APRIL FOOLS' DAY
G'day folks,
Happy April Fools' Day.
Q: What Is April Fools' Day?
A: An
observance which takes place in many western countries every April 1,
traditionally known as April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day (aka Poisson
d'Avril —
"April Fish" — in France). It's a day when humor reigns and harmless
pranks, practical jokes, and hoaxes are sanctioned. Customary practices range from
simple tricks played on friends, family, and coworkers to elaborate media
hoaxes concocted for mass consumption.
Theories of origin:
The
origins of April Fools' Day are obscure. The most commonly cited theory holds
that it dates from 1582, the year France adopted the Gregorian
Calendar, which
shifted the observance of New Year's Day from the end of March (around the time
of the vernal
equinox) to the
first of January.
According
to popular lore some folks, out of ignorance, stubbornness, or both, continued
to ring in the New Year on April 1 and were made the butt of jokes and pranks
on account of their foolishness. This became an annual tradition, according to
this version of events, which ultimately spread throughout Europe.
A major
weakness of the calendar-change theory is that it fails to account for an
historical record replete with traditions linking this time of year to
merriment and tomfoolery dating all the way back to antiquity.
The
Romans, for example, celebrated a festival on March 25 called Hilaria, marking the occasion with
masquerades and "general good cheer."
Holi, the Hindu "festival of
colors" observed in early March with "general merrymaking" and
the "loosening of social norms," is at least as old.
It's not
unreasonable to suppose that the calendrical changes of the 16th and 17th
centuries served more as an excuse to codify a general spirit of frivolity
already associated with the advent of spring than as a direct inspiration for
April Fools' Day.
Notable April Fools' Day pranks and hoaxes:
One of
the great media hoaxes of all time was perpetrated on April 1, 1957 by the BBC,
which reported on its news program Panorama that Switzerland was
experiencing a bumper spaghetti harvest that year thanks to favorable
weather and the elimination of the dread "spaghetti weevil." Staged video footage showing happy peasants plucking
strands of pasta from tall trees was so convincing that many viewers actually
called the network to ask how they could grow their own.
Some of
the best-known pranks in recent years were mounted by advertising agencies. In
1996, Taco Bell ran a full-page ad in the New York Times announcing it
had purchased the Liberty Bell and would rename it the "Taco Liberty
Bell." Burger King pulled off a similar prank in 1998, announcing the
rollout of its "Left-Handed Whopper" supposedly designed so
that condiments would drip from the right side of the burger rather than the
left.
On the
Internet hoaxes have become such standard fare that April Fools' Day is barely
distinguishable from any other, though a few notable pranks stand out and tend
to be reposted year after year — e.g., the 1996 announcement that every
computer connected to the World Wide Web must be turned off for Internet Cleaning Day, a 24-hour period during which
useless "flotsam and jetsam" are flushed from the system.
Clancy's comment: So, have you cleaned the flotsam and jetsam from your computer? Get cracking before it's too late.
I'm ...
Think about this!
No comments:
Post a Comment