Top 10 Greatest Pranks Ever Pulled!!!

Script written by Joey Turner.

Top 10 Pranks That Fooled EVERYONE

April Fools!! Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Pranks that Fooled Everyone.

For this list, we’re paying tribute to the tricks and hoaxes that got our goats on a larger scale. To all the pranksters watching, you could learn a lot from these japes.

#10: Plenta & Micra Sizes at Starbucks

Ever wish your coffee cup were just a little bigger or smaller? So did many customers, apparently. In April 2010, Starbucks announced two new cup sizes for the US and Canada, to be introduced later that year: the Plenta and Micra cups. The size of a shot glass, the Micra held about 2 fl oz. The Plenta cup held 128 fl oz, and was essentially a popcorn bucket. The Starbucks blog posted a whole article about the new cups, outlining additional silly uses for these “dream cups.” Of course, it was all a trick, but that’s probably good, since not even the biggest caffeine addict could survive the Plenta.

#9: Nixon for President ‘92

It’s safe to say that Richard Nixon wasn’t everyone’s favorite president; however, what if he’d decided to come back to office? Even though he’d resigned in 1974, “former-President Nixon” announced on National Public Radio's Talk of the Nation program in 1992 that he’d be running for president again, claiming that “I never did anything wrong, and I won't do it again.” Naturally, listeners were shocked by this announcement… until the second half of the broadcast revealed the truth. It was actually comedian and impressionist Rich Little doing a spot-on Nixon impression for an April Fool’s prank set up by the network. No wonder they call him the Man of a Thousand Voices.

#8: The Spaghetti-Tree Hoax

Money doesn’t grow on trees, but the BBC’s 1957 hoax fooled a nation into thinking SPAGHETTI does. On April 1st, 1957, the BBC program Panorama aired a three-minute “documentary” about trees in southern Switzerland that apparently grew spaghetti. The delectable pasta was still relatively new to Britons, so many believed this was ACTUALLY where it came from… they even phoned the BBC for hints on how to grow it for themselves. Boy, were their faces red when they found out it was fake – just a cleverly shot prank thought up by cameraman Charles de Jaeger. Others have made their own tributes to the hoax, but you can’t beat the original.

#7: Taro Tsujimoto

Who knew a fake hockey player could make such a big splash? Back in 1974 when the NHL entry draft was more private than today, it was the 11th round of the draft, and the Buffalo Sabres’ GM was getting impatient, so he decided to play a little practical joke: he drafted an imaginary Japanese player named Taro Tsujimoto of the Tokyo Katanas… get it? Sabres? Katanas? The media believed it was legit, and Taro was drafted 183rd overall. Sadly, he was later labeled “invalid” when the hoax was found out. Since then, the fictitious player has become an in-joke for Sabres’ fans, and is celebrated to this day.

#6: The Left-Handed Whopper

This prank promised the ultimate ‘have it your way’ for lefties. On a certain day in 1998, Burger King put out a full-page newspaper ad for the new “Left-Handed Whopper.” It would have the same ingredients and taste as the regular sandwich, but all the condiments would be rotated 180 degrees to accommodate all left-handed carnivores. Silly as it sounds, thousands of people went to Burger King to request the new sandwich, while others even started requesting a right-handed version. Unfortunately, you can’t always have it your way, as the lefty burger hoax was found out… but you have to admire that kind of dedication.

#5: Smell-O-Vision by BBC

Once again, the BBC got our goats… and our nostrils. In 1965, a professor from London University was “interviewed” on BBC TV, claiming he’d perfected Smell-O-Vision – a television machine that could transmit the TV studio’s aromas over the airwaves. The professor demonstrated by putting chopped onions and coffee beans into his machine, and asked viewers from around the country to call in if they smelled anything… numerous viewers called in saying they did pick up these scents; proving how easily a person’s senses can be fooled. This wouldn’t be the last time this hoax was pulled, and it makes us wonder how far away we are from the real thing.

#4: The Eruption of Mount Edgecumbe

On April 1st, 1974, the people of Sitka, Alaska woke up to a nasty surprise: smoke was billowing out of the dormant volcano, Mount Edgecumbe… possibly signaling an impending eruption. Naturally, people panicked, and a Coast Guard helicopter flew up to investigate. What they found WASN’T a near-erupting volcano, but a pile of burning tires, and the words “APRIL FOOL” painted in the snow. Turns out a local prankster had had this trick planned for several years, and finally pulled it off. After realizing there was no real danger, everyone had a good laugh – except one resident who sent a letter to the prankster six years later when Mount St. Helens erupted, saying he’d gone too far.

#3: Instant Color TV

To this day, this remains one of Sweden’s most famous April Fool’s pranks. Back in 1962, the only TV channel in Sweden – SVT – broadcasted exclusively in black and white. However, technical expert Kjell Stensson claimed that by pulling a pair of nylon stockings over the television set, the images onscreen would appear in color. They even went so far as to produce a 5-minute broadcast explaining how to do it properly. Thousands of viewers fell for it, with a lot of people frantically searching their houses for nylon stockings. Unfortunately, color TV wouldn’t come to Sweden until 1970.

#2: Welcome to Chicago (at LAX)

Air travel is stressful enough; now you have to worry about landing in the wrong city??? On April Fool’s Day 1992, passengers arriving into Los Angeles caught sight of a new welcome message – an 85-foot-long yellow banner hanging over the racetrack a few miles from the airport. Written on the banner – in bright red letters – was “Welcome to Chicago.” Naturally, people panicked at the thought of landing in the wrong city, while the workers at the racetrack were having their fun. The park spokesman explained how they’d always wanted to perform a practical joke like this, and they pulled it off and then some, as the banner stayed up for two days.

Before we unveil the grandaddy of all pranks, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Branson Buys Pluto
- Twttr
- Taco Liberty Bell

#1: Orson Welles’ ‘The War of the Worlds’ Broadcast

The year was 1938, it was the night before Halloween, and it was all over the radio – Martians had invaded and were laying waste to the World… or were they? Actually, it was actor and filmmaker-to-be Orson Welles performing a radio adaptation of H.G. Welles’ “The War of the Worlds,” disguised as a fun Halloween news report. Unfortunately, it wasn’t so fun for listeners; they were too busy panicking, thinking it was REAL… despite assurances that it wasn’t. It’s debatable if it really resulted in mass hysteria, but it DOES show that it takes a great performance to fool an entire nation, and an even greater hoax to be remembered to this very day.