When readers received the April 1, 1985, issue of Sports Illustrated, they opened the magazine to read an article about a young, unknown New York Mets prospect who could throw a baseball 168 mph. The Curious Case Of Sidd Finch, written by journalist George Plimpton, detailed the mysterious lifestyle of the "part-pitcher, part-yogi" who played the French horn beautifully and looked like "Goofy in one of Walt Disney's cartoon classics" when he threw the ball.
The fascinating story of Sidd Finch was all a hoax, an idea originally drummed up by SI's managing editor at the time, Mark Mulvoy, and perfectly executed by Plimpton.