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Arm the Homeless
Type: College Prank. Summary: A phony organization urged people to help provide the homeless with guns and ammunition. HOAX HAIKUThe charity says, “Homeless are Americans, too, so give them guns!“ (by Krista)Submit a haiku In the first week of December, 1993, a press release was distributed to the Columbus, Ohio…
Bigfoot Hoaxes
Type: Legend. Summary: The legend of the existence of a giant ape native to North America has inspired numerous hoaxes. BIGFOOT HAIKUIf a tree branch falls in the woods and hits Bigfoot, does he make a sound? (by AB) Bigfoot, he saw me. Grabbed me and ran far away. I’ll…
Blue Laws of Connecticut
Type: Fake History. Summary: An eighteenth-Century historian wrote about repressive “blue laws” supposedly once practiced in Connecticut. The term ‘Blue Laws’ describes harsh, puritanical laws that regulate public morality. Such laws supposedly existed in colonial America, making it illegal to do such things as kiss a child or shave on…
Brassiere Brigade
Type: Financial Scam. Summary: Female employees of the phone company stole thousands of dollars from their employer by hiding coin rolls in their bras. In September 1950, police in Miami, Florida accidentally discovered a crime ring that had been stealing thousands of dollars from the local phone company for years.…
Brooklyn Bridge Scams
Type: Scams. Summary: The “selling the Brooklyn Bridge” scam has been around almost as long as the Bridge itself. The article describes the origins of the “selling” scam as well as Steve Brodie’s own unique Bridge scam. Posted by: Elliot Feldman When construction ended on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883,…
Caltech Sweepstakes Caper
Type: College Prank. Summary: In 1975 Caltech students flooded a McDonald’s sweepstakes with millions of entries. Caltech is known for producing world-class scientists and engineers. But a few of its students have also demonstrated a flair for the law, as a highly controversial 1975 prank that turned on the legalistic…
Cardiff Giant
Type: Hoax Summary: A stone figure unearthed in 1869 turned out not to be as ancient as many, at first, believed. HOAX HAIKUWhatever you do,Don’t call him jolly or green.It’ll make him mad.(by AB) Made for cash or pride He’s a man-made Man of stone Guess who’s the fool now…
Central Park Zoo Escape
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Panic ensued after the New York Herald reported that wild animals had escaped from the New York City Zoo. “Another Awful Calamity. The Intellectual Department of The New York Herald Let Loose Upon the Public.“ Front cover of the Daily Graphic (Nov. 13, 1874), mocking the…
Disappearance of David Lang
Type: Hoax. Summary: A popular legend claims that in 1880 a Tennessee farmer vanished into thin air before a crowd of witnesses. This legend was actually invented by a mystery-novel writer in 1953. The Story David Lang was said to be a farmer who lived near Gallatin, Tennessee. On September…
Great Wall of China Hoax
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: In 1899 four Denver newspapers falsely reported that the Great Wall of China was going to be torn down. A rumor subsequently emerged suggesting that this hoax provoked the Boxer Rebellion in China. From the Lima News. August 4, 1899. Caption reads: “Great Wall of China…
Hugo N. Frye
Type: College Prank. Summary: Republican leaders were tricked into praising the example of the “sturdy patriot” Hugo N. Frye, unaware that there was no such person. In 1930 letters were mailed to Republican leaders throughout the United States inviting them to a May 26 party at Cornell University in honor…
Killer Hawk of Chicago
Type: Hoax that is not a hoax. Summary: As Chicagoans excitedly followed reports of a hawk loose in the downtown area, newspapers began to suspect they may have been hoaxed. “The pirate of the air perched on the roof of the Art institute just after he had killed and was…
Lady Liberty on Lake Mendota
Type: College Prank. Summary: The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Pail and Shovel Party promised that, if elected to student government, they would move the Statue of Liberty to Lake Mendota, and they made good on their promise. Lady Liberty sinks into Lake Mendota. (Photograph by Ravi Kochhar). In February 1979 an…
Lafayette Mulligan
Type: Prank. Summary: A man calling himself Lafayette Mulligan presented the Prince of Wales with the key to the City of Boston. However, the Mayor of Boston had no idea who Lafayette Mulligan was. James Curley, former Mayor of Boston. In the Fall of 1924 the Prince of Wales visited…
Miss Perfect Profile
