Pranks

A high-profile murder proceeding ended in an uproar Friday after a judge issued a surprise ruling that his own jury instructions were inadequate and that the defendant--charged with killing a teenager over a stolen Halloween pumpkin display--deserves a new trial. The decision in the case of Buena Park homeowner Peter Solomona prompted an angry exchange between the families of the suspect and the victim, Brandon Ketsdever, who was 17.

Re "Mitt Romney: The early years," Opinion, May 13 Michael Kinsley asks if Mitt Romney's reported high school antic almost 50 years ago of forcibly cutting off another student's hair should affect our assessment of him as a potential president. If Romney had told us that yes, he did it, that he should not have done it and that he was sorry, the case would have been closed. But Romney told us that he doesn't remember the incident. The things I did in high school still come vividly to mind after more than 60 years.

Scott Adams doesn't just lampoon consultants in his Dilbert cartoon strip, he can also pose as one and make managers believe him. Adams, whose strip appears in 1,700 newspapers in 51 countries, spouted nonsense during a meeting with executives of a Silicon Valley company, and most of them--following the lead of their boss--just nodded in agreement. "What if I was a management consultant?" Adams wondered.

Awkward Family Pet Photos Mike Bender and Doug Chernack Three Rivers Press, $15, paper The guys who brought us "Awkward Family Photos" are back with an edition devoted to cruel and unusual punishment to animals. Sort of. It's not that we don't love our pets; it's that we love them too much. That's why we make them sit in the lap of a gigantic Easter bunny (one unfortunate cat is about to have cardiac arrest), wear them on our sleeves (like a pair of sugar gliders in a young couple's photo)

Pranksterism and the visual arts share an illustrious history, especially since the modern era began and it became difficult to know whether any work ought to be taken seriously or as some kind of joke. The best art often invites both responses: Initially, it may look like an irresponsible prank, but over time its capacity to sustain our attention can establish and attest to its seriousness.

Britain's media watchdog said Tuesday that it was investigating a series of lewd prank calls made by two celebrities on a BBC radio show. The calls, by comedian Russell Brand and television personality Jonathan Ross, were broadcast on Brand's radio show. Brand, who hosted the MTV Video Music Awards last month, has built a career on his outlandish image and risque routines, but his calls to 78-year-old actor Andrew Sachs have sparked thousands of complaints and drawn condemnation in Parliament.

Former President Clinton asked aides to investigate reports of White House vandalism by outgoing members of his administration and possibly "make amends" if warranted, a spokesman said. "We made an offer to go over and survey what was done--take a look and see if we can make amends," Clinton spokesman Jake Siewert said. "We asked to take a look at the damage and offered to try to sort it out. They said that it was isolated incidents and that that would not be necessary."

Before the Pathfinder spacecraft landed triumphantly on Mars, David Gruel's mission was to screw it up. As the project's full-time "gremlin," the 27-year-old engineer was assigned to come in the middle of the night to the giant sandbox that was the testing ground for models of the Mars lander and rover. Then he was supposed to make things go wrong. Gruel was the master of his universe.

People keep telling me there's no interest in local politics in Southern California, and I have to say that I just don't get it. In Los Angeles alone, a Mexican American is running for mayor as a non-Latino, his white opponent, is running as a black man despite falling asleep at the wheel during the Rampart scandal, a Boy Scout congressman is having a Biblical fall from grace, and half the city wants to secede.

Inspired by the MTV prank show "Jackass," two Loomis teenagers recently pulled a stunt that prompted authorities to launch a manhunt and lock down Folsom Prison. On April 27, one of the teenagers put on an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs and ran along a rural road while his friend videotaped him. But the prank backfired when citizens chased the boy and law enforcement agencies sent out patrol cars, tracking dogs and a helicopter to look for him.

There is pomp and circumstance on one side and paranoia on the other. This is the UCLA-USC football rivalry — even away from the field. The Trojans and Bruins face off in their annual game Saturday night at the Coliseum. But the games relating to the game have already begun. USC and UCLA students are playing offense and defense, keeping a close eye on statues of Tommy Trojan and the Bruin Bear. This marks the 70th anniversary of the first hostilities. So, on a stormy Sunday afternoon . . . Three Trojan Knights, one in a suit and bow tie, dance in the rain to Fleetwood Mac's "Tusk," part of an hourly ritual that includes ringing the Victory Bell and bellowing a USC chant.

