From the snowy romances of Winter to the sweaty and sexy romances of Summer, Romance Daily News covers it all. So when I was tasked with writing up a romance themed article for April 1st, one question came to my mind: can an April Fool’s romance actually exist?
I mean, let’s be real: how many times have we stumbled upon horrible prank break ups that go horribly wrong? Or break up pranks that actually lead to a break up? Honestly. So I did a little digging for some interesting April Fool’s romance stories, and I was not disappointed.
Through my browsing on the internet I discovered a collection of odd stories of pranksters throughout history on a website called http://hoaxes.org/about.
According to their website, “The Museum of Hoaxes was established in 1997. It explores deception, mischief, and misinformation throughout history, playing host to a variety of humbugs and hoodwinks — from ancient fakery all the way up to modern schemes, dupes, and dodges that circulate online.
“The museum is divided into a number of different sections. The historical wing presents a selection of history's most notorious hoaxes, from the Middle Ages right up to the present. Our Gallery of April Fool's Day hoaxes celebrates that one day of the year devoted to pranks and practical jokes. The Hoax Photo Archive demonstrates that photography has never been an entirely trustworthy medium of information. And the Tall-Tale Creature Gallery delves into the natural history of species such as the Jackalope and Fur-Bearing Trout.”
After browsing through the April Fools section, filled with hilarious stories of romantic pranksters, I found a few odd ones that stood out to me.
One such archival, dating back to 1944 and published in the Lewiston Evening Journal, detailed how a woman had “shrunk” her husband down with reducing fluid and bottled him up to keep him. While it’s a bit of a stale joke, it was probably during a time where “photoshopping” wasn’t as widely known to the public. And I could imagine it may have caused some confusion. It’s corny, it’s sweet, and it’s a little bit creepy.
And here’s another one, titled Lusthansa dating back to 1996. A German newspaper, Die Welt, reported that their Lufthansa airline would be offering in-flight matchmaking services. Passengers who would opt for the service would be seated next to another passenger who signed up for the service and could be a potential romantic partner. It drew some criticism from some feminists, who noted Lufthansa should be renamed “Lust-hansa,” and that’s how the archival material received its name.
Along with the funny ones, there are the jokes made in poor taste, of course, one’s in need of apologies. In 2000, The Romanian edition of Playboy published an April Fool’s article titled “How to Beat Your Wife without Leaving a Trace,” which was written from the point of view of a policeman. Of course, there was public uproar, women marched against it, and Playboy Enterprises chairman Christie Hefner issued an apology.
And there you have it. Although I didn't really find the answer to my question, I instead fell down a rabbit hole of internet hoaxes with enough laughs to last through quarantine. So, what are some funny April Fool’s romance stories you have to share?