Misplaced Pages

#414585

84-406: April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes . Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved with these pranks, which may be revealed as such the following day. The custom of setting aside a day for playing harmless pranks upon one's neighbour has been relatively common in

168-457: A self-addressed stamped envelope , allowing one to receive a reply without burdening the addressee with postage fees. Return postcards consist of a single double-size sheet, and cost double the price of a usual postcard – one addresses and writes one half as a usual postcard, writes one's own address on the return card, leaving the other side blank for the reply, then folds and sends. Return postcards are most frequently encountered by non-Japanese in

252-668: A "fool" is known by a few different names around the country, including "noodle", "gob", "gobby", or "noddy". One common prank is to carefully remove the cream from an Oreo , then replacing it with white toothpaste , and there are many similar pranks that replace an object (usually food) with another object that looks like the object but tastes different such as replacing sugar with salt or vanilla frosting with sour cream. As well as people playing pranks on one another on April Fools' Day, elaborate pranks have appeared on radio and television stations, newspapers, and websites, and have been performed by large corporations. In one famous prank in 1957,

336-403: A few options including free, government-issued field postcards, cheap, picture postcards, and embroidered cards meant as keepsakes. Unfortunately, censors often disapproved of picture postcards. In one case, French censors reviewed 23,000 letters and destroyed only 156 (although 149 of those were illustrated postcards). Censors in all warring countries also filtered out propaganda that disparaged

420-513: A first-page article but not the top headline. In Poland, prima Aprilis ("First April" in Latin ) as a day of pranks is a centuries-long tradition. It is a day when many pranks are played: sometimes very sophisticated hoaxes are prepared by people, media (which often cooperate to make the "information" more credible), and even public institutions. Serious activities are usually avoided; every word said on 1 April could be untrue. The conviction for this

504-579: A genuine important order or warning is issued on April Fools' Day, there is risk that it will be misinterpreted as a joke and ignored – for example, when Google , known to play elaborate April Fools' Day hoaxes, announced the launch of Gmail with 1- gigabyte inboxes in 2004, an era when competing webmail services offered 4- megabytes or less, many dismissed it as a joke outright. On the other hand, sometimes stories intended as jokes are taken seriously. Either way, there can be adverse effects, such as confusion, misinformation, waste of resources (especially when

588-421: A hoax include: Books, films, telemovies and television episodes have used April Fools' Day as their title or inspiration. Examples include Bryce Courtenay 's novel April Fool's Day (1993), whose title refers to the day Courtenay's son died. The 1990s sitcom Roseanne featured an episode titled "April Fools' Day". This turned out to be intentionally misleading, as the episode was instead about Tax Day in

672-838: A large postal system spanning India resulted in unprecedented postal access: a message on a postcard could be sent from one part of the country to another part (often to a physical address without a nearby post office) without additional postage affixed. This was followed in April 1880 by postcards meant specifically for government use and by reply postcards in 1890. The postcard facility continues to this date in independent India . Official postcards were introduced in December 1873, shortly after stamps were introduced to Japan. Return postcards were introduced in 1885, sealed postcards in 1900, and private postcards were allowed from 1900. In Japan, official postcards have one side dedicated exclusively to

756-645: A new type of card, PHQ Cards , popular with collectors, especially when they have the appropriate stamp affixed and a first day of issue postmark obtained. In 1894, British publishers were given permission by the Royal Mail to manufacture and distribute picture postcards, which could be sent through the post. It was originally thought that the first UK postcards were produced by printing firm Stewarts of Edinburgh but later research, published in Picture Postcard Monthly in 1991, has shown that

840-528: A nobleman who sent his servant on foolish errands on 1 April, predating the change. April Fools' Day was also an established tradition in Great Britain before 1 January was established as the start of the calendar year. In 1686, John Aubrey referred to the celebration as "Fooles holy day", the first British reference. On 1 April 1698, several people were tricked into going to the Tower of London to "see

