Girl Pulls Twisted Prank Letter To ‘Dear Abby’ Paints Friend As Closet Baton Twirler

Michael Deibele is a practical joker, but he says he can’t top the hoax a friend pulled on him: signing his name to a letter to “Dear Abby” seeking advice about his secret love of baton twirling.

The letter, which ran last week, drew a hateful phone call and a number of snickers, and it even made Dear Abby change her letter policy.

The letter explained Deibele (pronounced DYE-BLEE) is an architect, which is true, who was living a normal life except for his hobby.

The letter’s author professed that Deibele’s fascination with twirling dated to his childhood. As an adult, he twirled in his back yard, resulting in “considerable” flak from acquaintances, the letter said.

“Baton twirling is an admirable feat,” Dear Abby responded. “It requires perfect timing as well as nimble fingers….I would rather see men twirling batons than hurling them. Enjoy yourself.”

Deibele, 50, learned of the hoax when a reporter called for an interview.

“I laughed. Whoever did this really knew me and got me,” Deibele said.

Immediately, his mind zipped over each victim of his practical jokes - mostly men - and he came up empty.

“I was stunned with this. This was good. I didn’t think any of them capable of that level of revenge,” he said.

But then he got an angry, obscene message on his answering machine from someone who assumed he was gay.

Someone else pretending to work for a tavern wanted Deibele to twirl his baton for the customers.

In between laughing over the hoax, Deibele said he felt angry and afraid.

“No one wants to be a target,” he said.

“If our society treated gays with respect, then I probably wouldn’t have felt that way.”

After talking with a friend about his feelings, Deibele finally learned who pulled the prank: The 23-year-old daughter of two of his best friends.

Apparently, Julie Wilborn had not forgotten a joke Deibele pulled on her when she was 9, and was just getting even.

“I can’t top it, I admit it, and I’m afraid of her,” Deibele said, laughing. “As far as getting even with Julie Wilborn, I’m not going to do that at all.”

But he was miffed that Dear Abby hadn’t checked whether the letter was authentic.

Abigail Van Buren said on a Minneapolis-area radio station, KS95-AM, that nothing like this had ever happened to her.

“Usually I can spot a phony and won’t use it,” she said.

“I’m sorry. It was not intended to be hurtful. I just assumed it was an OK letter.”

From now on, however, each Dear Abby letter will be checked, said Jeanne Phillips, Van Buren’s daughter and executive editor.

Dear Abby plans to publish a response letter July 29, alongside a letter from Wilborn explaining her prank.

Deibele said he’s no match for Wilborn, but he’ll continue to play pranks on his male friends.

“I’m not giving it up,” he said. “It’s too much fun.”