Beware…

Just a reminder, tomorrow* is April Fool's Day. That means, of course, that someone is going to try to fool you. Please take everything you see with a grain of salt, and properly investigate the veracity of something before jumping to conclusions.

I say this because of this post I made back in 2007. (Has it really been that long?) This was the first time McDonald's had Oz toys in their Happy Meals, and they were a big hit. The timing of the promotion worked out so well that when the idea struck me, I couldn't resist. I know the Wizard would have to be one of them, since he wasn't in that first wave for some reason, and the Mayor was just a logical addition as well. I even found pictures of Mayor and Wizard dolls (the expensive full-size ones they are best known for) from Madame Alexander's website for the graphic. Being the responsible prankster that I am, I set the link to the "original source" so that it would explain it was a joke. Sadly, too many people didn't do that, and reported it as news. As more and more people spread it, it took on a life of its own. Let's just say that I got a lot of backlash for it, even with the disclaimer. After a few days, I thought it had died down, only to find it reported again as news in The Baum Bugle a few months later! I immediately sent off a note to the editor explaining the situation, and there was a correction in the next issue, but that is, frankly, not a situation I want to see repeated again. Hence, my annual warning. So, you have been warned!

* Actually, as I write this, it's already April 1 in some parts of the world, and I know some Australians are already trying to fool us.