924-497: A paper fish to the victim's back without being noticed. This fish feature is prominently present on many late 19th- to early 20th-century French April Fools' Day postcards . Many newspapers also spread a false story on April Fish Day, and a subtle reference to a fish is sometimes given as a clue to the fact that it is an April Fools' prank. Boulangeries, pâtisseries and chocolatiers in France sell chocolate fishes in their shop windows on

SECTION 10

#1732780126415

1008-491: A paper for public postings. According to the same state standards, cards are classified according to the type and kind. Depending on whether or not the image on the card printing postage stamp cards are divided into two types: Depending on whether or not the card illustrations, cards are divided into two types: Cards, depending on the location of illustrations divided into: Depending on the walking area cards subdivided into: In Britain, postcards without images were issued by

1092-501: A post correspondence card with an image of a man with a cannon, signaling the looming Franco-Prussian war. In the following year the first known picture postcard in which the image functioned as a souvenir was sent from Vienna . The first advertising card appeared in 1872 in Great Britain and the first German card appeared in 1874. Private advertising cards started appearing in the United States around 1873, and qualified for

1176-400: A practical joke on the postal service, since the image is a caricature of workers in the post office. In 2002 the postcard sold for a record £31,750. In the United States, the custom of sending through the mail, at letter rate, a picture or blank card stock that held a message, began with a card postmarked in December 1848 containing printed advertising. The first commercially produced card

1260-647: A primary source, postcards are incredibly important to the types of historical research conducted by historians, historic preservationists, and genealogists alike. They give insight into both the physical world, and the social world of the time. During their heyday postcards revolutionized communication, similar to social media of today. For those studying communication, they highlight the adoption of media, its adaptation, and its ultimate discarding. Postcards have been used to study topics as diverse as theatre, racial attitudes, and war. Libraries, archives, and museums have extensive collections of picture postcards; many of

1344-539: A recipient address, and the other for a brief message. His proposal was denied on grounds of being too radical and officials did not believe anyone would willingly give up their privacy. In October 1869, the post office of Austria-Hungary accepted a similar proposal, also without images, and 3 million cards were mailed within the first three months. With the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in July 1870,

1428-547: A significant economic and cultural aspect of British seaside tourism. Sold by newsagents and street vendors, as well as by specialist souvenir shops, modern seaside postcards often feature multiple depictions of the resort in unusually favourable weather conditions. John Hinde used saturated colour and meticulously planned his photographs, which made his postcards of the later twentieth century become collected and admired as kitsch . Such cards are also respected as important documents of social history , and have been influential on

1512-449: A special postage rate of one cent. Private cards inspired Lipman's card were also produced concurrently with the U.S. government postal in 1873. The backs of these private cards contained the words "Correspondence Card", "Mail Card" or "Souvenir Card" and required two-cent postage if they were written upon. Cards showing images increased in number during the 1880s. Images of the newly built Eiffel Tower in 1889 and 1890 gave impetus to

1596-489: A variety of costumes and walk around the city fooling around and pranking passersby. One of the traditions on April Fools' Day is to dress up the main city monument in funny clothes. Humorina even has its own logo—a cheerful sailor in a lifebelt —whose author was the artist Arkady Tsykun. During the festival, special souvenirs bearing the logo are printed and sold. Since 2010, April Fools' Day celebrations include an International Clown Festival, and both celebrated as one. In 2019,

1680-525: A way for the general public to keep in touch with their friends and family, and required little writing. Anytime there was a major event, a postcard photographer was there to document it (including celebrations, disasters, political movements, and even wars). Commemorating popular humor, entertainment, fashion, and many other aspects of daily life, they also shed light on transportation, sports, work, religion, and advertising. Cards were sent to convey news of death and birth, store purchases, and employment. As

1764-835: A wider audience than ever before. 28 December, the equivalent day in Spain and Hispanic America , is also the Christian day of celebration of the Day of the Holy Innocents . The Christian celebration is a religious holiday in its own right, but the tradition of pranks is not, though the latter is observed yearly. In some regions of Hispanic America after a prank is played, the cry is made, " Inocente palomita que te dejaste engañar " ("You innocent little dove that let yourself be fooled!"; not to be confused with another meaning of palomita , which means " popcorn " in some dialects). In Argentina,

