April Fool’s Day Pranks on the Radio

It never fails.  Every year on April 1st, idiot radio DJ's all over America perpeutate elaborate pranks on the air. And people fall for them...hook, line and sinker.

This week, I've been filling in on the morning show for our sister station, News-Talk 95.5.  Today, we had a bunch of people convinced that the City of Billings was building a new roller coaster called the "Rim Rock Roar".

That harmless prank pales in comparison to a station I used to work for.  The legendary KILO in Colorado Springs is one of the oldest rock stations in the country.  Back in the late 70's, they pulled an April Fool's joke for the ages.  One of their DJ's, the late great Red Noise, told his listeners that Pink Floyd was playing a free concert on the roof of the KILO studios that day at noon.

As luck would have it, Floyd was on tour that spring, so it wasn't that far fetched.  Before his show was over, hundreds of people were lined up outside the studio.  By noon, the crowd had shut down two major streets in downtown Colorado Springs.  Needless to say, the local police weren't very happy.  By the time people realized they had been suckered, the mob had grown restless.  Luckily, the cops were able to peacefully disburse the unruly masses before a riot broke out.

20 years later, I was working on that same station and, somehow, we suckered hundreds of stoned kids into believing that the band Korn was hosting a 3 on 3 basketball tournament in the parking lot of a local movie theater.  Once again, the police were a little upset with our shenanigans.

It just goes to show that there's a sucker born every minute.  And the more bong hits they have inhaled that day, the more gullible they are.  Which is why you should believe nothing you hear on April Fool's Day.  Especially if it's coming from an obnoxious radio DJ.