Practical jokes and hoaxes traditionally are the fare for April Fool's Day. Where it originated and why it came about are speculative matters, but the custom goes back many centuries and seems to have been widespread throughout much of Europe.
Being a practical joker at heart, I have been known to perpetrate some good-spirited hoaxes, not necessarily original, on unsuspecting subjects.
As a young man, I had an acquaintance who was deaf. I called this person's mother representing myself as an agent for a Dr. Frank Lee Lyon and said that Dr. Lyon was on track for developing a cure for deafness and would her child be interested in being a trial subject. I gave her the doctor's telephone number and asked her to call him that afternoon. The number I gave was for the local zoo.
About three o'clock that afternoon, I again called the mother who, for reasons beyond my comprehension, was somewhat irate. "Frankly, your liein'," she said and summarily hung up the telephone.
That evening I had occasion to see the mother, who was with her husband. She was in an emotional state of mind and was telling him of the telephone call she had received earlier that day. As I listened to her I could not help but start laughing. "That was you?" she asked unbelievably. I confessed it was, and the three of us had a good laugh.
On another occasion, much later in life, I left "While you were out" messages on several engineers' desks saying that a certain Myra Mains had called and would like them to return the call. The number given was that of a local funeral home. It is hard to suppress laughter when your "professional" coworker is asking to speak with Myra Mains.
We all need a good laugh from time-to-time and this day provides that opportunity. Have a happy, rollicking day!