SECTION 20

#1732780126415

1848-413: Is 1 April. However, it is not clear that Chaucer was referencing 1 April since the text of the "Nun's Priest's Tale" also states that the story takes place on the day when the sun is "in the sign of Taurus had y-rune Twenty degrees and one," which would not be 1 April. Modern scholars believe that there is a copying error in the extant manuscripts and that Chaucer actually wrote, " Syn March was gon ". If so,

1932-466: Is controversial. The mixed opinions of critics are epitomized in the reception to the 1957 BBC " spaghetti-tree hoax ", in reference to which, newspapers were split over whether it was "a great joke or a terrible hoax on the public". The positive view is that April Fools' can be good for one's health because it encourages "jokes, hoaxes ... pranks, [and] belly laughs", and brings all the benefits of laughter including stress relief and reducing strain on

2016-551: Is equivalent of 1 April. It is a tradition that takes place 13 days after the Persian new year Nowruz . On this day, people go out and leave their houses and have fun outside mostly in natural parks. Pranks have reportedly been played on this holiday since 536 BC in the Achaemenid Empire . In Ireland, it was traditional to entrust the victim with an "important letter" to be given to a named person. That person would read

2100-571: Is so strong that the Polish anti-Turkish alliance with Leopold I , signed on 1 April 1683, was backdated to 31 March. However, for some in Poland prima April ends at noon of 1 April and prima April jokes after that hour are considered inappropriate and not classy. In many Spanish-speaking countries (and the Philippines), " Día de los Santos Inocentes " ( Holy Innocents Day ) is a festivity that

2184-478: Is termed deltiology (from Greek deltion , small writing tablet, and the also Greek -logy , the study of). Cards with messages have been sporadically created and posted by individuals since the beginning of postal services. The earliest known picture postcard was a hand-painted design on card created by the writer Theodore Hook . Hook posted the card, which bears a penny black stamp, to himself in 1840 from Fulham (part of London). He probably did so as

2268-609: Is very similar to April Fools' Day, but is celebrated in late December (27, 28 or 29 depending on the location). Despite this, in Galicia April Fools' Day is also traditional, as accounted by Ramón Otero Pedrayo , as " Día dos enganos ", and the tradition is embedded in a traditional saying about this day being the day when donkeys go where they must not go . Turkey also has a custom of April Fools' pranks. Pranks and jokes are usually verbal and are revealed by shouting "Bir Nisan! / Nisan Bir!" (1 April!). April Fools' Day

2352-578: Is widely celebrated in Odesa and has the special local name Humorina (in Ukrainian Гуморина, Humorina ) . This holiday arose in 1973. An April Fool prank is revealed by saying "Перше квітня — брехня всесвітня" (" Pershe kvitnya — brekhnya vsesvitnya " , translating as "First of April — worldwide lies") to the recipient. The festival includes a large parade in the city centre, free concerts, street fairs and performances. Festival participants dress up in

2436-601: The BBC broadcast a film in their Panorama current affairs series purporting to show Swiss farmers picking freshly-grown spaghetti, in what they called the Swiss spaghetti harvest . The BBC was soon flooded with requests to purchase a spaghetti plant, forcing them to declare the film a hoax on the news the next day. With the advent of the Internet and readily available global news services, April Fools' pranks can catch and embarrass

2520-603: The Post Office in 1870, and were printed with a stamp as part of the design, which was included in the price of purchase. These cards came in two sizes. The larger size was found to be slightly too large for ease of handling, and was soon withdrawn in favour of cards 13mm ( 1 ⁄ 2 inch) shorter. 75 million of these cards were sent within Britain during 1870. In 1973 the British Post Office introduced

2604-540: The misinformation about the virus, and to pre-empt any attempts to incorporate the virus into any potential pranks. For example, Google decided not to continue "its infamous April Fools’ jokes" tradition for that year. Because the pandemic was still ongoing a year later in 2021, they also decided not to do pranks that year. In Thailand , the police warned ahead of April Fools' in 2021 that posting or sharing fake news online could lead to maximum of five years imprisonment. Other examples of genuine news on 1 April mistaken as

