 |
|
| FORUM | REGISTER | LOGIN | HOAXIPEDIA | TOP 100 APRIL FOOLS | COLLEGE PRANKS | ABOUT THE CURATOR | CONTACT |
| A HISTORY OF HOAXES | HOAX WEBSITES | HOAX PHOTOS | HOAX PHOTO TESTS | GULLIBILITY TESTS | TALL-TALE CREATURES |
About the Museum
The Museum of Hoaxes is dedicated to promoting knowledge about hoaxes. (Click here for opening hours, etc.) On our blog we post about dubious- sounding claims, and whatever else strikes our fancy. The site is also home to the Hoaxipedia (the museum's online encyclopedia of hoaxes), the Hoax Forum, and the Top 100 April Fools' Day Hoaxes.
The museum was created in 1997 by Alex Boese. He's assisted by a staff of deputy curators and docents. Alex is the author of three books, most recently Elephants on Acid: And Other Bizarre Experiments (which has nothing to do with hoaxes). Check out the list of the Top 20 Most Bizarre Experiments of All Time for a preview.
The Museum of Hoaxes is dedicated to promoting knowledge about hoaxes. (Click here for opening hours, etc.) On our blog we post about dubious- sounding claims, and whatever else strikes our fancy. The site is also home to the Hoaxipedia (the museum's online encyclopedia of hoaxes), the Hoax Forum, and the Top 100 April Fools' Day Hoaxes.
The museum was created in 1997 by Alex Boese. He's assisted by a staff of deputy curators and docents. Alex is the author of three books, most recently Elephants on Acid: And Other Bizarre Experiments (which has nothing to do with hoaxes). Check out the list of the Top 20 Most Bizarre Experiments of All Time for a preview.Prankplace.com
FUNNY T-SHIRTSBrowse our top quality t-shirts, and you are guaranteed to find one perfect for you, or to give as a funny gift to a friend or family member. Our shirts come in your choice of sizes, most are available in Medium, Large, XL, 2XL and 3XL.
THE TOILET MONSTERYour wife will never yell at you about leaving the seat up again! The Toilet Monster attaches to the inside of the toilet bowl by suction cups. As the unsuspecting person goes to use the bathroom, they'll scream as they lift the lid and are greeted by the Toilet Monster! Not recommended for the elderly or those with a weak heart.
Victor the Talking Budgie
Status: In my opinion, a case of parrot pareidolia
Victor is (or rather was) a budgie that, according to its owner, could speak in context. In other words, Victor could not only mimic words, as many birds can, but also carry on meaningful conversations. Victor has been a topic of discussion on the internet for over four years. However, I just became aware of him thanks to an email from Gretel Shuvzwichinstov. So here are the basic facts about Victor, as I understand them:Victor belonged to Ryan Reynolds who, as he became aware that Victor was saying intelligible things, began to record him. Victor's conversations go something like this: Victor so cute. What will you do for Victor? Give me some carrot. I get lots of cheese, mmmm, cheese, cheese. So I talk too fast, so whatever! Reynolds has made many audio recordings of Victor available on his website. There are also videos of Victor speaking. Victor died in 2000, so it's impossible for anyone else to study him. Which is one of the reasons why a lot of people suspect Victor is simply an elaborate hoax concocted by Reynolds.
Another reason why this all might be a hoax is that budgies are not generally known for being able to carry on meaningful conversations. Also, Reynolds seems to be one of the very few people who can extract anything intelligible out of the weird noises Victor made. Though I can definitely catch the occasional word, most of Victor's squawks sound like something out of The Exorcist to me. I half suspect that if you played them backwards, you'd discover Victor was muttering Satanic curses in ancient Aramaic. If the Electronic Voice Phenomena advocates (the people who swear they can hear coffee pots talking to them) got hold of Victor, they would probably conclude he was channelling spirits from beyond.
In Reynolds' favor, he seems to passionately believe in Victor and, more generally, in the idea that birds possess the capacity for complex speech. He states that:
A majority of the people that come to this site embrace it for what it really is. A truthful study of a talking parrot that could speak in conversational language. However the claims that some make about it being a hoax are ridiculous and have no grounds whatsoever. Individuals who make these claims should understand that they are slandering me, especially if they say it in an open forum in writing. I do not take this lightly as I have worked very hard on these sites during the past few years to be libeled so unfairly.
So my hunch is that Reynolds is sincere (i.e. this isn't a deliberate hoax), but he's convinced himself there's something meaningful in a bird's random chatter. Making this an example of audio pareidolia.
Posted By: Alex | Date: Sun Oct 23, 2005 | Permalink |
Total Comments: 26
Category: Animals, Pareidolia
Category: Animals, Pareidolia
Listed in chronological order. Newest comments at the end.
