There used to be a show called Scare Tactics on Sci-fi that was the greatest hidden camera show of all time. The way the show worked was that they would get at least one person who wasn’t in on the joke and then just scare the crap out of them, often using movie grade special effects and makeup.

The thing that made the show so great was the reaction. These people were so scared that there was no way it could be faked. Something about the crazy look in their eyes where you just know all bets are off, and they’re just ready to do whatever it takes to survive the situation, even if it means sacrificing their friends. There are physical reactions from the adrenaline flow that just can’t be faked. Like when I saw a guy try to run and do a double flying drop kick trying to go right through a wall to escape some “poison gas”.

Let me give you another example; when this guy thinks a gorilla is coming after him (possibly to mate with him) he leaps to the top of a huge fence like superman. I really don’t think he could have done that again if he wanted to. Of course that clip also gave us the immortal line, “Monkey with a gun! Monkey with a gun!”

Okay, so maybe the stunts are a little cheesy, but don’t try to pretend like you wouldn’t be just as scared in that situation. That’s what makes it so fun to watch!

Plenty more videos here.

Sometimes, they would even double trick someone. They would tell someone that they were in on the joke and then still play a joke on them. For example, one time I saw one where they told a guy he was going to scare the barber, so when the barber gave him a shave, he activated a device that squirted blood all over. But see, the joke was on him, because then the fake barber had a fake heart attack and the guy thought he killed him.

I also saw several episodes where they had to rush in and end it early because someone was going to kill someone. Like one time a guy in a robot suit was going crazy and ignoring the furious “Halt!” commands of the person being tricked, so he picked up a giant wrench and made for the robot’s head.

Well anyway, I just found out that they brought this awesome show back, with Tracy Morgan as the host! If I were you, I would definitely check it out.