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Published on 7/23/08
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All things considered, Dina Facklis (pictured) really ought to be prepared for the rattlesnake eggs. She is, after all, a comedian strolling the aisles of Uncle Fun looking for the perfect April Fool’s prank. So you think she’d have her guard up when Billy McCall, the store’s wily manager, offers a package of the “eggs.”
“You really oughtta try these,” he says with a smile, showing her a small, white envelope with an unsealed flap. It’s the same sort of package typically filled with seeds, but this one bears a picture of a rattlesnake, not innocuous sunflowers or zinnias. As soon as he hands Facklis the envelope, a wind-up mechanism inside begins to rattle and vibrate; she briefly jumps back at takeoff velocity, her eyes suddenly whiter than Little Orphan Annie’s. “Wow!” she exclaims a few seconds later, marveling at the simplicity of the prank. “I’m definitely buying this!”
Such are the joys of browsing at Uncle Fun, a wacky little Lakeview shop packed with quirky sundries that don’t do much—except make you laugh. It’s likely one of the city’s few retail establishments that sees a spike in sales around April 1. Scattered amid the cramped aisles are plenty of pranks—some clever, some dopey—and miscellaneous toys and tchotchkes that simply make people happy, like bobbleheads and PEZ dispensers.
A current best-seller is the Avenging Unicorn doll, which depicts a pretty, pastel, fantasy horse goring a victim. Another winner? Bacon magnets and bacon notepads. “Bacon products do very well,” admits the unflappable McCall. “I don’t know. Chicagoans love bacon jokes.” And, of course, “Remote-controlled fart machines always sell well,” he says. “It’s the whoopee cushion of the new millennium.”
That comes as no surprise to Facklis, commercial copy writer by day, performer by night, jokester at all times. Currently a member of the all-female comedy troupe Virgin Daiquiri, Facklis says the store is “a great resource” she relies upon for performance props. “In the improv community, it’s a mainstay: ‘Oh, you need that? Well, have you tried Uncle Fun?’ ”
Uncle Fun, 1338 W Belmont Ave (773-477-8223, unclefunchicago.com). Virgin Daiquiri performs Thu 27 and April 10 at iO Theater, 3541 N Clark St (773-880-0199).
Dina Facklis’s favorite finds
1. Mexican wrestling masks “Everybody looks good in one of these. So great to wear to that a.m. work meeting!” $30.
2. Phony arm cast “So many applications for this. It’s perennial.” $6.
3. Slingshot monkey “What a great non-sequitur bit. It can come from anywhere—like over a cubicle!” $5
4. Assorted funny gum “At least once a week, somebody asks me for gum. You might as well always have ’em on hand.” $1.25.