Page 2 of 2 pages < 1 2
Listen, I know Victor's talking is something out of the ordinary. AND, when I read that someone doesn't believe budgies can speak in context, that's all a hoax, I've got some news for you. My bird is 8mths old now, and he has a vocabulary of apprx 20 words. Before i even got a chance to ask him for a kiss goodbye before work, he landed on my shoulder and distinctly said" I wanna kiss you". If that's not depicting "context" and emotion, I don't know what is. Go out there, get a budgie and put him/her to the test. Some budgies don't talk at all, others say a few words as habit. Mine is beginning to act like Victor, saying words in phrases to me already. My boyfriend and I seem to ignore my bird when we're together (he lives outta town), and my bird also said to me after biting me and quite primitively actually, "You, Robbie, then no Edward." That's emotion expressed baby, so stick it in yer science pipe and smoke it!
Posted by BirdLover on Fri Apr 13, 2007 at 11:30 AMI know I'm late to the Victor party here but I'll just add to the other past and current budgie owners to confirm that, yes, they DO sound like that. The last thing fictional about this Victor thing is the voice and recordings. They're straight. Spend a couple years around a babbling parakeet and you'd agree, no brainer. Hell, the most talkative bird I had when I was a kid I recorded with my own crappy gear and it sounded just like this. I've long since worked in audio professionally, so my ear is pretty good about these things. In fact, I have a project right now that calls for some parrot talking, and I've quickly realized that faking these things is pretty much impossible because humans usually sound like humans however much you process them. Likewise, birds distinctly sound like birds. There's huge difference.
As to the babbling, well, I think this last posting about the Christian prophesies tidies up this Reynolds cat's assertions, doesn't it? Sure, once birds get the hang of picking up speech, other bird calls, noises, they just keep working on it all the time, cranking out endless and indecipherable gibberish. Normal stuff.
Posted by trg - san francisco on Fri Apr 13, 2007 at 11:47 PMAs to the babbling, well, I think this last posting about the Christian prophesies tidies up this Reynolds cat's assertions, doesn't it? Sure, once birds get the hang of picking up speech, other bird calls, noises, they just keep working on it all the time, cranking out endless and indecipherable gibberish. Normal stuff.
Wait.. what? You think that Victor the talking budgie was a hoax because he knew too many words?
I have a budgie who just turned 2 years old and he knows (easily) over 200 words and phrases.
He learns from us, the tv, radio, whatever! Just recently he has been saying "I wanna be a pirate!".
Parakeets (Budgies) are very smart animals. They can learn quickly.
Posted by Dayna on Sun Jun 03, 2007 at 04:19 PMI have a budgie who just turned 2 years old and he knows (easily) over 200 words and phrases.
He learns from us, the tv, radio, whatever! Just recently he has been saying "I wanna be a pirate!".
Parakeets (Budgies) are very smart animals. They can learn quickly.
Fascinating! BTW, the web links for "Victor the talking parrot" are all gone. Also, "Ryan Reynolds" is the name of a movie star so trying to locate this one (the budgie talker) is futile.
In any event, i was fascinated by his reasoning that a budgie thinks much faster than we do owing to his smaller brain. There is som credence to that as they are quick little buggers. As for thinking, it is pretty clear that Ryan is suffering from a lack of formal training in science, but it was fun and provocative for a bit!
Posted by Incredulous in Beaumont, TX on Sat Aug 18, 2007 at 09:07 AMIn any event, i was fascinated by his reasoning that a budgie thinks much faster than we do owing to his smaller brain. There is som credence to that as they are quick little buggers. As for thinking, it is pretty clear that Ryan is suffering from a lack of formal training in science, but it was fun and provocative for a bit!
Can anyone tell me if it still conventional wisdom not to breed a talking parakeet. I have a talking male that I would like to breed, but I am told that if I bring a female parakeet into the house my male will stop talking as I breed him.
Posted by Richard in florida on Wed Feb 27, 2008 at 08:04 AMObviously those who do not think that Victor is really talking in these videos are the ones who are really out of touch with reality. Also the last comments from taliesma show the reason why she was banned from the group as she was nothing but a trouble maker who does not have any compassion for people who have lost a pet they loved. I have 3 budgies now that are over 8 years old and are in excellent health.
If you check out some of the videos of Victor you will hear him talk about God on several occasions as well as many other budgies in our group.
I admit I have changed my spiritual direction in life because of some of the things that budgies have said about God but we all have the right to believe what we want when it comes to God and spirituality.
Posted by Ryan Reynolds in Canada on Thu Sep 25, 2008 at 03:39 AMIf you check out some of the videos of Victor you will hear him talk about God on several occasions as well as many other budgies in our group.
I admit I have changed my spiritual direction in life because of some of the things that budgies have said about God but we all have the right to believe what we want when it comes to God and spirituality.
Page 2 of 2 pages < 1 2