Happy April Fools’ Day!





Happy April Fools’ Day!

It was on this day, 1st April, back in ….? when April Fools’ Day was founded. So, what is April Fools’ Day. Well it’s a day when tricks and pranks are carried out, and over the years there have been some classics. In 1957 the BBC reported that Swiss farmers were experiencing a record spaghetti crop and showed footage of people harvesting noodles from trees and in 1998 Burger King advertised a left-handed Whopper.

Now this festival’s origin remains a mystery. Some historians believe it evolved from an ancient Roman festival known as Hilaria, where people dressed up in disguises. Others claim it dates to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, and people who continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1st became the butt of jokes and pranks. Some even believe it came from Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, which was published in 1392.

I’ve even read speculation that April Fools’ Day is biblical and comes from the Genesis flood narrative, with Noah making the mistake of sending a dove out of the ark before the water had abated, on the first day of April. So, I guess historically it’s origin will probably always remain a mystery.

April Fools’ Day—celebrated on April 1 each year—has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, though its exact origins remain a mystery. April Fools’ Day traditions include playing hoaxes or practical jokes on others, often yelling “April Fools!” at the end to clue in the subject of the April Fools’ Day prank. While its exact history is shrouded in mystery, the embrace of April Fools’ Day jokes by the media and major brands has ensured the unofficial holiday’s long life.

Origins of April Fools' Day
Some historians speculate that April Fools’ Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, as called for by the Council of Trent in 1563. In the Julian Calendar, as in the Hindu calendar, the new year began with the spring equinox around April 1. 

People who were slow to get the news or failed to recognize that the start of the new year had moved to January 1 and continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1 became the butt of jokes and hoaxes and were called “April fools.” These pranks included having paper fish placed on their backs and being referred to as “poisson d’avril” (April fish), said to symbolize a young, easily caught fish and a gullible person.
Hilaria
Historians have also linked April Fools’ Day to festivals such as Hilaria (Latin for joyful), which was celebrated in ancient Rome at the end of March by followers of the cult of Cybele. It involved people dressing up in disguises and mocking fellow citizens and even magistrates and was said to be inspired by the Egyptian legend of Isis, Osiris and Seth
Vernal Equinox and April Fools'
There’s also speculation that April Fools’ Day was tied to the vernal equinox, or first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, when Mother Nature fooled people with changing, unpredictable weather.
History of April Fools’ Day
April Fools’ Day spread throughout Britain during the 18th century. In Scotland, the tradition became a two-day event, starting with “hunting the gowk,” in which people were sent on phony errands (gowk is a word for cuckoo bird, a symbol for fool) and followed by Tailie Day, which involved pranks played on people’s derrieres, such as pinning fake tails or “kick me” signs on them.
April Fools’ Day Pranks
In modern times, people have gone to great lengths to create elaborate April Fools’ Day hoaxes. Newspapers, radio and TV stations and websites have participated in the April 1 tradition of reporting outrageous fictional claims that have fooled their audiences.
In 1957, the BBC reported that Swiss farmers were experiencing a record spaghetti crop and showed footage of people harvesting noodles from trees. In 1985, Sports Illustrated writer George Plimpton tricked many readers when he ran a made-up article about a rookie pitcher named Sidd Finch who could throw a fastball over 168 miles per hour.
In 1992, National Public Radio ran a spot with former President Richard Nixon saying he was running for president again… only it was an actor, not Nixon, and the segment was all an April Fools’ Day prank that caught the country by surprise.
In 1996, Taco Bell, the fast-food restaurant chain, duped people when it announced it had agreed to purchase Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell and intended to rename it the Taco Liberty Bell. In 1998, after Burger King advertised a “Left-Handed Whopper,” scores of clueless customers requested the fake sandwich. Google notoriously hosts an annual April Fools’ Day prank that has included everything from “telepathic search” to the ability to play Pac Man on Google Maps.
For the average trickster, there is always the classic April Fools’ Day prank of covering the toilet with plastic wrap or switching out sugar and salt.

So have fun, and carry on the tradition.