April Fools' Day - Misplaced Pages Continue

2688-596: The "Day of the Innocent Children" or "Day of the Stupid Children". It used to be a day where parents, grandparents, and teachers would fool the children in some way. But the celebration of this day has died out in favour of April Fools' Day. Nevertheless, on the Spanish island of Menorca , Dia d'enganyar ("Fooling day") is celebrated on 1 April because Menorca was a British possession during part of

2772-482: The 18th century. In Brazil, the " Dia da mentira " ("Day of the lie") is also celebrated on 1 April due to the Portuguese influence. In many English-speaking countries, mainly Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, it is a custom to say "pinch and a punch for the first of the month" or an alternative, typically by children. The victim might respond with "a flick and a kick for being so quick", and

2856-598: The Lions washed". Although no biblical scholar or historian is known to have mentioned a relationship, some have expressed the belief that the origins of April Fools' Day may go back to the Genesis flood narrative . In a 1908 edition of the Harper's Weekly , cartoonist Bertha R. McDonald wrote: Some authorities gravely go back with it to the time of Noah and the ark . The London Public Advertiser of March 13, 1769, prints

2940-705: The Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden introduce their own postals. Algeria, Chile, France and Russia did so in 1872, and were followed by France, Japan, Romania, Serbia, Spain and the United States between 1873 and 1874. Many of these postals included small images on the same side as the postage. Postcards began to be sent internationally after the first Congress of the General Postal Union , which met in Bern, Switzerland in October 1874. The Treaty of Bern

3024-1006: The Promulgation of Post Cards , and the Post Card Union sprang up to facilitate postcard exchanges, each having thousands of members. Postcard albums were commonly seen in Victorian parlors, and had a place of prominence in many middle and upper class households. Today, postcard collecting is still a popular and widespread hobby. The value of a postcard is mainly determined by the image illustrated on it. Other important factors for collectors can be countries, issuers, and authors. Online catalogs can be found on collector websites and clubs. These catalogs provide detailed information about each postcard alongside their picture. In addition, these websites include collection management tools, trading platforms, and forums to assist with discussions between collectors. The oldest continuously run club in

3108-529: The San Antonio post office processed more than 75,000 letters, of which they controlled 77 percent (and held 20 percent for the following week). Soldiers on the front developed strategies to circumvent censors. Some would go on "home leave" and take messages with them to post from a remote location. Those writing postcards in the field knew they were being censored, and deliberately held back controversial content and personal matters. Those writing home had

3192-485: The United States Postal Service would only allow the delivery of postcards showing a back view of naked men from Britain if their posteriors were covered with a black bar. Early postcards often showcased photography of nude women. Illegal to produce in the United States, these were commonly known as French postcards , due to the large number of them produced in France. Other countries objected to

3276-487: The United States government changed the postage rate for private cards from two cents to one in May 1898. Spanning from approximately 1905 to 1915 in the United States, the golden age of postcards stemmed from a combination of social, economic, and governmental factors. Demand for postcards increased, government restrictions on production loosened, and technological advances (in photography, printing, and mass production) made

3360-409: The United States, occurring on 15 April. The 19th episode of the first season of SpongeBob SquarePants , "Fools In April", also centers around a plot that takes place on April Fools' Day. Every year on 1 April, video game developer Mojang releases an April Fool's Day snapshot (an altered version of the game) for Minecraft: Java Edition (a version of Minecraft available on computers). Over

3444-554: The United States, which banned the publication of "obscene matter as well as its circulation in the mails". In 1908, §3893 was added to the Comstock Act, stating that the ban included material "tending to incite arson, murder, or assassination". Although this act did not explicitly ban lynching photographs or postcards, it banned the explicit racist texts and poems inscribed on certain prints. According to some, these texts were deemed "more incriminating" and caused their removal from

