Buzz
For countless generations, prank phone calls have been an essential part of teenage life. Imagine this: you're 14, feeling restless, and stuck at home—maybe even with some friends. What better way to pass the time than by calling a few people, leaving a quirky message on their answering machine, or playing a harmless trick? While the internet has changed things, making prank phone calls a rarity today, they were once an iconic part of the teenage experience that lasted for decades.
In this article, we’ll explore the quirky and intriguing history of prank phone calls. By the end, you’ll uncover a series of surprising facts you never knew about crank calls and their origins. And you’ll discover that even people from a century ago had a great sense of humor! So, keep reading and dive deep into the world of prank calling.
If you're feeling a bit daring and you can figure out how to spoof your caller ID, why not prank a friend? Here’s a fun script: call them up and say, “Expect a call from Washington in ten minutes.” Then, ten minutes later, ring them back. Ask if they’re waiting for a call from Washington, and when they confirm, casually respond, “I’m sorry, he passed away over two hundred years ago.” Gotcha!
10. The Very First Prank Call
Prank calls have been a staple for ages. Over time, pranksters have had to get craftier and more inventive. But no matter how many new tricks emerge, the timeless classics never lose their charm. Take the iconic “Is your refrigerator running?” joke, for example. If you've somehow missed it, here's the rundown: A prankster calls an unsuspecting person and asks, 'Is your refrigerator running?' When the confused victim says yes, the prankster replies, 'Well, you better go catch it!' Cue the laughter (well, at least from the prankster).
But prank calls date back even further than refrigerators! In fact, people have been pulling silly phone pranks since the early days of the telephone. One of the first documented prank calls happened back in 1884 and caused such a stir that Electrical World Magazine actually wrote about it!
Apparently, a prankster in Providence, Rhode Island, decided to have some fun with local morticians. The prankster would call them up, requesting coffins, candlesticks, and other funeral items for imaginary 'dead' people. The morticians would scramble to prepare, only to realize later they had been duped. Talk about dark humor! It was described as bizarre but surprisingly effective, with the so-called 'dead' people seeming to come back to life in search of the prankster.
9. The Pranks Get More Creative
While everyone is familiar with the classic 'Is your refrigerator running?' line, pranksters in the early 1900s had even more elaborate tricks up their sleeves. Imagine this: it's 1915, and you're at a bar, enjoying your drink. Suddenly, someone leans in and whispers that a guy named 'Tom Collins' has been talking bad about you. Naturally, you're confused. Who is Tom Collins? And why is he saying such things?
The prankster continues to fuel the story. 'He said what?!' You’re fuming now. You demand to confront this Tom Collins person. Conveniently, the prankster claims he just stepped outside. Furious, you rush out, fists clenched, ready to face him. But when you get outside—surprise! No Tom. No confrontation. Just an empty space. Back inside, the prankster and the crowd are in stitches. This simple, playful prank was a big hit back then. It became so popular that it inspired the creation of a gin cocktail named—yes, you guessed it—the Tom Collins.
But pranksters weren’t finished yet. Before long, they brought these same tricks to the phone lines. By the 1920s, jokers everywhere were leaving fake 'While You Were Out' messages. Imagine a serious merchant receiving a note to call 'Mr. Graves' at the local cemetery or 'Mr. Fish' at the aquarium. They’d fall for it every time, and hilarity would follow.
These pranks got so out of control that officials from the Milwaukee city morgue had to intervene. In 1920, after a flood of prank calls, they had enough. The gags were literally 'dead on arrival,' and they needed relief from pranksters clogging their phone lines and asking for bizarre things and made-up people!
8. Never Trust a Teenage Boy
Prank calls and teenage boys have a long history together, going back to the very start. The 19th-century telephone world was filled with chaos, and even the early phone companies weren’t immune to the madness. When the telephone first gained popularity, early phone companies like Bell Telephone needed switchboard operators to meet the growing demand. They figured teenage boys would be perfect for the job—cheap labor, quick reflexes, and the stamina to work long hours. What could possibly go wrong? Well, as it turns out… a lot.
Teenage boys hired as phone operators didn’t take their work seriously. Instead of just connecting calls, they pulled off pranks that would make today's pranksters envious. Some would randomly disconnect calls mid-conversation just for fun, while others went rogue, connecting total strangers, sparking hilarious and confusing conversations. The result? Total chaos on the phone lines.
