Love it or hate it, there is just no way to escape April Fool's Day — and all the pranksters that seem to emerge each year when the calendar turns to April first.
However, sometimes people just take things too far. Here we look at some of the worst Aprils Fool's Day pranks ever, according to Reader’s Digest.
1. The time the volcano did not erupt: Boston news producer Homer Cilley decided in 1980 to release a television broadcast focusing on a hill in Milton, Massachusetts, which he claimed was actually a volcano erupting. The broadcast included actual footage from Mt. St. Helens eruptions along with fake warnings from then-president Jimmy Carter. The insert was so convincing that panic set in before hundreds of viewers even saw the "April Fool" sign at the end. Cilley was promptly fired.
2. The time an Islamic leader was not assassinated: Back in 1986, a high-ranking Israeli intelligence officer sparked massive tensions after releasing fake news that an Islamic leader had been wounded in an assassination attempt. In the end he was court-martialed.
3. The time Burger King did not make a left-handed burger: Back in 1998, Burger King thought it would be funny to announce to customers that it had carefully designed a version of its Whopper for left handers. Things backfired when branches nationwide were inundated with orders for the non-existent burger.
4. The time when hundreds did not catch a glimpse of the Titanic: An English DJ did not expect things to go dramatically wrong when, in 2001, he announced to his listeners that they could catch a glimpse of a ship that resembled the Titanic from the cliffs in East Sussex. So many people fell for the prank and headed for the cliffs that a large crack formed in the cliff face. It later broke off and fell into the sea below but luckily the spectators had left by that time.
5. The time when a clothing store employee was not held up: An Ohio clothing store employee did not think things through in 2003 when she pranked her boss by contacting him and telling him she was being robbed at gunpoint. He immediately alerted the police, who sent out four patrol cars, but they did not leave empty handed. The woman was arrested for inducing panic.
6. The time when a UFO did not land: Over 13,000 people were evacuated from Jafir in 2010 after a local newspaper decided to prank its readers with an article claiming a UFO had landed nearby. The newspaper was forced to apologize amid threats of a lawsuit.
7. The time when a woman did not kill her husband: Tennessee resident Susan Tammy Hudson tried to prank her sister in 2013 when she called to tell say she had shot her husband. "I’m cleaning up the mess, let’s go bury him in Blackwater," she said. Her sister was obviously not on board with the plan and called the police. No charges were pressed after Hudson’s husband arrived home very much alive.
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