USB Computer Prankster
Forget the whoppee cushion. Pranking has gone hi-tech with this USB Computer Prankster that will turn caps lock on and off, make random mouse movements, and type out random text:
Handily, the Prankster features a time delay setting, so that after installing it, you can make your getaway safely before it startmisbehaving.
The Prankster is highly annoying, but itll never activate the Enter key or close or save documents, so it’s mostly mischievous, not super-dangerous.
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Joey Skaggs, The Ultimate Hoax Meister
The following is reprinted
from The
Best of The Best of Think everything you read in the newspaper or see on the news has been checked for accuracy? Think again. Sometimes the media will repeat whatever they're told ... and Joey Skaggs is the guy set out to prove it.
MONKEY SEE, MONKEY DO HOAX#1: A CATHOUSE FOR DOGS HOAX #2: SAVE THE GEODUCK! HOAX #3: MIRACLE ROACH HORMONE CURE HOAX #4: SERGEANT BONES AND THE FAT SQUAD HOAX #5: MAQDANANDA, THE PSYCHIC ATTORNEY In Hawaii, CNN Headline News ran the spot 40 times during the
week. When people called the number (and dozens did), they were greeted
by the swami's voice on an answering machine, saying, "I knew you'd
call." Skaggs later revealed that the swami - and his political statement
about proliferation of New Age gurus and ambulance-chasing attorneys -
was all a hoax. |
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The article above is reprinted with permission from The Best of the Best of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader. The Bathroom Reader Institute handpicked the most eye-opening, rib-tickling, and mind-boggling articles from everything they have written over the last ten years and carefully crammed them into 576 pages of the book. Since 1988, the Bathroom Reader Institute has published a series of popular books containing irresistible bits of trivia and obscure yet fascinating facts. Check out their website here: Bathroom Reader Institute.
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BONUS: BULLSH*T AND BALLS, a document about Joey Skaggs. More: Joey Skaggs website | Art of the Prank | Article at Wikipedia |
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Dead Prankster: 1 Treasure Hunter: 0
Patty Henken thought she’d found more than a bargain when she tore the seat off an old chair she’d recently bought. Taped to the back was a key, and a note titled “Finders Keepers.” The note, typed but signed by a Chauncey Wolcott, described a vacant lot in Springfield, IL where a chest containing $250 worth of gold coins could be found.
Henken’s story attracted the attention of another woman, Betty Atkison Ryan, who knew a practical joker (long deceased) named John Slaven, who often used the fake name, Chauncey Wolcott.
Atkinson Ryan told the newspaper that Slaven was her boss in the Journal-Register’s classified advertising department decades ago. She said Slaven often used a typewriter to compose some of his jokes and signed them “Chauncey Wolcott.”
Ms. Henken has admitted to being had, but still thinks there must be something buried there. She luckily still has use of a donated backhoe; unfortunately the property owners have pulled the plug on her efforts.
Link Photo: Associated Press
Fun with Logs
All you need to have for a fun evening with a too-trusting friend are a couple of logs, a long piece of 2 by 4s, a bin, and a blindfold.
Here’s a simple yet diabolically genious prank that you shouldn’t pull on anybody, you hear? Link
Mix an Exploding Drink

Wired has a recipe for an exploding drink called the Manhattan Project. You can try to make it taste like a Manhattan, but its not really necessary. The point is that there will be a delayed-reaction explosion to surprise your guest. Link
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Party Crashes Store
Our old friend French prankster Remi Gaillard assembled a bunch of friends for a party – and crashed a “party store.” The store’s employees were [understandably] not amused. [YouTube]
ImprovEverywhere: 1200 pantless NYC subway riders
Those wacky pranksters at ImprovEverywhere held their 8th annual “No Pants” subway ride last week with this year’s event allegedly drawing 1200 participants! It looks like most pranksters chose boxers over briefs – and who can blame them?
You can check out previous years’ pantless rides and other great pranks on ImprovEverywhere’s YouTube channel.
[YouTube]
The "Legal to Pee" Prank
As far as street pranks go, this one is pretty sophisticated. And funny. Here’s the "legal to pee" prank that hit Nottingham, UK:
The signs, which were put up by pranksters in and around Nottingham, are designed to look official.
They feature a toilet sign and include the words: "Public Urination Permitted After 7.30pm".
Nottingham City Council is now urging the public to ignore the notices as it sets about removing them. [...]
The prank also featured a laminated note, headed with the logo of Nottingham City Council, which said the scheme was aimed at reducing the mess faced by residents outside their homes.
Link – via Museum of Hoaxes
The Google Street View Prank

When Ben Kinsley and Robin Hewlett of Carnegie Mellon University found out that Google Street View is coming to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the duo arranged a more "interesting" view of the street: they staged a marathon, a parade, a mad-scientist laboratory, and even a sword fight!
National Geographic Magazine’s Intelligent Travel Blog has the story: Link [with embedded YouTube clip] | The Google Street View of Sampsonia Way – Thanks Marilyn!
Classroom Lecture Musical Prank
Now this is a clever and entertaining classroom prank: here’s Reach! A lecture musical prank by Prangstgrüp, starring Mike Barry with lyrics by Brian Jacobs. Even Prof. James Valentini, who teaches chemistry at Columbia College was amused.
Hit play or go to Link [YouTube] – Thanks Suhan Li!
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Fancy Dress Party at IKEA

IKEA is definitely nicer than my house… well, maybe not nicer, but definitely cleaner and more organized. So it makes total sense to have a party there, which is exactly what the people at Cockeyed did. Dinner at the buffet (why not? I could always go for their Swedish meatballs), then on to various dining tables and living rooms to play BananaGrams, Boggle and Catchphrase. Looks like a good time was had by all.
The Dixie Cup Prank

What could you do with thousands of dixie cups? Here’s a teacher-pranking-teacher moment, photographed for your enjoyment:
Every single one of those 10,000 dixie cups was full of water. It took 10 people 3 hours to painstakingly set those things up and fill them. Every single horizontal surface we could get to was covered. There were even dixie cups in the desk drawers.
Biggest Pranks in Geek History
TIME has a fascinating account of the 10 biggest pranks in geek history. This one is the infamous Hollywood sign prank, perpetrated by (who else?) Caltech students:
During Hollywood’s centennial in 2003, Caltech’s Prank Club tackled the famous Hollywood sign with cherry pickers, large sheets of black and white plastic, and duct tape. They hung just enough plastic so that from a distance, the sign appeared to read "Caltech." "Hollywood is still mad about that," says Autumn Looijen, author of the prank history, Legends of Caltech III: Techer In the Dark. The sign assailants’ names never surfaced, but their work has become famous on campus. (Both Caltech and MIT tout their students’ pranks on their admissions websites.)
Billboard Ad for Cheap Lobotomy
Toronto’s street artist Dan Bergeron (aka fauxreel) created this billboard advertising cheap lobotomy with a local phone number where people could call and leave messages. Surprisingly, a lot of people actually called to request lobotomies!
Link (embedded YouTube video, warning: coarse language) – Thanks Photosapience!




















