"The first of April is the day we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year." --Mark Twain

　　How do you think April Fools' Day originated? Did some joker in biblicaltimes decide to switch the frankincense and the myrrh? Was there a historicepidemic of spring fever-tomfoolery in a tiny Finnish town in the early1800s? Did a New Yorker in 1910 find a cockroach in his coffee cup anddecide to recreate the experience for his officemate, thereby sparking afamous April 1 lawsuit? In a convincing testimonial to the saying thattruth is stranger than fiction, we'll tell you the story, or at leastpresent the most viable theory, of how April Fools' Day came to be.

　　Once upon a time, back in 16th-century France, before computers, people celebrated New Year's Day on March 25, the advent of spring. It was afestive time. They partied steadily until April 1. In 1564, when the calendar reformed and became Gregorian, King Charles IXproclaimed, perhaps pompously, that New Year's Day should be celebrated on January 1 instead of in the spring. Diehard conservatives resisted the change (or perhaps didn't hear about it due to the absence of e-mail) and continued to celebrate New Year's from March 25 to April 1. During this period of spring festivity, the more flexible French mocked the rigidrevelers by sending them foolish gifts and invitations to non-existent parties. The victim of an April Fools' Day prank was called a "poisson d'avril," or an "April fish," because at that time of year, the sun was leaving thezodiacal sign of Pisces. April Fools' Day hit its stride (avoiding thebanana peel) in England in the 18th century, and was brought to colonial America by the English, Scottish, and French. No fooling.