Type: Publicity Stunt. Summary: The head of a modeling agency invented phony titles to promote his models. Newspapers and magazines like to print pictures of attractive young women, especially if the pictures are vaguely newsworthy. For instance, if the woman has just been awarded a title such as “Miss Congeniality,“…
Nazi Air Marker Hoax
Type: Overzealous press-agentry. Summary: Random patterns in fields were mistaken for Nazi “air markers.“ On August 10, 1942, the U.S. Army’s public-relations office released a statement informing the press that fliers for the First Ground Air Support Command had discovered “secret markers” in rural areas of the east coast. These…
Ponzi Scheme
Type: Financial Scam. Summary: Charles Ponzi gave his name to the most famous financial scam of the twentieth century. Charles Ponzi (1883-1949) Charles Ponzi, an Italian immigrant living in Boston in the early twentieth century, was said by his worshipful followers to have “discovered money.“ In fact, what he really…
Silence Dogood
Type: False Identity. Summary: Sixteen-year-old Benjamin Franklin pretended to be a middle-aged widow named Silence Dogood. View the Discussion Page for this topic. In 1722 a series of letters appeared in the New-England Courant written by a middle-aged widow named Silence Dogood. The letters poked fun at various aspects of…
Stotham Massachusetts
Type: Hoax. Summary: A Massachusetts town, described as an example of an unspoiled New England village, turned out not to exist. Frontispiece to Ripley’s articleThe White Pine Monograph Series was a series of carefully researched, high quality brochures, paid for by Weyerhaeuser mills and edited by Russell Whitehead, that collected…
Subways Are For Sleeping
Advertisement for Subways Are For Sleeping that ran in the New York Herald-Tribune. In 1961 an advertisement appeared in the New York Herald-Tribune for a Broadway play titled “Subways Are For Sleeping.“ The play had not been doing very well at the box office. Nevertheless, judging by the ad, it…
Theft of the Sacred Cod
Type: College Prank. Summary: In 1933 Harvard students “codnapped” the Sacred Cod of Massachusetts. The Sacred Cod of Massachusetts. Theft is one of the classic and most-often-used tools in the toolbox of college pranksters. All manner of prized items are regularly spirited away at campuses throughout the world: statues, bells,…
Traveling Stones of Pahranagat Valley
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: In 1867 Nevada journalist Dan De Quille described some stones with a curious property—whenever separated from each other they spontaneously moved back together. On October 26, 1867 a story appeared in Nevada’s Territorial Enterprise newspaper describing some unusual stones recently found in the Pahranagat Valley of…
Virginia City Camel Race
Type: Hoax that became real. Summary: Virginia City, Nevada hosts an annual camel race that began as a hoax. In 1959 Bob Richards, the editor of the Nevada-based Territorial Enterprise, announced that a camel race would be held that year down the main street of Virginia City. He challenged other…
Walt Disney Frozen
Type: Urban Legend. Summary: According to rumor, Walt Disney’s cryogenically preserved body is kept in a tank under Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Posted by: Elliot Feldman Walt Disney Walt Disney died on December 15, 1966, but a rumor has long persisted that his body was cryogenically frozen…
Wild Animal Hoax - Part 1
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Complete text of the “wild animal hoax” published by the New York Herald in 1874. On November 9, 1874 the New York Herald published an article claiming that the animals had escaped from their cages in the New York zoo and were rampaging through the city.…
Wild Animal Hoax - Part 2
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Continuation of the complete text of the “wild animal hoax” published by the New York Herald in 1874. (Continued from Wild Animal Hoax - Part 1.) On November 9, 1874 the New York Herald published an article claiming that the animals had escaped from their cages…
Winsted Wild Man
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Reports of a wild man loose in Winsted, Connecticut fanned mass hysteria. In August of 1895 New York City papers received a wire story about a naked, hairy man that was terrorizing townspeople in Winsted, Connecticut. Intrigued, the papers sent reporters up to Winsted to find…
Worcester Aeroplane Hoax of 1909
Type: Technology Hoax. Summary: In 1909 a Worcester man claimed to have built an airplane far in advance of anything existing at the time. In early December, 1909, American newspapers excitedly reported that Wallace Tillinghast, an inventor from Worcester, Massachusetts, had built the world’s most advanced airplane. His craft could…