We hope that you have enjoyed reading our blog on the "From Yesterday to Tomorrow: Exploring the Journey of History". If you enjoy this blog please let us know in the comments below. If you are interested in history, we recommend you check out our other blogs here on the "From Yesterday to Tomorrow: Exploring the Journey of History". Thank you for reading.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Most Radioactive Man' Kept Alive For 83 Days As He 'Cried Blood' And Skin Melted

Image
Most Radioactive Man' Kept Alive For 83 Days As He 'Cried Blood' And Skin Melted On September 30, 1999, Hisashi Ouchi was exposed to the highest dose of nuclear radiation in human history. A 35-year-old lab technician at the nuclear plant in Tokaimura, Japan, Ouchi was mixing a uranium solution by hand directly over an open container when he accidentally poured in too much uranium, immediately causing a violent explosion.  For the next 83 days, Ouchi suffered unimaginable agony as the radiation worked its way through his body, obliterating his DNA and causing his skin to melt off and his eyes to weep blood before he finally died.  He begged for death, doctors refused to listen and kept him alive against his will for nearly three excruciating months.  More than 20 years ago, a freak chemical reaction at a power plant in Japan left one of its technicians living in agony, kept alive by doctors as he 'cried blood' and his 'skin melted'. Hisashi Ouchi was he
Read more

The Lost Soldier Mine

Image
The Lost Soldier Mine It was in 1869, that Abner McKeever and his family were attacked by a large band of Apache warriors. The McKeever ranch was located at Gila Bend and a long distance away from the protection of Fort Lowell and Fort McDowell. At the end of the raid, the Apache made away with over 20 head of horses, 6 rifles, ammunition, clothes, food and sadly Belle McKeever as well. Abners very own daughter.  After the Apache had left the now destroyed ranch, Abner rode out to Maricopa Wells which was not far away. Maricopa Wells was a popular and reliable watering hole with many pools of fresh ground water. Stagecoaches, mail carriers, miners, travelers and even soldiers frequented Maricopa Wells. As Abner entered the small population of Maricopa Wells he told his story with great emotion and urged every able man to take up arms and help him retrieve his daughter.  Over 15 soldiers were posted to guard the Wells and 6 joined Abner, as well as 5 miners. As the posse began the pursu
Read more

Battle of Bamber Bridge Jun 24, 1943 – Jun 25, 1943

Image
More history you were never taught in school. Battle of Bamber Bridge Jun 24, 1943 – Jun 25, 1943 On this day in 1943 black American soldiers faced off with white American Military police during World War II on British soil. Yes you read correctly black American soldiers had to fight their own white American soldiers, while in England, where they were fighting for the world. Why? Because the English town of Bamber Bridge in Lancashire was not segregated so they treated the black soldiers like all other races, aka blacks were free to eat, drink anywhere, BUT back in America segregation of blacks and whites still existed. So essentially the American army went to someone else’s country and demanded they adopted America’s racist practices So when the American Military police found out that their own black American soldiers were drinking at the same pubs as white people they went in to arrest them. The people in the town got mad about the treatment of the black soldiers and decided to then
Read more

Once upon a time, there was a young man named Jack.

Image
Once upon a time, there was a young man named Jack.  Jack was always a bit different from the other kids at school. He was quiet, reserved, and seemed to keep to himself. But Jack was also incredibly intelligent and had a talent for reading people. He could tell what they were thinking and feeling just by looking at them. As Jack grew older, he became more and more obsessed with the idea of control. He wanted to control everything and everyone around him.  He began reading books on psychology and neuroscience, trying to understand the human mind and how to manipulate it. Eventually, Jack's obsession turned into something much darker. He began experimenting on people, testing different methods of control and manipulation.  He would lure unsuspecting victims to his basement laboratory, where he would subject them to various tests and experiments. As he continued down this path, Jack's mind became more and more twisted. He began to enjoy the power he had over his victims and the r
Read more

Eye-opening photos of executions torturers from Nazi camp

Image
Eye-opening photos of executions torturers from Nazi camp The Holocaust is a dark chapter in human history, and the atrocities committed during that time are almost incomprehensible. However, one aspect that is often overlooked is the punishment meted out to the perpetrators of those crimes. A recently discovered collection of photographs provides a glimpse into the executions of Nazi war criminals, many of whom were responsible for running the concentration camps where millions of innocent people were murdered. These photographs serve as a reminder that even in the darkest of times, justice will be served. They also serve as a warning to all those who would engage in similar conduct in the future that there will be consequences for their actions. The release of these photographs is also a call to action. It is important that we never forget the past, and that we continue to hold those accountable for their actions, regardless of the passage of time. The Holocaust is a reminder o
Read more

"This is Anna Maria Von Stockhausen’s corpse, strapped to keep her coming back from the dead.

