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Many websites played "pranks" on their visitors on April Fools Day, inventing fake news stories or Rick Rolling viewers with the promise of an impossibly cool video. (For an entirely unrelated treat, check out Mahalo Daily's exclusive interview with Apple CEO Steve Jobs!) While this page highlights pranks from 2008, check out our page on 2009 pranks.
References to April Fools Day date back to the 16th Century, and the tradition perhaps started even earlier. Many have suggested that it probably relates to the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, which moved the first day of the year from April to January. (Thus, only a "fool" would celebrate New Year's in April.)
Among the websites that annually partake in April Fools pranks are Google, ThinkGeek, Facebook and Slashdot. Other infamous online pranks included Homestar Runner flipping their entire site upside down, fake BBC news stories, advertisements for fraudulent Apple products (such as the iPood toilet training gadget) and fake CNET reviews.
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- Date: April 1, 2008
- Google prank: Virgil
- Mahalo prank: Steve Jobs Interview
- YouTube prank: The "Rick Roll"
- ESPN: Election Deathmatch Coverage
- Harvard Lampoon: Paris Hilton National Geographic
- Nestle: The Finger Bar
- TechCrunch: Facebook lawsuit
- The Register: Jimmy Wales Resigns from Wikipedia
- The Son: Sarkozy stretch story
- Egotastic: Closing of the site
- Wow: Bard reveal
- MacUser: Apple name change story
- CNET: TechCrunch busy Tiger Beat
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2008 Pranks
- Mahalo Daily: Steve Jobs Interview (Time: 1:08)
- YouTube: Rick Roll
- Every link on the YouTube front page linked to Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" video.
- Google: Virgle
- Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page and Virgin founder Richard Branson introduce a joint venture, Virgle, to explore the surface of Mars.
- YouTube: Larry Page and Sergey Brin on Virgle (Time: 1:02)
- ThinkGeek: Featured Products
- The ThinkGeek front page features their annual list of phony products.
- ESPN.com: Election Deathmatch Coverage
- ESPN provides full coverage of the no-holds-barred Barack Obama-Hillary Clinton death match. The main event will be proceeded by a Dick Cheney skeet shooting contest and a Dennis Kucinich "dwarf toss."
- Harvard Lampoon: Paris Hilton National Geographic
- The Harvard Lampoon's annual April Fools issue resembles National Geographic and features Paris Hilton with people in animal costumes on the cover with the headline: "Your Wildest Animal Fantasies."
- Nestle: Video: The Finger Bar (Time: 1:13)
- Nestle announced that their popular Butterfinger candy bar will undergo a name change to "The Finger Bar."
- XBox: What's popping up this spring
- XBox announces new products, including an XBox Board Game, a "recon edition" that can be taken anywhere and a wood-paneled "Vintage Edition."
- Pizza Hut: Pasta Hut
- Pizza Hut now wants to sell you pasta, apparently, and has feigned changing their name to "Pasta Hut. While the name change may be a gag, Pizza Hut is actually introducing pasta to their menu."
- TechCrunch: Why We're Suing Facebook for $25 Million in Statutory Damages
- TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington claimed to be suing Facebook for including his photograph next to ads.
- Machinist (Salon.com): I Google For You
- Salon introduces a new website that will perform a Google search on your behalf.
- IGN: Legend of Zelda movie trailer premiere
- IGN posts a fake trailer for an upcoming live-action adaptation of the classic Legend of Zelda video game series.
- Cinematical: Dark Knight Viral Sites
- Cinematical provides a guide to all the various viral marketing sites associated with the upcoming Batman film The Dark Knight. Characters Harvey Dent and The Joker are clashing online.
- TheRegister.co.uk: Jimmy Wales Resigns from Wikipedia
- The Register made the claim that Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales had resigned his post to become a monk.
- The Sun: Docs to stretch small Sarkozy
- British paper The Sun reports that French president Nicholas Sarkozy will add five inches to his height by undergoing a new procedure developed by "Israeli professor Ura Schmuck."
- XKCD: Questionable Content
- The popular web comic XKCD turned into a different-styled comic, "Questionable Content," for April 1.
- Njection: Real-Time Tracking of Police Officers
- Njection claimed its viewers would now have access to GPS devices installed in police vehicles, allowing them to monitor police activity live online.
- Burning Man: McCain to Campaign at Burning Man
- The organizers of Burning Man announced that Republican candidate John McCain would speak at this year's event. as part of his "Playa Storm" Tour.
- Egotastic: Thanks for 3 Great Years, and Goodbye...
- Gossip blog Egotastic! announced it would be shutting down after receiving 55 million pageviews.
- Kongregate: Play Kongai Launch
- Their promised "new game" turns out to just be another Rick Roll!"
- World of Warcraft: New Hero Class Revealed: Bard
- A guitar-wielding "bard" character who vanquishes evil with the power of his rocking is allegedly joining the World of Warcraft roster.
- MacUser: Apple loses legal battle, forced to change name
- According to MacUser, The Beatles record label has finally won a legal victory, forcing Apple computers to change their name to "Banana."
- CNET News: TechCrunch acquires Tiger Beat, will rename it CrunchKids
- According to CNET, TechCrunch acquired teen fan magazine Tiger Beat from Laufer Media, and will turn it into an online magazine dedicated to teen news about the tech industry.
