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George Clooney, Hollywood's undisputed master of the practical joke (we think he once told Brad Pitt that his penis was inadequate through an impishly-placed bumper sticker or something), demonstrates his mastery of the art form by dismissing today's prank holiday as amateur hour:

George Clooney is telling his friends to rest easy this April Fools' Day. But could the master prankster just be luring them into a trap? Rumor has it that Clooney plans to mark the tricksters high holy day by recruiting some actors to pose as cops. Word is he's keeping the identity of his target under wraps. But by day's end, his mark will be "under arrest." Naturally, Clooney denied there was anything afoot when we called him yesterday.

"Amateurs party on New Year's Eve," said the actor, who's in California directing "Good Night and Good Luck." "Amateurs pull pranks on April Fools' Day."

Herein lies Clooney's subtle genius: By publicly commenting on his intentions to sit April Fool's Day Out, he's made his potential marks nervous and is setting them up for his best work yet. By the end of the day, Ocean's Eleven/Twelve pal Julia Roberts will be so paranoid about sitting on a whoopie cushion that she'll never suspect that George is behind the brutal murder of her husband and the selling of her new twins to Tom Cruise, who's still seeking genetically-suitable heirs for his Scientology kingdom. See how fun April First can be in the hands of a professional?