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There are 17 subcategories for this categoryArticles in category "Location -> United States":
There are 28 articles for this category
Arm the Homeless
Type: College Prank. Summary: A phony organization urged people to help provide the homeless with guns and ammunition. HOAX HAIKUThe charity says, “Homeless are Americans, too, so give them guns!“ (by Krista)Submit a haiku In the first week of December, 1993, a press release was distributed to the Columbus, Ohio…
Bigfoot Hoaxes
Type: Legend. Summary: The legend of the existence of a giant ape native to North America has inspired numerous hoaxes. BIGFOOT HAIKUIf a tree branch falls in the woods and hits Bigfoot, does he make a sound? (by AB) Bigfoot, he saw me. Grabbed me and ran far away. I’ll…
Blue Laws of Connecticut
Type: Fake History. Summary: An eighteenth-Century historian wrote about repressive “blue laws” supposedly once practiced in Connecticut. The term ‘Blue Laws’ describes harsh, puritanical laws that regulate public morality. Such laws supposedly existed in colonial America, making it illegal to do such things as kiss a child or shave on…
Brassiere Brigade
Type: Financial Scam. Summary: Female employees of the phone company stole thousands of dollars from their employer by hiding coin rolls in their bras. In September 1950, police in Miami, Florida accidentally discovered a crime ring that had been stealing thousands of dollars from the local phone company for years.…
Brooklyn Bridge Scams
Type: Scams. Summary: The “selling the Brooklyn Bridge” scam has been around almost as long as the Bridge itself. The article describes the origins of the “selling” scam as well as Steve Brodie’s own unique Bridge scam. Posted by: Elliot Feldman When construction ended on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883,…
Caltech Sweepstakes Caper
Type: College Prank. Summary: In 1975 Caltech students flooded a McDonald’s sweepstakes with millions of entries. Caltech is known for producing world-class scientists and engineers. But a few of its students have also demonstrated a flair for the law, as a highly controversial 1975 prank that turned on the legalistic…
Cardiff Giant
Type: Hoax Summary: A stone figure unearthed in 1869 turned out not to be as ancient as many, at first, believed. HOAX HAIKUWhatever you do,Don’t call him jolly or green.It’ll make him mad.(by AB) Made for cash or pride He’s a man-made Man of stone Guess who’s the fool now…
Central Park Zoo Escape
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Panic ensued after the New York Herald reported that wild animals had escaped from the New York City Zoo. “Another Awful Calamity. The Intellectual Department of The New York Herald Let Loose Upon the Public.“ Front cover of the Daily Graphic (Nov. 13, 1874), mocking the…
Disappearance of David Lang
Type: Hoax. Summary: A popular legend claims that in 1880 a Tennessee farmer vanished into thin air before a crowd of witnesses. This legend was actually invented by a mystery-novel writer in 1953. The Story David Lang was said to be a farmer who lived near Gallatin, Tennessee. On September…
Great Wall of China Hoax
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: In 1899 four Denver newspapers falsely reported that the Great Wall of China was going to be torn down. A rumor subsequently emerged suggesting that this hoax provoked the Boxer Rebellion in China. From the Lima News. August 4, 1899. Caption reads: “Great Wall of China…
Hugo N. Frye
Type: College Prank. Summary: Republican leaders were tricked into praising the example of the “sturdy patriot” Hugo N. Frye, unaware that there was no such person. In 1930 letters were mailed to Republican leaders throughout the United States inviting them to a May 26 party at Cornell University in honor…
Killer Hawk of Chicago
Type: Hoax that is not a hoax. Summary: As Chicagoans excitedly followed reports of a hawk loose in the downtown area, newspapers began to suspect they may have been hoaxed. “The pirate of the air perched on the roof of the Art institute just after he had killed and was…
Lady Liberty on Lake Mendota
Type: College Prank. Summary: The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Pail and Shovel Party promised that, if elected to student government, they would move the Statue of Liberty to Lake Mendota, and they made good on their promise. Lady Liberty sinks into Lake Mendota. (Photograph by Ravi Kochhar). In February 1979 an…
Lafayette Mulligan
Type: Prank. Summary: A man calling himself Lafayette Mulligan presented the Prince of Wales with the key to the City of Boston. However, the Mayor of Boston had no idea who Lafayette Mulligan was. James Curley, former Mayor of Boston. In the Fall of 1924 the Prince of Wales visited…
Miss Perfect Profile
