April Fool's Day: Best Prank Stories?

Happy April Fools' Day!

Or, if you're French, happy April Fish Day, because, apparently, that's how the French roll.

The history of this day is a bit murky. Some claim that the 16th century change to the Gregorian Calendar marking January 1 as the beginning of the year, as opposed to the previous widely practiced beginning of the year coinciding with the Vernal Equinox, was the source of All Fools' Day celebrations on April 1.

In some circles, the French like to take credit because, again, that's apparently how the French roll.

No one's certain, however.

One of the best news pranks marking this day occurred in 1983 when a Boston University professor offered the Associated Press a plausible-sounding explanation of the origins of April Fools' Day that was printed in newspapers all over the country.

Joseph Boskin, professor emeritus of American humor at Boston U., told an AP reporter that April Fools' Day origins were traced to the rule of Roman Emperor Constantine, when a group of court jesters said they could run the kingdom better than he.

Constantine, amused, agreed to make one of the jesters king for a day. Kugel, the jester, passed an edict calling for absurdity on that day, and a tradition was born.

Trouble is, Boskin made the whole thing up