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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 2018)
1C THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, MARCH 30, 2018 CONTACT US Erick Bengel | Features Editor ebengel@dailyastorian.com WEEKEND BREAK FOLLOW US facebook.com/ DailyAstorian Thinkstock Graphic Fool your friends, before they fool you April Fools’ Day isn’t just for corporate shenanigans and media trickery. By AARON BRENIMAN For The Daily Astorian S pring’s arrival marks the coming of April Fools’ Day, that delightfully joy- ous celebration of pulling one over on your friends and family members. Whether you select the harmless approach or prefer a more sinister in nature approach, April 1 is a great day to get playful. According to Wikipedia, history.com, hoaxes.org and Snopes, there’s plenty of controversy surrounding the origins of April Fools’ Day, also called All Fools’ Day. While some sources date it back to Chau- cer’s “Canterbury Tales,” other references source it to the mid 1500s when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gre- gorian calendar. Other theories range from the Middle Age’s New Year’s Day celebra- tions ending on April 1 to far-stretching Bib- lical references to Genesis and Noah and the ark, sending the doves out on the first day of April. If there’s a consensus, it’s that there’s no agreement on the day’s origins. And Western cultures aren’t the only ones to celebrate, an equivalent day in Spain and Hispanic America is “Day of the Holy Inno- cents” and in Belgium the day used to be known as the “Day of Stupid Children” or “Day of Innocent Children” where parents and grandparents play tricks on their kids, but has reportedly lost favor recently to April Fools’ Day. In Scotland, a two-day event featured “hunting the gowk” in which people were sent on phony errands (where the gowk is another word for the cuckoo bird, a symbol for a fool) and then followed by Tailie Day, where stunts feature placing signs suck as “kick me” on unsuspecting individuals backsides. Joke, prank or hoax? First off, some semantics. There are jokes, Upsplash which Merriam-Webster describes as “espe- cially, a brief oral narrative with a climac- tic humorous twist.” Then there’s the prank, defined as “a mildly mischievous act,” which is a little more like it. And then there’s a hoax, which is defined as “to trick into believing or accepting as genuine something false and often preposterous.” So, April Fools’ Day shenanigans often fall somewhere in the prank-hoax realm. Many corporate and media stunts have played prominently into the advance of the day, including the BBC’s 1957 reporting of a record spaghetti crop in Switzerland, com- plete with noodle harvesting photos. In 1996, Taco Bell spoofed buying Philadelphia’s Lib- erty Bell and claiming its subsequent renam- ing to the Taco Liberty Bell; while in 1998, Burger King advertised a “Left-Handed Whopper” leading many to attempt to actually order the burger. One of the most extravagantly planned pranks was the “Eruption of Mount Edgecumbe” in 1974, when practical jokester Oliver “Porky” Bickar flew in piles of old tires soaked in kerosene into Mount Edgecum- be’s crater, lighting them to create plumes of thick black smoke leading many residents of the sleepy Alaska town of Sitka to take to the streets thinking the mountain was erupting In 1992, NPR’s Talk of the Nation fea- tured a hoax where a Nixon impersonator announced that he’d again be running for president, claiming “I didn’t do anything wrong, and I won’t do it again.” After listen- ers flooded the stations with calls, the station announced during the second half of the show that the bit was, in fact, a prank. ‘Fake news’ It’s interesting to contemplate the history of April Fools’ Day’s with today’s “Fake News” epidemic, covering everything from trickery to propaganda to maliciousness. These days, social media and some media outlets regularly spread “fake news” and false stories, pranks and hoaxes, but lacking a similar intent. Wikipedia itself even set its “Rules for Fools” as a sort of ‘code-of-conduct its edi- tors to allow them to creatively have fun with the day, but to be responsible in their approach. Personally, I tend to prefer the harm- less, but am tempted toward the more mis- chievous. I’ve always wanted to Saran Wrap a toilet, although I figured I’d end up hav- ing to clean that one up so I’ve never actu- ally done it. I’ve heard of offices and cubi- cles covered in tinfoil, bedrooms completed flipped in arrangements. Need an idea? Take a cue from how Jim messes with Dwight on “The Office” and pull off one of his many tricks (desk moved to bathroom, items in Jell-O, call a co-worker a different name, convince them it’s a different day) … even though April Fools’ Day falls on a Sunday, take it to the workplace and pull pranks on Monday or Friday. I’ve asked a few friends and on social media about their best pranks, favorite ones pulled on them or toward others. I’ve talked with those that favor and enjoy the simple, harmless stunts. Some have even pulled quite intricate, slightly malicious hoaxes on part- ners or spouses. The basic consensus: it’s far better to prank than to be pranked. So get creative, get the jump, start the day strong, go long with friends and family near and far. You’ll also be more aware when it comes your turn from others. May your merriment be laughable, cordial and follow the general theme of hilarity. Aaron Breniman is a freelance writer based in Portland, When he’s not talking about out- door safety or what he’s reading, he can most likely be found fishing small streams or enjoy- ing mountain sunrises and sunsets bathed in silence and solitude. For this assignment, he tied it up on aboard a flight from Munich to San Fransisco and is all to quick to encourage you to quit your job if you’re not happy. Con- tact him or find him on the socials via www. aaronbreniman.com