April Fools' Day - Misplaced Pages Continue

3528-506: The United States. They required less ink and had lower production standards than fine German cards. These were later replaced by "linen" postcards in the 1930s and 1940s, which used a printing process popularized by Curt Teich . Finally, the modern era of Photochrom (often shortened simply to "chrome") postcards began in 1939, and gained momentum around 1950. These glossy, colorful postcards are what we most commonly encounter today. Postcard sales dropped to around 25% of 1990s levels, with

3612-533: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.226 via cp1108 cp1108, Varnish XID 222305427 Upstream caches: cp1108 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 07:48:46 GMT Postcard In some places, one can send a postcard for a lower fee than a letter . Stamp collectors distinguish between postcards (which require a postage stamp ) and postal cards (which have

3696-418: The acquisition of souvenir postcards from the world's fairs, which were produced specifically with the collector (souvenir hunter) in mind. Later, during the golden age of postcards, collecting became a mainstream craze. The frenzy of purchasing, mailing, and collecting postcards was often referred to as "postcarditis", with up to half purchased by collectors. Clubs such as The Jolly Jokers , The Society for

3780-445: The address, and the other side for the content, though commemorative picture postcards and private picture postcards also exist. In Japan today, two particular idiosyncratic postcard customs exist: New Year's Day postcards ( 年賀状 , nengajō ) and return postcard s ( 往復はがき , ōfuku-hagaki ) . New Year's Day postcards serve as greeting cards , similar to Western Christmas cards , while return postcards function similarly to

3864-620: The arms of the Duchy of Brittany and the inscription "War of 1870. Camp Conlie. Souvenir of the National Defence. Army of Brittany" (in French). While these are certainly the first known picture postcards, there was no space for stamps and no evidence that they were ever posted without envelopes. In Germany, the bookdealer August Schwartz from Oldenburg is regarded as the inventor of the illustrated postcard. On July 16, 1870, he mailed

3948-555: The attacker might reply with "a punch in the eye for being so sly". Another custom in Britain and North America is to say " rabbit rabbit " upon waking on the first day of a month, for good luck. Similar events documented by other Misplaced Pages languages also exist such as Poisson d'avril (France) and in the US the International day of the joke event which is assigned the first Sunday in May. The practice of April Fool pranks and hoaxes

4032-507: The boom possible. In addition, the expansion of Rural Free Delivery allowed mail to be delivered to more American households than ever before. Billions of postcards were mailed during the golden age, including nearly a billion per year in United States from 1905 to 1915, and 7 billion worldwide in 1905. Many postcards from this era were in fact never posted but directly acquired by collectors themselves. Despite years of incredible success, economic and government forces would ultimately spell

4116-558: The context of making reservations at certain locations that only accept reservations by return postcard, notably at Saihō-ji (moss temple). For overseas purposes, an international reply coupon is used instead. In the State Standard of the Russian Federation "GOST 51507-99. Postal cards. Technical requirements. Methods of Control" (2000) gives the following definition: Post Card is a standard rectangular form of

4200-418: The cuckoo". The traditional prank is to ask someone to deliver a sealed message that supposedly requests help of some sort. In fact, the message reads " Dinna laugh, dinna smile. Hunt the gowk another mile. " The recipient, upon reading it, will explain they can only help if they first contact another person, and they send the victim to this next person with an identical message, with the same result. In England

4284-657: The day. In Lebanon , an April Fool prank is revealed by saying كذبة أول نيسان (which translates to "First of April Lie") to the recipient. Danes, Finns, Icelanders, Norwegians and Swedes celebrate April Fools' Day ( aprilsnar in Danish; aprillipäivä in Finnish; aprilsnarr in Norwegian; aprilskämt in Swedish). Most news media outlets will publish exactly one false story on 1 April; for newspapers this will typically be

SECTION 50

#1732780126415

4368-497: The early 1930s, cartoon-style saucy postcards became widespread, and at the peak of their popularity the sale of saucy postcards reached 16 million a year. They were often bawdy in nature, making use of innuendo and double entendres , and traditionally featured stereotypical characters such as vicars, large ladies, and put-upon husbands, in the same vein as the Carry On films. A notable artist of seaside postcards, often saucy,

