you do
THE SETUP
1 When you order your food, ask for ketchup packets, or grab some from the counter.
2 Choose someone in your party who has a drink with a straw in it to be your victim. The drink should be in a paper or plastic cup that you can’t see through.
3 Wait for the person to go to the bathroom or come up with another way to get her away from her drink for a minute. You can ask her to go get you some more napkins, for instance.
PULL THE PRANK
1 When your victim is gone, tear open one end of the ketchup packet. Remove the straw from her drink, stick one end in the ketchup packet, and put the whole thing back in the drink with the packet at the bottom.
2 When your victim complains that there is something wrong with her soda, say something innocent like, “Weird. What’s wrong with it? Mine is totally fine!”
3 Be prepared to buy your victim a replacement drink!
the prank
With the prick of a pushpin, turn a plastic straw into the world’s most frustrating beverage utensil and leave your victims wondering if they’ve forgotten how to drink properly.
what you need
* A pushpin
* Plastic drinking straws
what you do
THE SETUP
1 Use the pushpin to poke a tiny hole near the top of each straw. Be careful not to push it all the way through to the other side of the straw. You just want one hole, not two.
PULL THE PRANK
1 At mealtime or snack time, serve everyone drinks with trick straws in them. (Give yourself a regular straw, of course.) No matter how hard your victims try, they won’t be able to suck the liquid through the straw.
2 As you merrily slurp up your
drink say, “Wow, you guys don’t seem to have much lung power. You should try exercising more.”
the prank
Maybe you’ve heard of “Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day.” Fool your parents into thinking that your school is holding a “Take Your Teacher Home Day” and watch them panic.
what you need
* “Take Your Teacher Home Day” letter (print the download for this prank found here: workman.com/ebookdownloads)
* Scissors
what you do
THE SETUP
1 Carefully cut out the “Take Your Teacher Home Day” letter that you’ve printed.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Wait until you have your parent’s full attention—when he or she asks you what happened in school is the perfect time. Take out the letter and give it to your parent. Explain that the letter describes a new program your school is participating in, and your teacher said to make sure your parents read it.
2 If your parent starts asking questions, just say you only know what it says on the paper. Then, sit back and watch the freak-out.
the prank
Sewing shut the arms of someone’s shirt is an old—and very effective—prank. This modern version is easier because you use safety pins instead of a needle and thread.
what you need
* Safety pins (about 10 small- or medium-size pins)
what you do
THE SETUP
1 Sneak into your sibling’s or parents’ bedroom when they’re not around. Remove a clean T-shirt from the bureau or wherever they keep them.
2 Turn the T-shirt inside out. Taking care not to poke yourself, use the safety pins to pin closed the edges of both sleeves.
3 Now turn the shirt right side out and smooth out the sleeves. You shouldn’t be able to see the safety pins.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Carefully fold the shirt and put it back where you found it. The next morning when your victim is getting dressed, listen for any unusual sounds. If things suddenly become very quiet, it could mean the person gave up and went back to bed.
2 This prank also works on long pants or underpants (boxer shorts are preferable). Follow the preceding steps, pinning the legs closed instead of the sleeves. If you’re lucky, you’ll be around to watch your victim hopping around on one leg, trying to get the other leg through the closed hole.
the pranks
They don’t say it on the package, but uncooked pizza dough is perfect for making false teeth—or creating the illusion of missing teeth. You’ll find tubes of pizza dough in the refrigerated section of the supermarket. You only need a little bit to make fake teeth, so this prank comes with a bonus: pizza for dinner!
what you need
* A tube of uncooked pizza dough
* A plate
* Flour
* A mirror
* Red, green, and blue food coloring
* A plastic cup or an empty plastic container (like a yogurt container) that you can throw away
* Baking soda (for getting the food coloring off your fingers)
Tooth Preparation
First, fix the dough so it’s a little less sticky. Break off a small amount—about 1 teaspoonful—and put it on the plate. Add a tiny bit of flour and mix it in with your fingers. Then decide what kind of teeth you want to make and follow the directions.
#63 Buck Teeth: what you do
THE SETUP
1 Pinch off 2 small pieces of prepared dough about the size of your front teeth. Use your fingers to mold each lump so it’s shaped like a tooth, only longer. It helps to look at your own teeth in the mirror as you do this.
2 While looking in the mirror, press the fake teeth onto your two front teeth. The dough should stick to your teeth. (If it is too sticky and won’t leave your fingers, add more flour.) Use your fingers to shape your new teeth so they look just like your own teeth only bigger.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Go up to your victim and say that your dentist tried a new kind of braces, but they didn’t work right. They made your front teeth stick out, and now you have to go back next week to see if they can be fixed. Or you can say nothing, and just act like your teeth are completely normal.