Image
"This is Anna Maria Von Stockhausen’s corpse, strapped to keep her coming back from the dead.  She was accused of being a witch during the Middle ages and Black Plague. This folklore about Anna was that she was killed about 6 times. She was first hanged and later clawed herself out of the grave. The town people captured her in a nearby town and quickly drowned her in a lake, by tying her to a plank. The townspeople said they checked her several times after dragging her lifeless body out of the water.  They buried her again, only to see an empty grave 2 days later! It was said they found her rotting corpse dwelling in her old place, with worms, dirt and water spitting out of her. So the townspeople dragged her out, drove a stake in her heart and once again buried.  They placed a guard at her grave and felt she was finally buried for good. The guard failed to check in for 4 days, so a local priest went to find him, it was said that he his rotting body was near his post, with his thr
Read more

He had a hundred names, but he chose his last and most prominent, Ho Chi Minh— the Bringer of Light.

Image
He had a hundred names, but he chose his last and most prominent, Ho Chi Minh— the Bringer of Light. “Freedom for my people, independence for my country, that's all I want, all I understand.” On this day, in 1890, one of the giants of the 20th century entered the world. The Light Bringer. The father of the people. The deliverer of Vietnamese Independence. One of the greatest human beings to have walked this world. Uncle Ho. He was a journalist, a poet, a thespian without compare, a revolutionary, a statesman, and most importantly of all, a truly compassionate man. He was the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, and the founder of the Indochinese Communist Party, a founding member of the French Communist Party, and a founding member of the Third International. He was born Nguyễn Sinh Cung. He begun his career as a student, by organizing fellow students to protect young boys who were being kidnapped by French colonial corporations for forced labour. Due to his
Read more

A man begging for his wife’s forgiveness inside Divorce Court. Chicago, 1948.

Image
A man begging for his wife’s forgiveness inside Divorce Court. Chicago, 1948. This decades-old photo is worth more than 1,000 words. The black-and-white image, which has made the rounds on social media and Reddit in recent years, features a suited man on his literal knees, begging for the forgiveness of his fur-clad, soon-to-be ex-wife outside a Chicago divorce court. The looks on their faces seem to say it all: The scorned husband appears desperate, mouth slightly agape as he looks up at his one-time lover; the woman, meanwhile, appears utterly unbothered. "It's a powerful photo today because you can sort of imagine your own story behind it," Jeff Nichols, a Chicago historian who acquired a copy of the 1948 newspaper photo via an eBay listing of the image, said. But thanks to Nichols' sleuthing, as well as the digitization of old newspaper records, we don't have to merely imagine who this couple is. The image depicts one of the final moments in the marriage
Read more

WHY WERE THE JAPANESE SO CRUEL IN WORLD WAR II?

Image
WHY WERE THE JAPANESE SO CRUEL IN WORLD WAR II? Before and during World War II, Japanese forces murdered millions of civilians and prisoners of war. Why? On Feb. 16, 1942, Japanese troops herded 23 Australian women into the surf from a beach on Bangka Island in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia). All but one of the women were army nurses, captured after Japanese bombers sank the ship on which they were attempting escape from Singapore.  The nurses wore uniforms clearly emblazoned with the Red Cross. When the captives reached waist-deep water, machine-gun fire echoed across the beach ad jungle-covered hills. Screams and splashing accompanied the bursts of gunfire. Then, as abruptly, the firing stopped, and the beach fell silent. Miraculously, one of the nurses was still alive. Wounded in the torso, 26-year-old Vivian Bullwinkel floated in the sea, her head tilted to one side to gulp air as the surf pushed her gently toward the beach. Minutes earlier the Japanese soldiers
Read more

Killing someone's Soul ... Emotionally Dead has to be the Worst Death!

Image
Killing someone's Soul ...  Emotionally Dead has to be the Worst Death!  Bone Pointing ...  A strange method of execution used by Aborigines. Supposedly the practice never fails to kill despite the fact that the victim is never physically harmed. The practice leaves no trace whatsoever on the condemned. This practice is carried out by a Kurdaitcha, or a ritual executioner. The name Kurdaitcha comes from the slippers that the Kurdaitcha wear. These slippers, made of cockatoo or emu feathers and human hair are completely silent when the user walks in them. The Kurdaitcha will use this silence to quickly hunt down the person to be killed if the person has fled. Once the person is caught the Kurdaitcha will go down onto one knee and point the kundela, or killing bone (which will have been charged with a psychic energy in a previous ritual), at the condemned.  At this point the victim is said to be completely frozen in fear. The Kurdaitcha will then chant a curse. Afterwards the Kurdait
Read more