4452-764: The end of the golden age. The peak came sometime between 1907 and 1910 for the United States. In 1909, American publishers successfully lobbied to place tariffs on high quality German imports with the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act . The effects of tariffs really started to make a large impact, and escalating hostilities in Europe made it difficult to import cards and ink into the United States. The fad may have also simply run its natural course. The war disrupted production efforts in Europe, although postcard production did not entirely stop. Cards were still useful for propaganda, and for boosting troop morale. After

4536-477: The enemy or approved of atrocities. For example, German censors prevented postcards with hostile slogans such as " Jeder Stoß ein Franzos " ("Every hit a Frenchman") among others. Postcards document the natural landscape as well as the built environment—buildings, gardens, parks, cemeteries, and tourist sites. They provide snapshots of societies at a time when few newspapers carried images. Postcards provided

4620-615: The enthusiasm with which the new medium was embraced) raised some legal issues. Picture postcards allowed and encouraged many individuals to send images across national borders, and the legal availability of a postcard image in one country did not guarantee that the card would be considered "proper" in the destination country, or in the intermediate countries that the card would have to pass through. Some countries might refuse to handle postcards containing sexual references (in seaside postcards) or images of full or partial nudity (for instance, in images of classical statuary or paintings). For example,

4704-539: The festival was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Odesa Film Studio and all events were held with an emphasis on cinema. In the UK, an April Fool prank is sometimes later revealed by shouting "April fool!" at the recipient, who becomes the "April fool". A study in the 1950s, by folklorists Iona and Peter Opie , found that in the UK, and in countries whose traditions derived from the UK, this continues to be

4788-528: The first UK picture card was published by ETW Dennis of Scarborough . Two postmarked examples of the September 1894 ETW Dennis card have survived but no cards of Stewarts dated 1894 have been found. Early postcards were pictures of landmarks, scenic views, photographs or drawings of celebrities and so on. With steam locomotives providing fast and affordable travel, the seaside became a popular tourist destination, and generated its own souvenir-industry. In

4872-405: The following paragraph concerning this theory: "The mistake of Noah sending the dove out of the ark before the water had abated, on the first day of April, and to perpetuate the memory of this deliverance it was thought proper, whoever forgot so remarkable a circumstance, to punish them by sending them upon some sleeveless errand similar to that ineffectual message upon which the bird was sent by

4956-607: The government of the North German Confederation decided to take the advice of Austrian Emanuel Herrmann and issued postals for soldiers to inexpensively send home from the field. The period from 1870 to 1874 saw a great number of countries begin the issuance of postals. In 1870, the North German Confederation was joined by Baden, Bavaria, Great Britain, Luxembourg and Switzerland. The year 1871 saw Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland,

5040-409: The government to censor the press through the use of fines, and later any criticism of the government, army, or sale of war bonds. The Espionage Act laid the groundwork for the establishment of a Central Censorship Board which oversaw censorship of communications including cable and mail. Postal control was eventually introduced in all of the armies, to find the disclosure of military secrets and test

5124-521: The growing popularity of social media around 2007, resulting in closure of long-established printers such as J Salmon Ltd in 2017. In July 1879, the Post Office of India introduced a quarter anna postcard that could be posted from one place to another within British India . This was the cheapest form of post provided to the Indian people to date and proved a huge success. The establishment of

SECTION 60

#1732780126415

5208-441: The heart. There are many "best of" April Fools' Day lists that are compiled in order to showcase the best examples of how the day is celebrated. Various April Fools' campaigns have been praised for their innovation, creativity, writing, and general effort. The negative view describes April Fools' hoaxes as "creepy and manipulative", "rude" and "a little bit nasty", as well as based on Schadenfreude and deceit. When genuine news or

5292-470: The hoax concerns people in danger) and even legal or commercial consequences. In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic , various organizations and people cancelled their April Fools' Day celebrations, or advocated against observing April Fools' Day, as a mark of respect due to the large amount of tragic deaths that COVID-19 had caused up to that point, the wish to provide truthful information to counter

