"Best Joke of the Day"

In honor of April Fools Day, I want to recall one of my favorite corporate April Fools Day jokes ever.  In 1996, Taco Bell came out with full page ads (seen below) and a press release indicating that they were doing their part for the national debt by purchasing the Liberty Bell, which they claimed would thereafter be called the "Taco Liberty Bell."

Taco Bell did this with a straight face and perfect earnestness until about noon that day, when they sent out a press release revealing the joke, calling it the best joke of the day and announcing a $50,000 donation for the upkeep of the real Liberty Bell. In the meantime, they created a bit of a furor for the National Park Service, who had to field a lot of nervous and some angry calls.




It is always good when a corporation can put a human face on for its customers.  Sometimes that can be done with humor.  Even humor that is a little risky.

I like Taco Bell better because they carried out a great joke.  Then they backed it up with a sizable donation.   I like that they showed a bit of personality in a fun and creative way.

Who can argue with that?