A Favorite Holiday

Today is a favorite Holiday in the Nielsen household.  And it has been since I can remember as a child.  In fact, April Fools day is something we look forward to and often times scheme for weeks in advance what to do and how to get one another.  It has reached the point where most of our close friends, and our family, are so prepared for the day that you can't get one another.  For example, I tried to get my best friend Andrew today - and as soon as I started he said to me, "I have a calendar sitting in front of me Ryan and I know what day it is."  He also told me that on his calendar in his iphone he has "April Fools Day - don't believe anything Ryan tells you."  HeHeHe.  That's because he has been gotten in the past by me. 

Well, I tried to get a few people today.  Most of them failed because they have been well prepared.  But, I did get two people:  1) the financial secretary at work (yes, that can be dangerous because she controls my paycheck), and 2) my MOM!!!!  This one was a shocker, especially because she was expecting it all day long.  She told my dad and her co-workers that she was ready for whatever I would try and pull.  But, I was so convincing and believable and had the perfect set-up that I even got my mom.  She emailed me later and said, "you're good.  You win!!!"   

Anyway, as I was thinking about today another friend, Adam, reminded me of another GREAT nationwide April fools joke.

 

One of the biggest April Fool’s jokes of all time was brought to you by Taco Bell. In 1996, they ran the ad below in 6 major newspapers across the country announcing that they had purchased the Liberty Bell.

Taco Bell Buys The Liberty Bell
In an effort to help the national debt, Taco Bell is pleased to announce that we have agreed to purchase the Liberty Bell, one of our country’s most historic treasures.

It will now be called the ”Taco Liberty Bell” and will still be accessible to the American public for viewing. While some may find this controversial, we hope our move will prompt other corporations to take similar action to do their part to reduce the country’s debt.

What was so great about this prank is that it was almost believable. News of the sale spread all over, thousands of people were calling to complain, and no one put the whole thing together. By about noon, Taco Bell let the cat out of the bag… it was a prank. With that the media went nuts… they loved it, everyone loved it, and Taco Bell goes down as the king of the corporate prank.