Who was that masked man?

May 27, 2003 7:59 AM

Who was that masked man? A bunch of friends decide to fool their local paper into thinking there is a real-life superhero in Tunbridge Wells. Local paper falls for it hook line and sinker. Swiftly followed by national media. This thread on a Divine Comedy discussion board describes the whole dastardly plot unfolding. The fun starts on page 2.
posted by salmacis (13 comments total)

I wish I had this much time on my hands...
posted by FormlessOne at 8:03 AM on May 27, 2003

These people are my heroes.

Honestly, though, I'm always shocked by what news outlets will run, and by how quickly stories spread. While at Yale, some friends and I managed to spread our "Porn n' Chicken" meme to publications that really should have known better (e.g. Time, the NY Times).

Oh, and formlessone: sure, this sort of troublemaking is vastly time consuming - but it can also certainly pay off. Once we built up enough momentum, we managed to sell the PnC story to Comedy Central (where it became a rather crap movie about six months back). In other words, the masked monkey may be laughing all the way to the bank.
posted by thomascrown at 9:03 AM on May 27, 2003

I can't help reading the forum discursions and wondering if maybe they are putting me on...like a double put on. How do I know that the cut and pasted letters from the reporter are real?
posted by dirtylittlemonkey at 9:47 AM on May 27, 2003

Brilliant. My hat is well and truly doffed.

I can't help reading the forum discursions and wondering if maybe they are putting me on...like a double put on. How do I know that the cut and pasted letters from the reporter are real?

The thought crossed my mind too, but a quick search flings up several stories from around the world, now oddly removed. However Reuters still carry one, so happily it looks real enough.

Also (whilst not strictly relevant) I love The Divine Comedy. Neil Hannon is a god. Thankyou.
posted by zygoticmynci at 10:22 AM on May 27, 2003

There's an interview with the masked man at b3ta.
posted by Cobbler at 11:08 AM on May 27, 2003

Add this to the long list of things I wish I'd thought of. What a great way to add a little fun to the world.
posted by frykitty at 11:57 AM on May 27, 2003

This is one of those cases where I wish the web was not as global as it is. I'd love to organize a prank like this, especially with some of the local news stations here in Houston. They'd bite on anything sensational - and a superhero certainly fits the bill.

More power to the MonkeyMan!
posted by DragonBoy at 1:05 PM on May 27, 2003

The obvious next step is to actually dress up as a superhero and run around doing good. Any takers?
posted by Johnny Assay at 1:23 PM on May 27, 2003

Laff out loud funny. Reminds me of the letters section in Viz Magazine.

My point is that for every person who treads on a dog egg, there are many more who do not. Stop whingeing about something which only ever seems to happen to a "friend of a friend".

Dog Egg?!!!
posted by uncanny hengeman at 6:34 PM on May 27, 2003

wonderful stuff.

is it a bird, is it a plane, no it's mefiman!
posted by quarsan at 1:37 AM on May 28, 2003

This is without a doubt one of the funniest things I've ever seen on the web. Reminds me of a friend of mine at university who persuaded a national tabloid that another guy on his course was Monica Lewinskys secret lover, causing hundreds of journalists to besiege his college.
posted by prentiz at 5:30 AM on May 28, 2003

I'm sorry, I got more genuine laughs from the dog poo letters.
posted by uncanny hengeman at 6:36 PM on May 28, 2003

Oop oop!
posted by roboto at 8:57 PM on May 28, 2003