5376-581: The inappropriate use of religious imagery. The Ottoman Empire banned the sale or importation of some materials relating to the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 1900. Affected postcards that were successfully sent through the Ottoman Empire before this date (and are postmarked accordingly) have a high rarity value and are considered valuable by collectors. In 1873, the Comstock Act was passed in

5460-522: The invention of April Fools' Day. The use of 1 January as New Year's Day became common in France only in the mid-16th century, and that date was not adopted officially until 1564, by the Edict of Roussillon , as called for during the Council of Trent in 1563. However, there are issues with this theory because there is an unambiguous reference to April Fools' Day in a 1561 poem by Flemish poet Eduard de Dene of

5544-560: The letter, then ask the victim to take it to someone else, and so on. The letter when opened contained the words "send the fool further". In Italy, France, Belgium and French-speaking areas of Switzerland and Canada, the 1 April tradition is often known as "April fish" ( poisson d'avril in French, aprilvis in Dutch or pesce d'aprile in Italian). Possible pranks include attempting to attach

5628-420: The mail instead of the photograph itself because the text made "too explicit what was always implicit in lynchings". Some towns imposed " self-censorship " on lynching photographs, but section 3893 was the first step towards a national censorship . Despite the amendment, the distribution of lynching photographs and postcards continued. Though they were not sold openly, the censorship was bypassed when people sent

5712-603: The material in envelopes or mail wrappers. Censorship played an important role in the First World War. Each country involved utilized some form of censorship. This was a way to sustain an atmosphere of ignorance and give propaganda a chance to succeed. In response to the war, the United States Congress passed the Espionage Act of 1917 and Sedition Act of 1918 . These gave broad powers to

5796-795: The morale of soldiers. In Allied countries , civilians were also subjected to censorship. French censorship was modest and more targeted compared to the sweeping efforts made by the British and Americans. In Great Britain, all mail was sent to censorship offices in London or Liverpool. The United States sent mail to several centralized post offices as directed by the Central Censorship Board. American censors would only open mail related to Spain, Latin America or Asia—as their British allies were handling other countries. In one week alone,

5880-634: The passage would have originally meant 32 days after March, i.e. 2 May. In 1508, French poet Eloy d'Amerval referred to a poisson d'avril (April fool, literally "April's fish"), possibly the first reference to the celebration in France. Some historians suggest that April Fools' originated because, in the Middle Ages, New Year's Day was celebrated on 25 March in most European towns, with a holiday that in some areas of France, specifically, ended on 1 April, and those who celebrated New Year's Eve on 1 January made fun of those who celebrated on other dates by

5964-405: The patriarch." Source: In Armenian culture , an April Fool prank is revealed by saying ապրիլ մեկ! ( april mek ) which means 1 April. In Germany, an April Fool prank is sometimes later revealed by shouting "April, April!" at the recipient, who becomes the "April fool". In Iran, it is called " Dorugh-e Sizdah " (lie of Thirteen) and people and media prank on 13 Farvardin ( Sizdah bedar ) that

6048-429: The postage pre-printed on them). While a postcard is usually printed and sold by a private company, individual or organization, a postal card is issued by the relevant postal authority (often with pre-printed postage). Production of postcards blossomed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. As an easy and quick way for individuals to communicate, they became extremely popular. The study and collecting of postcards

6132-497: The postcard, leading to the so-called "golden age" of the picture postcard. This golden age began slightly earlier in Europe than the United States, likely due to a depression in the 1890s . Still, the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 excited many attendees with its line of "Official Souvenir" postals, which popularized the idea of picture postcards. The stage was now set for private postcard industry to boom, which it did once

6216-469: The postcards in these collections are digitized Efforts are continuously being made by professionals in these fields to digitize these materials to make them more widely accessible to the public. For those interested, there are already several large collections viewable online. Some large digital collections of postcards include: It is likely that postcard collecting first began as soon as postcards were mailed. One could argue that actual collecting began with

