55. Stick it to ‘Em with the Funnel
class: prank | impressiveness: 5/5 | factors: potential fistfight | requires: a funnel, a quarter, a beer | watch full episode
Sooner or later when you’re pulling scams at the bar, you’ll run across someone that’s too drunk, annoying, or pushy to pay proper attention. You can usually “stick them to the bar” like we learned a few chapters ago, but someone especially aggressive deserves special treatment… which is why we have the atomic bomb of sucker gags: The Funnel.
The Setup: Start with a demonstration of what the mark’s going to try: grab a funnel from behind the bar and tuck it in the waistline of your pants. Balance a quarter on your forehead and slowly tilt your head forward, until the coin falls off and lands in the funnel (if you miss, don’t worry: you’re only demonstrating the principle, and it’s okay if it looks difficult). Explain to the mark that the game is simple: he’ll win a free beer from you if he can land the coin from his forehead into the funnel.
The Execution: Now have the mark mimic your setup: funnel in his pants, head tilted back, quarter on his forehead. Give him a countdown, and just before he starts… pour your beer into the funnel, and straight down his pants!
Needless to say, you’ll need to choose when to pull this stunt very carefully. And when you do pull it off, be ready for a quick getaway. This doesn’t always have to be done with beer and a funnel at a bar… You can quickly improvise a funnel with a rolled up magazine, and you might get less of an angry reaction if you use, say, ice water at a family picnic instead.