April Fool’s Day Quiz Answers

Here are the honest-to-goodness answers to our 2009 April Fool’s Day quiz. If you haven’t taken it yet, click here or you’ll spoil your fun.

1. c. In 1983, Joseph Boskin, professor emeritus of American humor at Boston University, spun the false tale of Constantine for an Associated Press reporter writing about April Fool’s Day. The news agency was not pleased. (No one really knows how April Fool’s Day started, but a. and b. are both historical theories.)

2. b. Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds broadcast did take place, but it was on Halloween, and it was intended as a radio show, not a prank.

3. True. How does the BBC take people in every year? Spaghetti trees in 1957, Smell-a-vision in 1965, Big Ben in 1980 (the famous clock never did go digital). See the BBC’s trickery at the Museum of Hoaxes.

4. c. The Granite Mountain Vault isn’t a safe house for high-ranking officials during a national disaster (at least that we know of ….)

The poor infielder, who almost caught the ball only to have it rebound and remove several of his teeth, was Joe Sprinz. This Wikipedia page has names of those killed in the Molasses Disaster. And if you want your memorabilia sent to the moon, go to LunarLegacy.

5. b. Sorry to break it to you: You’ll never see that $1,000 from Bill Gates. According to Snopes.com, fabric softener sheets can leave a waxy buildup on the lint filter in your dryer. Who knew? But a quick wash in warm, soapy water should take care of it.

Here’s the 411 on SULFNBK.EXE.