6300-541: The practice, with the custom ceasing at noon, after which time it is no longer acceptable to play pranks. Thus a person playing a prank after midday is considered the "April fool" themselves. In Scotland, April Fools' Day was originally called " Huntigowk Day ". The name is a corruption of "hunt the gowk ", gowk being Scots for a cuckoo or a foolish person; alternative terms in Gaelic would be Là na Gocaireachd , "gowking day", or Là Ruith na Cuthaige , "the day of running

6384-403: The prankster says, " ¡Que la inocencia te valga! " which roughly translates as advice to not be as gullible as the victim of the prank. In Spain, it is common to say just " ¡Inocente! " (which in Spanish can mean "innocent" or "gullible"). In Colombia, the term is used as " Pásala por Inocentes ", which roughly means: "Let it go; today it's Innocent's Day." In Belgium, this day is also known as

6468-444: The war, the production of postcards continued, albeit in different styles than before. Demand for postcards decreased, especially as telephone usage grew. There was still a need for postcards, which would be dubbed the "poor man's telephone". As tastes changed, publishers began focusing on scenic views, humor, and fashion. "White border" cards, which existed prior to the war, were produced in greater numbers from roughly 1915 to 1930 in

6552-543: The work of Martin Parr . The United States Postal Service defines a postcard as: rectangular, at least 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches (88.9 mm) high × 5 inches (127 mm) long × 0.007 inches (0.178 mm) thick and no more than 4 + 1 ⁄ 4 inches (108 mm) high × 6 inches (152.4 mm) long × 0.016 inches (0.406 mm) thick. However, some postcards have deviated from this (for example, shaped postcards). The initial appearance of picture postcards (and

6636-474: The world historically. Although many theories have been proposed, the exact origin of April Fools' Day is not exactly known. A disputed association between 1 April and foolishness is in Geoffrey Chaucer 's The Canterbury Tales (1392). In the " Nun's Priest's Tale ", a vain cock, Chauntecleer, is tricked by a fox "Since March began, full thirty days and two," i.e. 32 days since March began, which

6720-556: The years, several April Fool's Day updates have been released. 70. ^ " April Fools Day 2024" . The Digital Article. Archived from the original on 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024. (federal) = federal holidays, (abbreviation) = state/territorial holidays, (religious) = religious holidays, (cultural) = holiday related to a specific racial/ethnic group or sexual minority , (week) = week-long holidays, (month) = month-long holidays, (36) = Title 36 Observances and Ceremonies 1 April Too Many Requests If you report this error to

6804-614: Was created in 1861 by John P. Charlton of Philadelphia , who patented a private postal card, and sold the rights to Hymen Lipman , whose postcards, complete with a decorated border, were marketed as "Lipman's Postal Card". These cards had no images. While the United States government allowed privately printed cards as early as February 1861, they saw little use until 1870, when experiments were done on their commercial viability. A Prussian postal official, Heinrich von Stephan , first proposed an "open post-sheet" made of stiff paper in 1865. He proposed that one side would be reserved for

6888-472: Was ratified in the United States in 1875. The first known printed picture postcard, with an image on one side, was created in France in 1870 at Camp Conlie by Léon Besnardeau (1829–1914). Conlie was a training camp for soldiers in the Franco-Prussian War . The cards had a lithographed design printed on them containing emblematic images of piles of armaments on either side of a scroll topped by

6972-489: Was the illustrator Thomas Henry , most known for his portrayal of William Brown in the Just William book series by Richmal Crompton . He started drawing postcards as early as 1913, continuing well into the 1950s. In the early 1950s, the newly elected Conservative government were concerned at the apparent deterioration of morals in the UK and decided on a crackdown on these postcards. The main target of their campaign

7056-486: Was the postcard artist Donald McGill . In the more liberal 1960s, the saucy postcard was revived and later came to be considered, by some, as an art form. Original postcards are now highly sought after, and rare examples can command high prices at auction. The best-known saucy seaside postcards were produced by the publishing company Bamforths of Holmfirth , West Yorkshire . Despite the decline in popularity of postcards that are overtly "saucy", postcards continue to be

#414585