The Top Ten College Pranks of All Time

The staff at the Museum of Hoaxes studied hundreds, if not thousands, of examples of the genre of the college prank to find the ten most worthy of immortal fame. The pranks were judged according to three criteria: creativity, fame, and shock value.

Without further ado, here are the top ten:


#1: The Great Rose Bowl Hoax (Caltech)
"one of those classic moments when a prank comes together instantly, perfectly, and dramatically"

#2: Veterans of Future Wars (Princeton)
"turning the guns of ridicule on the goose-stepping, gun-toting generation which splashed through the biggest blood-bath in history"

#3: The McDonald's Affair (Caltech)
"today you will hardly ever find free contests inviting you to enter 'as often as you wish.'"

#4: Lady Liberty on Lake Mendota (U Wisconsin-Madison)
"Lady Liberty poked her head above the icy waters of Lake Mendota"

#5: Theft of the Sacred Cod (Harvard)
"They decided that they had to possess that cod"

#6:The Olympic Underwear Relay (Sydney University)
"The identity of the rogue runner was only revealed years later."

#7: Arm the Homeless (Ohio State)
"collecting donations to provide firearms for the homeless of Columbus"

#8: Hugo N. Frye (Cornell)
"It is a pleasure to testify to the career of that sturdy patriot who first planted the ideals of our party in this region of the country"

#9: The Ultimate Lie (Edinburgh College of Art)
"one can only say that the Donside Paper Company should have known better"

#10: Bonsai Kittens (MIT)
"You no longer need be satisfied with a house pet having the same mundane shape as all other members of its species"