# New Techs .......PRANK TIME



## Davetp (Aug 29, 2015)

As Technical Manager For Some Shows i do. I usually have to work with new training techs
....PRANK TIME....

Every year i prank my training techs and my faithful assistant.
i was proud of my simple prank i had done.

I made sure "since i was the lighting tech aswell" that i had patched the lantern 11 into channel 11
ME - hey can you go up to the patch panel "located side of stage in the tech side" and see what lantern 11 is patched into.
He Went up and said through the coms "channel 11"
me- yes what is 11 patched into
"channel 11"
me - Yes but what is lantern 11 patched into
"OMG IT IS IN 11"
me -I know but wheres it patched
"my Director Joined in"
Director -right this is serious where is it patched into
this went of for 10 mins

whats your Fav Prank?


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## josh88 (Aug 29, 2015)

For when you cut a board too short, you can fix it, just go get the board stretcher or Henway. We had a student search for awhile using multiple descriptions from people, finally come back and ask whats a henway? oh about 2 and a half pounds. 

Also had a student bring us an old school nail puller asking if it was the board stretcher.


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## JohnD (Aug 29, 2015)

Ah for the good old days, you would just have them go wash the gels.


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## Davetp (Aug 29, 2015)

Oh yeah "GO WASH THE GELS"


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## MikeJ (Aug 29, 2015)

JohnD said:


> Ah for the good old days, you would just have them go wash the gels.


You can have them wash the gels with alcohol, either rosco or lee, cannot remember which, the color comes right off.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 29, 2015)

Pulling pranks would get me fired....serious job is serious.


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## Les (Aug 29, 2015)

Reminds me of this thread:
Messing with the noobs

And probably my favorite post, where the prankster gets pranked:


MPowers said:


> A few years back while serving as TD for a very large outdoor summer gig, the ME sent one of the naive young electrics apprentices into town for a sky hook. We're out doors. We're rigging things from and between 40' tall towers. To the young and uninitiated, that sounds like a reasonable request. The first place she stopped at told her they were out but gave her the contact for another company. When she got to the second place, they took pity and decided she had suffered enough. So....they let her in on the gag and sent her back with a 5' tall, 2500# crane hook in the back of the truck and a $3500 "bill" for the ME, plus a $300 loading fee and another $300 fee for off loading on return. That was 30 years ago and I still remember the look on the ME's face when she showed him the hook and the bill. He didn't pay with master card, but it WAS*"PRICELESS"* !!!!


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## Dionysus (Aug 29, 2015)

Sending a newbie electrical apprentice or really any tech to get the "wire stretcher" always seems a good thing to do on the first day... If they go straight off looking for the damn thing then clearly they won't ask for directions if they don't know how to do something. Had one kid go away to the work-truck for a half hour before I found him digging though everything in the truck at a loss.
Asked him what he was looking for, "The Wire Stretcher", he said.
"How do you know what it looks like?", I asked him.
"I figured I'd know it when I saw it", he replied.
The look on his face when I told him it doesn't exist was a bit priceless.

Ive heard many similar stories, including sending a guy to look for "plaid paint" (reinforced by telling him not to shake it or it will mix up). So sad.


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## scenicsauthoff (Aug 30, 2015)

Board stretcher is classic.

On the ships we'd send them out to go "Whale Watching." They'd be on a fake radio and have to call in if they saw a whale out ahead so the ship (with all it's radar and officers) wouldn't run into them.


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## MikeJ (Aug 30, 2015)

You could tell them to order a bunch of power-con jumpers from any major distributor, and then when they arrive you could chastise the interns for getting SJ cable instead of SO! Ha HA Haaaa! OMG it would be so funny!


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## RickR (Aug 30, 2015)

Anybody got LED cleaner? I don't have anyone to prank but it might be worth trying.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 30, 2015)

RickR said:


> Anybody got LED cleaner? I don't have anyone to prank but it might be worth trying.



I keep it on the shelf next to these:


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## Les (Aug 30, 2015)

gafftapegreenia said:


> I keep it on the shelf next to these:



To the non-technical, they would probably think this one was the prank:




Maybe spotting the fake product could be part of a HS Tech Non-Icebreaking Activity to Break the Ice.


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## gafftapegreenia (Aug 30, 2015)

The one I've always thought was funniest is asking someone to go to a hardware store to get 50' of Fallopian tubing.


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## mikeydoesstuff (Aug 31, 2015)

Les said:


> To the non-technical, they would probably think this one was the prank:
> 
> 
> 
> ...





One summerstock I worked for ALWAYS had more of this on the shelf, and every summer, I would roll in, throw it away, buy the right stuff, and repair their machines. Every Fall I'd get a phone call from the PM asking me to stop becasue they'd bill the summerstock for "damage to their equipment"

Maybe that was the joke..


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## bobgaggle (Aug 31, 2015)

Had a boss once who had the laziest but most effective prank ever. You'd be going about your business building, and he would barge out of his office and scream "WHAT THE F*** ARE YOU DOING??" Scared me s***less the first 2 times but got used to it after that. So he switched tactics and would come over as I was finishing something and tell me I had to do it again cause it was backwards. He retired in a flame of glory, basically he finished the show, walked up to the production manager and said "I quit". Took all his tools, which was every tool in the shop (seriously, tablesaw was his, bandsaw etc) and left an hour later.


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## Dionysus (Aug 31, 2015)

bobgaggle said:


> Had a boss once who had the laziest but most effective prank ever. You'd be going about your business building, and he would barge out of his office and scream "WHAT THE F*** ARE YOU DOING??" Scared me s***less the first 2 times but got used to it after that. So he switched tactics and would come over as I was finishing something and tell me I had to do it again cause it was backwards. He retired in a flame of glory, basically he finished the show, walked up to the production manager and said "I quit". Took all his tools, which was every tool in the shop (seriously, tablesaw was his, bandsaw etc) and left an hour later.



Wow, was this at least at the end of a season or mid season end of show? That's crazy! I guess if he's retiring he doesn't care if he ruffles some feathers. taking off with no notice is one thing, even more of an issue if most of the shop is yours to walk away with. Talk about hurting the next show.
Never know how he was treated by the higher-ups himself, but still.


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## MikeJ (Aug 31, 2015)

A bottle rocket under the bathroom door is a pretty good one. Its really going to depend on where you work. YMMV.


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## bobgaggle (Sep 2, 2015)

Dionysus said:


> Wow, was this at least at the end of a season or mid season end of show? That's crazy! I guess if he's retiring he doesn't care if he ruffles some feathers. taking off with no notice is one thing, even more of an issue if most of the shop is yours to walk away with. Talk about hurting the next show.
> Never know how he was treated by the higher-ups himself, but still.



End of the season. I think he had burned out long before he retired and was just waiting to close the last show. He had an at will contract so he just left. The company found a new guy pretty quick who knew how to run a shop, so all was well in the end.


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