26 Facts About Joey Skaggs

Joey Skaggs was born on 1945 and is an American multi-media artist, activist, satirist, educator and prankster.

Joey Skaggs, originally trained as a painter and sculptor, began experimenting with performance art in the 1960s, utilizing public spaces and mass media as platforms for his work.

Joey Skaggs employs aliases and maintains anonymity to ensure the success of his hoaxes and satirical projects.

Joey Skaggs operates independently, without formal sponsorship or financial gain, staging elaborate scenarios that critique media systems and expose the spread of misinformation.

Joey Skaggs has been recognized for his innovative use of performance and media deception.

In 2017, the feature documentary Art of the Prank, directed by Andrea Marini, about artist Joey Skaggs, was released internationally on television and streaming platforms after screening at film festivals.

In 1969, Joey Skaggs brought a duplicate of the sculpture to St Patrick's Cathedral, where church officials denied him entry and he was removed by police.

In 1968, Joey Skaggs took a group of approximately 60 East Village hippies to suburban Queens to satirize tour buses that brought visitors to Greenwich Village to observe the hippie counterculture.

Joey Skaggs staged a protest against the Vietnam War on Christmas Day, creating a life-size Nativity scene with symbolic elements to critique US involvement in the conflict.

In 1971, while living on a dairy farm in central New York, Joey Skaggs learned about the Earlville Opera House, a historic building constructed in 1892 in Earlville, New York, that was slated for demolition to make way for a parking lot.

Joey Skaggs purchased the building and led a campaign to preserve it.

Joey Skaggs was subpoenaed by the Attorney General's office for operating a bordello for dogs.

Joey Skaggs announced the company would debut at the Metro Toronto Christmas Gift and Invention Show but, just before it did, he alleged that Canadian customs had seized the equipment at the border, labeling it morally offensive.

Joey Skaggs created a 30 second television commercial featuring Maqdananda, a new-age psychic attorney who claimed he could predict outcomes for his clients.

Joey Skaggs later revealed the hoax, which he orchestrated with assistance from Korean collaborators.

Joey Skaggs later explained that the performance was designed to provoke discussion about the ethical and societal implications of genetic engineering.

Joey Skaggs collaborated with artist Steve Powers to create a 10' x 14' painting depicting Giuliani as the Madonna.

The website listed fictional company executives, with Joey Skaggs personally assuming all roles in media responses.

The hoax garnered widespread media coverage, both before and after Joey Skaggs revealed it as a satirical commentary on the commodification of death.

On July 4,2004, Joey Skaggs staged a satirical performance in New York City's Washington Square Park, critiquing President George W Bush's leadership.

Joey Skaggs, dressed as Uncle Sam, pedaled a tricycle carrying a large replica of the White House and led a parade of approximately 75 participants, including singers, cheerleaders, and actors portraying government officials.

At the park's center, Joey Skaggs delivered a speech and opened the replica White House to reveal an effigy of President Bush seated on an upside-down bucket of fertilizer.

In 2012, Joey Skaggs staged a protest at the Goldman Sachs headquarters in New York City, critiquing the role of major financial institutions in the 2008 economic and housing crisis.

In 2012, Joey Skaggs staged another performance art piece titled Santa's Missile Tow outside the United Nations headquarters in New York City.

Audience members were escorted to view Bigfoot, which was ultimately revealed to be Joey Skaggs dressed as a large, hairy foot.

Since 2021, Joey Skaggs' website has offered satirical materials, including a customizable Trump Presidential Pardon and, since 2022, a downloadable Top Secret Cover Sheet for Classified Information.