We asked our funny friends to share their proudest practical joke stories. Here's what they had to say:
1. The Screamer
"In high school I wired a mini tape recorder to a friend's locker so every time he opened it a voice would just continuously scream until he closed it."
—Ari V.
2. Snowman Scandal
"There was an ice rink in the town I grew up in (Chandler, Arizona) and every night at 11:15 p.m. they would empty the Zamboni in the back, behind the rink.
"We would take my friend's pickup truck and fill it with the Zamboni snow, then drive to our friends' houses and scatter it all over their yards, build snowmen, etc. That way, they would wake up to a winter wonderland in their front yards. In Arizona. In July. Then they'd be all like, 'Whaaaaaaaa?!!!'
"There was a even write-up in the local paper about it, and they referred to the mysterious perpetrators (us) as 'The Snow Bandits,' so that was really cool."
—Justin T.
3. Who Doughnut?
"Once, after a long night of partying, I snuck into my friend's apartment and hid doughnuts everywhere. I left a box in her kitchen, scattered some around her living room, and even tucked one between her hands while she was sleeping.
"The next morning, she got so mad at herself because she thought she bought and ate those doughnuts on the way home from the bar.
"I didn't tell her the truth for a week."
—Danielle D.
4. The Worthless Wallet
"My friend always used to leave his apartment door open, so a few of us decided to get the better of him.
"We walked inside and took everything off his coffee table — lamps, remotes, coins, etc. — and placed them in the exact same position on the floor. Then we took the coffee table to one of our apartments.
"He thought he got robbed, but couldn't wrap his head around why a robber would leave a wallet perfectly positioned on the floor."
—Luke H.
5. Simply Irresistible
"At any given point on April Fool's Day, if I'm in the same house as my mom and dad, I will usually short sheet their bed and shrink-wrap at least one toilet bowl.
"I just can't resist."
—Chris D.
6. Terror Is a Flat Circle
"In high school, I went to see The Ring with my best friend. After the movie I dropped him off at his house, and I knew he was going to be home alone.
"I drove up the street and parked my car. I snuck into his backyard (knowing they always left the back door open) and got into his house. I walked up the stairs and into his room where he was sitting in the dark on his computer. I slowly started tiptoeing toward him 'til I was close enough to touch him. I grabbed his shoulder, screaming at the top of my lungs, and he jumped so high I thought he was gonna hit the ceiling.
"We both fell over — him clutching his chest, me laughing uncontrollably. Despite almost having a heart attack, he's still alive, and, shockingly, still one of my best friends."
—Ori B.
7. Under Where?
"One time I hid under my sister's bed for 30 minutes while she brushed her teeth and got ready for bed. Then I waited five minutes until she turned off the light. Then I jumped out and scared the living sh*t out of her."
—Joey R.
8. Conspiracy Theorist
"For a very brief period in the pre-Google-everything era, I got my girlfriend to believe that penguins weren't real. They were rare birds painted with black spots by zoos because they were a big attraction and made lots of money."
—Eric S.
9. A Yam-fisted Attempt
"My husband and I were grocery shopping, and we saw some very bizarre-looking yams. We decided it would be *hilarious* to buy these yams and place them on the doorstep of a friend (not a close friend: We didn't want to choose someone who would suspect us) at random intervals.
"We dropped off a yam every couple of days for the next month... We kept thinking our friend would update on FB about it or eventually send us a text asking if it was us. Nothing.
"Eventually, we decided to knock on their door, yam in hand — thinking they would be psyched to finally find out what had been going on...
"Apparently, this prank is creepy rather than funny. We're not friends anymore."
—Hannah C.
10. The Photo Crook
"My friend and I used to take my old co-worker's photos off his cubicle wall and Photoshop ourselves into the background, get them printed out, and replace them before he got into work."
—Will H.
11. Surprise Fame
"I set my roommate up on a real hidden-camera show. Like, it was on TV. I told her that I heard about this amazing job opportunity at a company that she would be perfect for, and later that week, she was on an interview.
"Once she was there, all the people at the office were in bikinis, they gave her a piña colada as she waited, they made her do the hula and chant tiki songs as part of her interview, and ended the interview with the limbo.
"At the end, I busted out of the doors à la a classic prank show, and she was very disappointed that that was not, in fact, a real job. End of the day, the joke was on me, because she ended up receiving a free trip to the Bahamas from it, and I was left at home."
—Spencer B.
