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Posted on 04/01/2008 4:05:44 AM PDT by JustAmy
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#1: The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest
In 1957 the respected BBC news show Panorama announced that thanks to a very mild winter and the virtual elimination of the dreaded spaghetti weevil, Swiss farmers were enjoying a bumper spaghetti crop. It accompanied this announcement with footage of Swiss peasants pulling strands of spaghetti down from trees. Huge numbers of viewers were taken in. Many called the BBC wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti tree. To this the BBC diplomatically replied that they should “place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.”
#2: Sidd Finch
In its April 1985 edition, Sports Illustrated published a story about a new rookie pitcher who planned to play for the Mets. His name was Sidd Finch, and he could reportedly throw a baseball at 168 mph with pinpoint accuracy. This was 65 mph faster than the previous record. Surprisingly, Sidd Finch had never even played the game before. Instead, he had mastered the “art of the pitch” in a Tibetan monastery under the guidance of the “great poet-saint Lama Milaraspa.” Mets fans celebrated their teams’ amazing luck at having found such a gifted player, and Sports Illustrated was flooded with requests for more information. But in reality this legendary player only existed in the imagination of the author of the article, George Plimpton.
#3: Instant Color TV
In 1962 there was only one tv channel in Sweden, and it broadcast in black and white. The station's technical expert, Kjell Stensson, appeared on the news to announce that, thanks to a new technology, viewers could convert their existing sets to display color reception. All they had to do was pull a nylon stocking over their tv screen. Stensson proceeded to demonstrate the process. Thousands of people were taken in. Regular color broadcasts only commenced in Sweden on April 1, 1970.
#4: The Taco Liberty Bell
In 1996 the Taco Bell Corporation announced that it had bought the Liberty Bell and was renaming it the Taco Liberty Bell. Hundreds of outraged citizens called the National Historic Park in Philadelphia where the bell was housed to express their anger. Their nerves were only calmed when Taco Bell revealed, a few hours later, that it was all a practical joke. The best line of the day came when White House press secretary Mike McCurry was asked about the sale. Thinking on his feet, he responded that the Lincoln Memorial had also been sold. It would now be known as the Ford Lincoln Mercury Memorial.
#5: San Serriffe
In 1977 the British newspaper The Guardian published a special seven-page supplement devoted to San Serriffe, a small republic located in the Indian Ocean consisting of several semi-colon-shaped islands. A series of articles affectionately described the geography and culture of this obscure nation. Its two main islands were named Upper Caisse and Lower Caisse. Its capital was Bodoni, and its leader was General Pica. The Guardian's phones rang all day as readers sought more information about the idyllic holiday spot. Few noticed that everything about the island was named after printer's terminology. The success of this hoax is widely credited with launching the enthusiasm for April Foolery that gripped the British tabloids in subsequent decades.
Source: http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/aprilfool/
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I Think it was about 2 or 3 Hours Ago. Thank Goodness it's Back!
The Temperature is Very Nice this Afternoon. I'm at my Husband's Work Place Today where we Lived for 25 Years and still have our Mobile Home, and my Ground Covers are in Bloom; the Prettiest Purple/Blue Flowers are Scattered Everywhere; just Lovely!
No prob, Happy b day and hope you enjoy your special day ;-}
: )
Well done, Oesy! Going to birthday dinner now....see ya’ll later!
Lovely! I can almost hear her sweet song. :-)
Thanks, MEG. I just love it that Amy lets me help her with her graphics! As I have said before, she thinks I am doing her a favor, but it's the other way around. ;-)
Oh, yes!!! I remember hearing about that one. A classic! LOL.
Those other hoaxes are good too. "The best line of the day came when White House press secretary Mike McCurry was asked about the sale. Thinking on his feet, he responded that the Lincoln Memorial had also been sold. It would now be known as the Ford Lincoln Mercury Memorial." ....LOL!!! Now that was some quick thinking.
Happy April back to you, Lori. FR’s been misbehaving today, and I had actually planned to spend some time here - don’t have the patience to hang around when it’s on again/off again. I’ve checked a few times then would go take a peek at Yahoo FR to see if it’s actually down or just my dang connection. Sigh! Now it’s time I need to get dinner.
LOL - no need to be jealous - not my living room. Lori found the 'room' somewhere on the net, and we sorta took turns adding our 'characters' to the sofas, etc. :)
NOT! :) But I bet you did have to put up with teasing and comments like that a lot when you were growing up. :)
I love the story of the stressed-out woman who was tailgating a man as they drove on a busy boulevard. When he slowed to a stop at a yellow light, the woman hit the horn, cussing and screaming in frustration and gesturing angrily. As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a police officer who ordered her to exit the car with her hands up. He took her to the police station and placed her in a holding cell.
An hour later, the officer returned and said, "I'm sorry, Ma'am. This has been a big mistake. When I pulled up behind you, I noticed your 'What Would Jesus Do?' license plate holder and your 'Follow Me to Sunday School' bumper sticker. I assumed the car was stolen!"
Satan doesn't care so much if you're a Christian as long as you don't act like one. If he can get you to live by his signals, he can damage and disarm you every time and dishonor the name of Christ in the process.
Instead, Jesus calls believers to be "salt" and to "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matt. 5:16).
With Jesus in the driver's seat of our lives, we can show off the love and glory of God.
Hi, Meg - what a neat cat graphic! FR’s still slow for me and I do need to get in the kitchen and see what’s for dinner!
To those I have missed while I was away, Hi there and Welcome, I am fairly new to FR, and I am glad to see a relaxing place to come and just sit back to chill...
Thanks Amy ;-}
Happy bday! Do you like the white sauce? LOL
No, I think there are just three of us from CA; Amy, La Enchiladita and myself....unless I am missing someone, which is a possibility. We have lots of states represented here; Texas, Tennessee, North Carolina, Maryland, Arizona, New York, Ohio.....and now Delaware! :-)
So, when are we going to be treated to some of your poetry? I am looking forward to it. :-)
My contributions here are mainly visual/graphics. So much easier for me than writing poetry, I leave that to the talented poets among us.
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