Bell Telephone's executives were less than thrilled. Their chief engineer even referred to the young operators as 'Wild Indians,' highlighting just how out of control things had become. It wasn’t long before management had had enough of the teenage antics. Eventually, they replaced the boys with grown women, who were seen as more dependable, disciplined, and focused. It worked—order was restored, and the phone lines ran smoothly again.
7. April Fools’ Problems
April Fools’ Day has always been a prime time for pranksters to strike. In 1920, the San Francisco Police Department received so many prank calls that things got out of hand. 'Rush the wagon!' pranksters yelled. Officers rushed to the address given over the phone, only to discover… it was another police station. Classic prank.
Zoos were also frequent targets. On April Fools’ Day that same year, the Selig Zoo in Los Angeles received calls asking for 'Dr. Lyon, Mr. Bear, Mrs. Fox, Miss Wolf, and the Widow Campbell.' Even 'Miss Cats' was requested. The Los Angeles Times reported, laughing that 'the only animals not called were Mr. Hippopotamus, Mrs. Rhinoceros, and Miss Elephant.' Apparently, they were too large to pick up the phone.
By the mid-1920s, prank calls had become so overwhelming that the New York Aquarium had no choice but to disconnect their phone on April 1st. Apparently, the constant barrage of calls asking for 'Mr. Fish' drove them to their breaking point. Picture the exhaustion of fielding endless calls from pranksters. It was fun at first… but quickly became exasperating. Very, very exasperating.
Fast forward to 1959, and prank calls were still going strong. One operator from Chicago revealed that the Cook County Morgue was receiving up to five prank calls per minute that year. What dedication! There's a certain nostalgia to the simplicity of those early prank calls. It was mischief in its purest form. And honestly, if you got a call asking for 'Mr. Fish,' you’d probably chuckle before hanging up.
6. The First Viral Prank
In the 1970s, long before viral tweets and TikTok clips, prank calls were the ultimate way to troll. And no prank calls were more famous than those made by two guys named John Elmo and Jim Davidson. These friends cheekily dubbed themselves the 'Bum Bar Bastards.' Their trick was simple but legendary: they made prank calls to a bar in Jersey City, New Jersey, called the Tube Bar.
The owner of the Tube Bar was a no-nonsense tough guy named Red. Red was known for his gruff demeanor and no filters. What made him a prime target? Red didn’t screen his calls at all. Elmo and Davidson took full advantage, calling in and asking for absurd names like 'Ben Dover' or 'Al Coholic.' Red, without hesitation, would shout these ridiculous names out across the bar. As he loudly announced these absurd requests, Red had no clue that anything was wrong. Meanwhile, the regulars in the bar were losing it with laughter in the background.
Elmo and Davidson were clever, too, because they recorded every prank call they made. Even though YouTube didn't exist back then, those recordings spread like wildfire among comedy fans throughout the 1980s. Red’s reactions were pure comedy gold. A journalist once described him as 'a foul-mouthed, gravel-voiced old coot' who could throw insults laced with profanity like no one else. People just couldn’t get enough of it.
The prank call tapes became such a cult sensation that fans of 'The Simpsons' started speculating that Bart's prank calls to Moe's Tavern were inspired by them. Creator Matt Groening has said it was just a coincidence, but come on—the similarities are too uncanny to ignore!
5. The Tale of Tommy Tutone
The legendary '867-5309/Jenny' by Tommy Tutone is arguably the most iconic song when it comes to prank phone calls. Released in 1981, this hit became so popular that it turned an innocent phone number into one of the most infamous sequences in pop culture history. And the story behind it is even crazier than you'd expect!
Lead guitarist Jim Keller shared with People Magazine in 1982 that the song was inspired by a girl he dated in the late '70s. Apparently, her name and phone number were scrawled on a men's room wall at a bar. When Keller saw it, he decided to give it a call. They hit it off and dated for a while, but once the song hit the charts, things took an unexpected turn. With that unforgettable chorus, the number became etched in everyone’s memory. Soon, people across the country were dialing it nonstop, hoping to reach 'Jenny.' Unfortunately, anyone named Jenny—or anyone in the wrong place at the wrong time—found themselves flooded with countless goofy (and sometimes unsettling) calls.
Here’s the twist. The song’s co-writer, Alex Call, later admitted that the whole 'Jenny' story was mostly made up. In a 2004 interview, Call revealed that he had randomly invented the number while working on the song's chorus. It had nothing to do with any real Jenny or any personal experience from Keller or anyone else. 'It sounds better than ‘I made it up under a plum tree in my backyard,’' Call joked. Womp, womp!
