We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
One of the most famous media pranks for April Fools' Day was put together on British TV in 1957. Complete with film clips, Swiss workers were shown harvesting spaghetti threatened by an early frost. The "news report" generated both criticism for playing with the news and curiosity as spaghetti was not common in Britain at the time and some viewers wanted to know how to buy their own spaghetti bushes.
I was born on April Fools' Day 70+ years ago. I've endured decades of, "So, you're an April fool?" and "Do people pull a lot of pranks on you for your birthday?" remarks and questions. This year my birthday will also fall on Easter. That hasn't happened to me since 1956 when I was 12 years old, and I still recall the day fairly well. In my lifetime the two holidays fell on the same day once before, in 1945, when I was one year old. People who calculate future calendars say the next time April Fools' Day and Easter fall on the same day will be 2029, when I'll be 85 if still living, and then 2040 (yes, I'd be 96) and not again during the remainder of this century.
Easter is, certainly for Christians, a recognized and observed holiday. It's meaning and history is straight forward as Easter celebrates the resurrection of Christ. As for April Fools' Day, it's history, significance, status as a legitimate holiday and proper ways to celebrate are not so clear cut. Look at the way different news outlets spell the holiday and you'll notice there's not even a universal form for spelling April Fools' Day (I'm using the recommended form found in the "AP Style Handbook," but there are other acceptable forms).
Here's a bit of information about the blessings and burdens of an April 1st birthday, from my point of view.
Why the two holidays are so seldom on the same date
One thing about April Fools' Day, the date never changes. There's no "if it falls on a weekend we move it forward or backward to a Friday or Monday." It's always April 1, whatever the day of the week. Easter, on the other hand, must always be on the Sunday that falls on the next full moon after Spring Equinox. That means Easter can fall as early as March and as late as April or May. The date for Easter always varies while April Fools' Day is always the same date and that's why the two so rarely occur together.
I read an interesting article by Miles Townes in "Christian Century" titled "When Easter Sunday falls on April Fools' Day." "Christian Century" is recognized as a major religious publication read by many Protestant theologians and lay people alike. Townes notes that trying to combine one of the holiest of holy days for Christians with a day noted for jokes and pranks seems impossible.
But, Townes wrote, "It is neither stretch nor slight to say that the resurrection (of Christ) was a joke-and a good one. What more could Jesus have done to mock the world that killed him than rise from the dead?" The author suggests that we seldom see the humor in things Jesus said because of our puritanical view of the Bible. An alternative view, since the two dissimilar holidays fall together this year, Townes suggests, is, "We have no problem with the Jesus who wept. This Easter, let's grapple with the Jesus who laughed."
The idea for April Fools' Day likely started over a calendar change
Many historians believe the notion of "April Fools" was aimed at people who attempted to celebrate the new year on the wrong date, starting back in the 1500's. That was the time when a change was made from the Gregorian calendar (when the new year started on April 1) to the Julian calendar with a January 1 new year start. Those who kept to the old April 1 new year were called "April fools." You might see some parallel to what you would call a friend or acquaintance who forgot to 'spring ahead' of 'fall back' during modern day clock changes. Maybe "time scoffers" or some similar label would describe the same idea.
The calendar change is not the only explanation for the start of April Fools' Day. Some say the fact that spring weather can be so unpredictable and 'fool' us was how the idea started. Others link the start to an end-of-winter celebration by the Romans called Hilaria. It doesn't really matter, the traditions started and were likely brought to this country with the immigrants from various lands and that variety accounts for the many ways April Fools' Day is observed.
When I was a kid, a popular elementary school student trick was to switch the sugar and salt at the breakfast table. In France, it's popular to hang a fish on someone's back, much like we would secretly tape a "kick me" sign to someone's back (am I dating myself here with the kick me thing?).
Many newspapers and other media use April Fools' Day to play with the news, at least for a time. One of the more famous media-generated April Fools' pranks was done on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1957. This really was 'fake news.' The televised report told that an early spring in Switzerland was forcing an early spaghetti harvest. Film clips showed workers furiously gathering and bundling pasta from the spaghetti trees. The newscast generated hundreds of phone calls from worried viewers about shortages and price increases because of the freak weather.
The types of jokes and pranks done by individuals on April 1 have also changed. I found a website listing some popular ways jokes were pulled at the office-like bringing 'jelly' donuts filled with catsup. But, with the advent of technology April Fools' Day pranks have morphed into using computers or other devices. One of my favorites was a 'techie' who installed a program on his boss' computer that would make a burp sound every few minutes. It took the boss several days to figure out how to stop the sound.
Finally, a benefit from a birthday on April 1
Unless you worked in a coal mine organized by the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) or have some connection to one of those mines (mostly in the east and Midwest) you wouldn't be aware of Mitchell Day, a paid holiday contractually guaranteed to UMWA miners and celebrated on April 1. The holiday named in honor of John Mitchell, an early leader of the union, recognizes the 1898 gain of the 40 hour week and the eight hour work day by the UMWA.
Suddenly my April 1 birthday became a paid holiday when I went to work for the coal company. I wasn't a union member but with no miners working they didn't need any management people to work either. In some areas the miners staged big events with entertainment, speeches and a big feed. Where I lived, in Illinois, the weather was always too iffy on April 1 to plan a big event outside so no major events occurred. Still, it was nice to have a spring day off and, weather permitting, start my garden.
So, there you have it, a few of the burdens and benefits of an April 1 birthday. Having to deal with the comments about being an April Fool is definitely a burden, still, after 70 years. Those few years of a paid holiday on my birthday were pretty nice. Likely the most perplexing burden is trying to figure out why when I tell people my birthday is April 1, and they know me, they respond, "Oh, that explains a lot." What do they mean by that comment?
