In the Fall of 1963, four Princeton University sophomores engaged in what would become one of the most famous pranks ever played on the University. The four students were Arthur F. Davidsen '66, Steven D. Reich '66, Thomas R. Reid '66, and Frederick W. Talcott '66. They also enlisted the help of two outside friends, Charles A. Lieppe, a sophomore at Columbia University, and Steven E. Cook, a sophomore at Michigan State University.

These co-conspirators created a fictitious high school student who applied for admission to Princeton University. The name they chose for the applicant was Joseph David Oznot. The exact source of their inspiration for the name is not known, but the similarity to that of Robert D. Oznot cannot be ignored.

The plot was well-planned. Oznot needed a home address that could be a "safe house" for correspondence received from the University. Cook solved this by providing the address of his fraternity house in East Lansing, Michigan. Oznot needed someone who would not be recognized as a Princeton student to play him in his admissions interview at the Princeton Admissions Office. Lieppe was recruited for the role in this regard. Davidsen took the SAT Math test for Oznot (when Oznot received his test scores and scored only 792 out of 800 points on the Math test, Davidsen was furious that he had not been able to score a perfect 800). Another took the SAT Verbal test on his behalf. The application itself was a "labor of love" by all six co-conspirators. Joseph D. Oznot claimed he was a classicist, a concert pianist and the son of a prosperous private detective. It can be assumed that his personal interview validated these claims.

The application was submitted, the college board exams were taken, the interview was completed, and the conspirators waited out the winter in nervous anticipation of Princeton's decision.

In April of 1964, Joseph David Oznot received a letter of admission to the Class of 1968 of Princeton University. The plot had been a complete success!

The news soon reached The New York Times, which described the hoax in great detail.

As word about the admission spread, several Princeton undergraduates approached the Oznot conspirators for assistance in getting into law school.

• "When Oznot Was Not" by E. Alden Dunham '53, and also "The Unindicted Co-Conspirators" (Adobe Acrobat Reader required) (Why is it that all of the great collegiate ideas occur in the Fall of the Sophomore year?)

When the Princeton Class of 1968 had its 25th reunion, Joseph D. Oznot was there, with his yearbook contribution:

• J. David Oznot, Twenty-Five Years later.... (Adobe Acrobat Reader Required)

(Both articles courtesy of the Class of 1968 25th Reunion Yearbook and Hugh Wachter '68).

The co-conspirators from the Princeton Class of 1966 remain revered in Princeton tales of yore, and, even to this day, the name Oznot invariably evokes at least a chuckle from members of the Princeton Class of 1968.