And even after all these years, the number still gets attention. Some savvy shoppers even use it to score discounts at chain stores. And yes, the prank calls haven’t stopped. That alone shows that Tommy Tutone's legacy continues, one prank call at a time!
4. The Advent of Caller ID
In the 1990s, a major shift took place in phone technology: Caller ID. Suddenly, when the phone rang, people could see the name and number of the caller. This new feature completely changed the prank call game. Before Caller ID, pranksters had the upper hand—they could make calls, say whatever they wanted, and hang up without a trace. The unsuspecting victim had no way to find out who was behind the joke.
But with Caller ID, everything changed overnight. Now, pranksters’ numbers appeared on the screen, allowing people to call back or report them. This took the thrill out of pranking, and many pranksters gave up their antics altogether. For homeowners, though, this was a huge relief. Not only were they tired of pranks, but they were also sick of endless telemarketing calls. Don’t you hate getting bombarded by random numbers all the time? Exactly! Caller ID allowed people to screen their calls and decide who to ignore. As a result, pranksters had to evolve. The days of anonymous phone gags were quickly fading. It simply wasn’t worth the risk, and it became more difficult to prank without leaving behind a trail.
Caller ID didn’t just put an end to pranks—it also altered how people approach answering the phone. Now, when an unfamiliar number appears, most people simply don’t pick up. This wasn’t the case in the past, when people answered every call, regardless of who was on the other end. These days, an unknown number is often assumed to be spam, which has caused problems. For instance, political surveys are now harder to conduct because people are much more selective about answering calls.
3. The Modern-Day Prank Is Totally Digital
2. From Cranks to Crime
Prank calls have always been a way to cause a little trouble, but as people began pushing the boundaries, the law had to step in. In the United States, prank calling is regulated under the Telecommunications Act, first introduced in 1978 and periodically updated. This legislation targeted incidents like the notorious Tube Bar incident. Specifically, Section 47 U.S.C. § 223(a)(1) made it illegal for pranksters and scammers to 'abuse, threaten, or harass' someone over the phone.
But what exactly qualifies as 'abuse'? That’s been a topic of debate. In California, for example, the state’s Penal Code offers very specific guidelines. Prank calls that include 'obscene language' or direct threats are strictly prohibited. Calling someone repeatedly with the intention of annoying them can also get pranksters into hot water. Some persistent pranks may even escalate into misdemeanors, with fines up to $1,000 and the possibility of up to six months in county jail. That’s no laughing matter!
Then there’s the ongoing issue of spam calls. For years, the government has attempted (with limited success) to combat them. The Do Not Call Registry was introduced so people could opt out of receiving calls from 'legitimate telemarketers.' However, as we all know, it didn’t stop the onslaught of robocalls. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) also intervened, making it illegal for companies to use automated dialers to bombard people with unsolicited calls. Still, despite these efforts, unwanted calls continue to flood in with no end in sight. Honestly, at this point, we’d rather be pranked by some mischievous teens than face another spam call from a sketchy telemarketer…
1. Prankers Go Online
As we’ve seen, Caller ID was a major shift for prank callers who suddenly had to rethink their strategies. But, credit where credit's due, these pranksters adapted quickly. By the late 1990s, they had found a way around this new technology—by turning to the internet. The World Wide Web became their playground for discovering tricks to hide their numbers and spoof others. It wasn’t long before websites emerged with step-by-step guides on how to bypass Caller ID and keep their calls anonymous. Some even provided automated voice tools and scripts to make it even harder to trace these pranks.
As the internet grew, so did the tech-savvy tricks. By the 2010s, phone number spoofing was all the rage. This clever tactic allowed pranksters to make their number appear local on Caller ID, regardless of where they were calling from. Naturally, this added a whole new level of mischief. Now, callers could make it seem like their call was coming from someone nearby, creating even more havoc over the phone!
For a while, this made pranksters feel invincible. But, as always, things eventually spiraled out of control. Telemarketers took spoofing to a whole new level, turning it into a tool for aggressive marketing. What started as harmless pranks, like asking for 'Ben Dover,' evolved into scams and harassment. Law enforcement caught wind of this and started to catch up. They've learned to spot the most obvious spoofing tactics. Still, they’re often a few steps behind the latest tech tricks, and tracking these calls is a costly and time-consuming process. And that’s the story of our modern world.
