Don't believe everything you hear Saturday! It will be April Fools' Day, and many one-on-one pranks and hoaxes will likely result.
And for radio stations, pranks are a part of their element. All April 1 does is give disc jockeys an excuse to act even less serious than usual.Today's biggest nonradio hoaxes happen year-round, though, and are usually of the high-tech variety that circulate freely on the Internet -- about computer viruses, chain letters, various urban legends, etc.
However, what may well have been one of the state's biggest frauds was perpetrated some 127 years ago at Alta in the low-tech days of boomtown mining, saloons and boot-hill graveyards -- when radio didn't even exist.
This fanciful tale, true or not, is prominently recorded in such Alta history books as "This is Alta," by Ruth Winder Robertson, written in 1972.
It goes like this:
In the spring of 1873, a mysterious stranger is reported to have appeared in Alta, claiming to have the power to resurrect the dead. For a small sum, he would bring back to life all 150 or so occupants of the city's "Boots On" cemetery. At first, the idea seemed favorable to the 3,000 or so residents of this rough mining town. But then the downsides were considered -- widows and widowers who had remarried might have a little fight on their hands, ownership would be insecure for those who had inherited property, and many old grudges might resurface and produce even more killings.
Alta boasted almost a murder a day, and one of its saloons was called "The Bucket of Blood."
The townfolk held a big meeting and decided they'd best pay off the stranger, lest he bring back to life a host of troubles for them. Some $2,500 (or $25,000 by another account) was quickly collected and given to the man, with the provision that he would depart and never return. He took the money and, of course, was never seen or heard from again.
Today, we might refer to this as an urban legend, but these types of tales have long lifespans, and although they may seem quite unbelievable, much more of the population have fallen for this kind of thing than you might suspect.
For example, there was the famous Orson Welles Halloween radio broadcast of 1938, a news-style series of reports that suggested Earth was being attacked by Martians, which Welles had actually based on H.G. Wells' novel, "The War of the Worlds." It was amazing how many people across America panicked and believed the drama to be true.
The most common radio pranks on April 1 include the wrong time of day being given or a huge snowfall being reported.
Since April 1 falls on a Saturday this year, only the "jump-the-gun" DJs will probably perform April Fools' pranks in 2000 -- and most likely today, Friday, March 31.
Here are some examples of the more unusual radio pranks staged in Salt Lake City on April 1 during the past decade:
1999: "Fisher, Todd and Erin" on KISN, the state's longest-running morning show, act as if they've switched stations.
1998: "Johnson and Johnson" on KUBL tell listeners the IRS has made some big changes and if you don't already have your income tax refund, you won't be getting it. Frustrated IRS employees even call the DJs to complain. Meanwhile, "Simon and Brady" on KBEE report that Karl Malone has broken his hand.
1994: "Fisher and Todd" on KISN stage a contest to make a lucky listener a millionaire. However, the million is awarded in pesos, worth $326. Also, Kerry Jackson and Bill Allred on KXRK resurrect the old "K-96" format that was on the same radio frequency more than a decade earlier, and they become "Fisher and Gentry" for a day.
1993: "Cano and Simmons" on KKAT tell listeners to tape their toilets shut to avoid a sewer backup problem along the Wasatch Front. And "Gary and Mick" on KVRI broadcast live from the nation's largest April Fools' Day Parade in Scipio, Millard County.
1992: Clyde Lewis and Kerry Jackson on KJQN act as if their station has been sold to a Japanese company.
LDS GENERAL CONFERENCE -- Both KSL (AM-1160) and KSRR (AM-1400) will air LDS General Conference live on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2.
Deseret News radio editor Lynn Arave can be reached by e-mail at lynn@desnews.com or by phone at 237-2168.