#64 Black Teeth: what you do
THE SETUP
1 Put one drop each of red, blue, and green food coloring in the plastic cup. Together, they’ll make black.
2 Dip a small lump of floured dough in the food coloring. Use your fingers to mix it in so the dough looks black. (Your fingers will turn black, too, but don’t worry—it isn’t permanent!)
3 Break off a tooth-size piece of the black dough and, while looking in the mirror, press it onto one of your front teeth. Use your fingers to mold the dough so it covers your tooth completely but isn’t too thick. You might need to start over with a smaller piece. The idea is to black out one tooth so it looks like it’s missing.
4 Before you pull the prank, use baking soda and water to wash the food coloring off your fingers.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Walk up to your victim and act totally normal. Wait for the person to say, “Yikes, what happened to your tooth?” Explain that you ate so much candy that your tooth fell out during the night. Or say that when you bit into a piece of bread in the school cafeteria, it was so stale and hard that your tooth popped out. Or make up your own version of the tooth.
#65 Bloody Teeth: what you do
THE SETUP
1 Follow steps 1 and 2 for making a black tooth, but use two or three drops of red food coloring only.
2 Break off a tooth-size piece of the bloody dough. Press it onto a front tooth. Be sure to do this while looking in the mirror to make sure it looks real. You want it to look like you just had a tooth pulled.
PULL THE PRANK
1 Hold your hand up to your mouth and moan a little as you walk up to your victim. Or put a little bit of red food coloring on a paper towel so it looks like blood, and hold the towel up to your mouth as you approach. Say that you had a really bad toothache and your friend had to yank your tooth out with pliers. Or explain that you were at a baseball game and were trying to catch a ball but forgot to put your hands up and your tooth got knocked out. Then move your hand or the paper towel away from your mouth and say, “How does it look?”
2 For extra drama, when you pull the prank, put a second slightly bloody “tooth” in the paper towel. Approach your victim while holding the paper towel up to your mouth and say that your tooth almost got knocked out and is now hanging on by a thread. Pretend to move your front tooth around with your fingers and the paper towel, keeping your mouth mostly closed. Then quickly pull the paper towel down, keeping your mouth closed, and look inside the towel while gasping. Say, “Oh, gross, that last thread just broke” and show your victim the tooth inside the towel.
TV Pranks
Often, the best part about pulling a prank is watching the victim’s reaction. Television producer Allen Funt understood that when he created the pioneering show Candid Camera in the 1940s. Since then, countless other prank shows have lit up the little screen. Tune in for some highlights.
THE INVISIBLE CAMERA!
The show Candid Camera introduced a formula that is now familiar: A hidden camera catches ordinary people responding to weird and funny situations. In an episode that aired in the 1960s, a car that had had its engine removed pulled into a gas station. (The “driver” actually coasted the car down a slight hill.) After gassing up, the driver complained to the attendant that the car wouldn’t start. When the worker lifted the hood to check the engine, he was astonished to find that it was missing. Later, he learned that he was been pranked when he heard the show’s famous catchphrase, “Smile, you’re on Candid Camera.” Candid Camera aired, in various formats, for about 50 years. It paved the way for other American prank shows, including Totally Hidden Video and Just for Laughs. The Candid Camera concept spread around the world, with Britain, Germany, Japan, and other countries producing their own shows.
Candi
d Camera hosts Alan Funt and Bess Myerson.
CELEBRITY SILLIES
In the 1980s celebrities got in on the act when the show TV’s Bloopers & Practical Jokes started doing pranks on famous people. Actor Ashton Kutcher took the idea further in 2003 with his show Punk’d. In the first episode, singer Justin Timberlake was fooled into thinking that government agents were seizing his home because of unpaid taxes. He was sweating until he heard the show’s catchphrase, “You just got punk’d!”
TALK-SHOW TRICKS
Talk-show hosts often use pranks to spice up their programs. In the 1990s David Letterman used to go on location and pose as a worker at fast-food drive-throughs. Ellen DeGeneres is known for pranking her guests by having a staffer sneak up behind them during the show and scare the living daylights out of them. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel gets parents to prank their kids and send in the videos—occasionally he turns the tables and has kids trick their parents.
A NEW TWIST ON AN OLD IDEA
Audiences seem to have an endless appetite for watching pranks in action. More recent shows include Impractical Jokers, where four comedians challenge each other to pull pranks on strangers without knowing ahead of time what the prank will be. In Betty White’s Off Their Rockers, comedian Betty White sends feisty senior citizens into the streets and malls to play practical jokes on the younger generation.
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