April Fools' 2023: Our favorite pranks from around Rhode Island

In "breaking news" early Saturday morning, the Barrington Public Library was renamed for wrestling star-turned actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, the Coventry Police Department hired its first "compassion turkey" and a triceratops was born at the Providence zoo.

The Rock, or at least a cardboard cutout of the muscular movie mogul, greeted patrons and posed for photographs Saturday at the newly named Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Memorial Library.

Meanwhile, the Coventry police warned that their new community liaison, "Butterball," isn't as friendly as the smiling star.

"She loves welcoming all to town and bringing smiles to people’s faces," the police said in a Facebook post. "Feel free to take her photo, but unlike compassion dogs she does not enjoy being pet."

(Remember the turkey that terrorized Johnston?)

A few miles away, the Roger Williams Park Zoo broke prehistoric news.

"Oh baby! After 68 million years, we're thrilled to announce the birth of a triceratops!" the zoo said on Facebook, with cute photos of the baby dinosaur. "Our vet care team has been working tirelessly to care for the young infant. She is being hand fed several times a day and will continue to stay warm in her incubator until she has grown strong enough to rejoin her family on the Wetlands Trail."

Of course, Saturday was April Fools' Day, and they were all joking, but the folks at the Barrington library went all out with a day full of real Rock-themed events.

Siobhan Egan, community engagement librarian and the main mind behind the madness, wanted to ensure that this year's prank offered a hands-on experience because of the way some people reacted to last year's joke.

Some patrons were miffed last year to learn they couldn't actually borrow kitties from the town's "Library of Cats" or at least let their children visit the library and play with the bookish felines.

That prank ("Do NOT leave cats in the book drop!") went viral on social media and set a high bar for this year's gag.

For the "grand reopening," which included a new 9-foot sign, the library showed two Rock movies, "Tooth Fairy" on Saturday morning, then "Black Adam" on Saturday afternoon. They handed out commemorative rocks named Dwayne and also invited children to use "exclusive" Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson coloring sheets.

"I'm going all out this year," said Egan, who started planning this year's high jinks on April 2, 2022.

"I've always loved April Fools'," she said. "Now I have a larger platform."

This year's effort included a pun-filled press release about their "boulder-sized rebranding," Facebook and Instagram posts as well as a TikTok video.

The library chose Johnson because his "25-year career as a professional wrestler, Hollywood actor, and philanthropist has cemented him in the hearts of every American."

Besides, Egan said, The Rock seems like the kind of guy who would get a kick out of it.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: April Fools' 2023: Our favorite pranks from around Rhode Island