The calls started without warning. Every line on every phone in the Compton sheriff's station lighted up at once, hundreds of calls pouring in for hours. One sheriff's official compared the scene to the aftermath of a major earthquake or a mass shooting. But the cause of the deluge wasn't violence or natural disaster. It was Twitter. At 5:23 p.m. Friday, the Twitter feed for Compton rapper The Game posted a message encouraging his 580,000 followers to call the posted number if they wanted an internship.

Peyton Manning isn't all business with his backups. He has a lot of fun with them too. "Peyton," said his father, Archie, "has some prank in him. " That's putting it mildly. Manning is notorious for pulling pranks on teammates, and his understudies are certainly no exception. Kelly Holcomb, a Colts backup quarterback early in his career, remembers the time Manning stopped by his dormitory room at training camp for a chat. "I told him, 'Man, I've got to go get something,' and I left him in there," Holcomb said.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has been punk’d, his office confirmed Wednesday. Walker, the Republican governor who wants to end collective bargaining for his state’s public employees, was at the wrong end of a prank telephone call with a person he was led to believe was David Koch, a conservative businessman who is one of  Walker’s major campaign contributors. But in reality it was Ian Murphy, a blogger from Buffalo, N.Y. In the call, Murphy as Koch makes inflammatory statements on unions and Democrats.

Rarely had a Rose Bowl seen such flawless execution. The preparation was inspired, the key players unwavering and a national television audience enthralled. Fifty years ago this Sunday, an intrepid interloper made an uninvited, unprecedented and unforgettable appearance in the so-called Granddaddy of Them All. Caltech made the Rose Bowl. A small band of ingenious Caltech students made it happen, surreptitiously altering a University of Washington halftime flip-card routine so that it would spell out "CALTECH" in what became known as the Great Rose Bowl Hoax of 1961.

Riverside County prosecutors announced Friday they would charge two men of Canadian descent with misdemeanor charges for allegedly desecrating the U.S. flag. The men were booked earlier this week on suspicion of desecrating a U.S. flag that had flown on a La Quinta mountaintop to honor victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. They allegedly replaced the flag with a Canadian flag following Canada's victory over the United States in hockey during the Winter Olympics. The U.S. flag had been displayed for several years near Highway 111 and Washington Street after it was put there by a local resident, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department said.

FBI Director Louis J. Freeh has taken special precautions to protect his home against crime, but when the alarms went off recently, it turned out the culprit was 3 years old and it was an inside job. Freeh told reporters Thursday that his home has motion sensors that are turned on at night for security. They sound an alarm in the FBI's Strategic Information Operations Center.

As many as 10 students are believed to be responsible for a costly senior prank last week at Chatsworth High School, the school's principal said Thursday after some of those students owned up to painting over walls, windows, doors and sidewalks. Principal Dan Wyatt said an unspecified number of students have agreed to pay for the $4,000 cleanup. After the damage was discovered June 14, administrators threatened to cancel today's graduation ceremony if the vandals did not come forward.

Subversive, provocative and unexpected, "Exit Through the Gift Shop" delights in taking you by surprise, starting quietly but ending up in a hall of mirrors as unsettling as anything Lewis Carroll's Alice ever experienced. Even when you think you've figured this film out, you can't shake the notion that maybe you haven't. No director or screenwriters are listed in "Gift Shop's" credits, just the words "A Banksy Film," which refer to the notoriously secretive British street artist and master provocateur who's become world famous without giving up his anonymity.

Starting late this month, airlines that leave passengers stranded on a tarmac in a delayed plane for three hours or more can face a hefty fine under new rules adopted by the U.S. Department of Transportation. If carriers don't let passengers out of the plane before the three-hour mark, the agency can fine them up to $27,500 per customer. At least three domestic airlines have announced plans to avoid the penalties. But that won't necessarily cut down on delays. US Airways and Continental Airlines have both unveiled procedures to return the plane to the gate if it can't take off before the three-hour limit.