Zug.com
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Zug (or ZUG) is a comedy website that was founded in 1995 by John Hargrave and Genevieve Martineau.
Beginning as a webzine, it expanded from that format in 1998 with the addition of a threaded message board.
From 1999 to 2001, ZUG took a backseat to Computer Stew, a daily comedy Web show produced, written, and directed by Hargrave and cohorts Jay Stevens, Al Natanagara, and Moses Blumenstiel for ZDNet. The message board, later to be rechristened 'GAB', existed during this period as a discussion forum for Computer Stew.
A primary feature of the site is the extensive 'prank' archive, including The Turnpike Prank, involving toll fees, The Viagra Prank, where attempts were made to purchase Viagra online, and The Credit Card Prank, where Hargrave "signs" for his credit card in unusual ways to see if someone would notice.
In a more recent prank, ZUG faked the appearance of Michael Jackson in Boston, getting a costumed impersonator into an exclusive charity event.[1]
Zug's most recent prank involves claiming to have infiltrated the Super Bowl to create a "secret message" in the stands[2], using light up necklaces.[3] While they have not admitted it is a hoax, their claims have not been confirmed by any reliable source and come only from these self-proclaimed media hoaxsters[4]. The "Super Stunt" claims coincide with the release of "Prank the Monkey" and are heavily loaded with promotional references to the book, including online puzzles requiring the book as a reference[5] [6]. One result of these puzzles is an image[7] containing the prank's intended "secret message".
[edit] References
- ^ Caywood, Thomas. "Fake-O Jacko Was Bad—But His Credit Was Good", The Boston Herald, Boston Herald Inc., February 21, 2006. Retrieved on February 23, 2007.
- ^ image from Zug supposedly showing how the prank appeared at the superbowl
- ^ Zug's "Super Stunt" claims
- ^ Zug's Past Media Hoaxes
- ^ Puzzle Page URL from "Super Stunt" Video
- ^ Second "Super Stunt" puzzle page, which refers directly to using "Prank the Monkey" for the solution.
- ^ Image rendering, enabled by the puzzle pages, of how the purported prank was intended to look, although this result is not claimed to have been successfully achieved.