Type: Publicity Stunt. Summary: The head of a modeling agency invented phony titles to promote his models. Newspapers and magazines like to print pictures of attractive young women, especially if the pictures are vaguely newsworthy. For instance, if the woman has just been awarded a title such as “Miss Congeniality,“…
Nazi Air Marker Hoax
Type: Overzealous press-agentry. Summary: Random patterns in fields were mistaken for Nazi “air markers.“ On August 10, 1942, the U.S. Army’s public-relations office released a statement informing the press that fliers for the First Ground Air Support Command had discovered “secret markers” in rural areas of the east coast. These…
Ponzi Scheme
Type: Financial Scam. Summary: Charles Ponzi gave his name to the most famous financial scam of the twentieth century. Charles Ponzi (1883-1949) Charles Ponzi, an Italian immigrant living in Boston in the early twentieth century, was said by his worshipful followers to have “discovered money.“ In fact, what he really…
Silence Dogood
Type: False Identity. Summary: Sixteen-year-old Benjamin Franklin pretended to be a middle-aged widow named Silence Dogood. View the Discussion Page for this topic. In 1722 a series of letters appeared in the New-England Courant written by a middle-aged widow named Silence Dogood. The letters poked fun at various aspects of…
Stotham Massachusetts
Type: Hoax. Summary: A Massachusetts town, described as an example of an unspoiled New England village, turned out not to exist. Frontispiece to Ripley’s articleThe White Pine Monograph Series was a series of carefully researched, high quality brochures, paid for by Weyerhaeuser mills and edited by Russell Whitehead, that collected…
Subways Are For Sleeping
Advertisement for Subways Are For Sleeping that ran in the New York Herald-Tribune. In 1961 an advertisement appeared in the New York Herald-Tribune for a Broadway play titled “Subways Are For Sleeping.“ The play had not been doing very well at the box office. Nevertheless, judging by the ad, it…
Theft of the Sacred Cod
Type: College Prank. Summary: In 1933 Harvard students “codnapped” the Sacred Cod of Massachusetts. The Sacred Cod of Massachusetts. Theft is one of the classic and most-often-used tools in the toolbox of college pranksters. All manner of prized items are regularly spirited away at campuses throughout the world: statues, bells,…
Traveling Stones of Pahranagat Valley
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: In 1867 Nevada journalist Dan De Quille described some stones with a curious property—whenever separated from each other they spontaneously moved back together. On October 26, 1867 a story appeared in Nevada’s Territorial Enterprise newspaper describing some unusual stones recently found in the Pahranagat Valley of…
Virginia City Camel Race
Type: Hoax that became real. Summary: Virginia City, Nevada hosts an annual camel race that began as a hoax. In 1959 Bob Richards, the editor of the Nevada-based Territorial Enterprise, announced that a camel race would be held that year down the main street of Virginia City. He challenged other…
Walt Disney Frozen
Type: Urban Legend. Summary: According to rumor, Walt Disney’s cryogenically preserved body is kept in a tank under Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Posted by: Elliot Feldman Walt Disney Walt Disney died on December 15, 1966, but a rumor has long persisted that his body was cryogenically frozen…
Wild Animal Hoax - Part 1
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Complete text of the “wild animal hoax” published by the New York Herald in 1874. On November 9, 1874 the New York Herald published an article claiming that the animals had escaped from their cages in the New York zoo and were rampaging through the city.…
Wild Animal Hoax - Part 2
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Continuation of the complete text of the “wild animal hoax” published by the New York Herald in 1874. (Continued from Wild Animal Hoax - Part 1.) On November 9, 1874 the New York Herald published an article claiming that the animals had escaped from their cages…
Winsted Wild Man
Type: Media Hoax. Summary: Reports of a wild man loose in Winsted, Connecticut fanned mass hysteria. In August of 1895 New York City papers received a wire story about a naked, hairy man that was terrorizing townspeople in Winsted, Connecticut. Intrigued, the papers sent reporters up to Winsted to find…
Worcester Aeroplane Hoax of 1909
Type: Technology Hoax. Summary: In 1909 a Worcester man claimed to have built an airplane far in advance of anything existing at the time. In early December, 1909, American newspapers excitedly reported that Wallace Tillinghast, an inventor from Worcester, Massachusetts, had built the world’s most advanced airplane. His craft could…
