There are some things many of us did as kids that today’s youth simply can’t understand. One of them is the fine art — if you can call it that — of the prank phone call.
Now, before anyone gets too judgmental, let’s remember this was a different time. And even though prank calls may not have been considered funny by everyone — either then or now — many of us still took part in them and giggled our way through the experience.
You know the classics: “Is your refrigerator running?” “Do you have Prince Albert in a can?” “Can I speak to Al?”
If those lines sound familiar, it’s probably because you either delivered them yourself or stood nearby while a sibling or friend did the honors. Either way, you remember how it went. In fact, there’s a pretty good chance you’re smiling right now. Maybe even cringing a little.
Prank calls might have been more of a boy thing. I’m not entirely sure about that. But I do know what happened when kids were left unsupervised for an hour with access to a telephone.
Of course, this was back when telephones were attached to the kitchen wall by a cord that could stretch halfway across the room. It was also a time before caller ID, which meant you truly had no idea who might be on the other end of the line. That uncertainty made prank calls possible.
There was always a small fear of somehow being tracked down, though, so the calls had to be quick. Efficiency mattered. You delivered the line, waited for the response and tried — with varying levels of success — to keep a straight face. That was the real challenge.
No matter how many times we rehearsed beforehand, the moment the person answered the phone, the giggles started. The brave soul holding the receiver would attempt to power through the joke while the rest of us collapsed into silent laughter nearby.
And when it inevitably fell apart, the line of retreat was always the same.
“Sorry, wrong number.” Click.
Of course, the person receiving the call often had a pretty good idea what was going on. Sometimes they even guessed exactly who was on the other end of the line. Nothing ended a prank call faster than hearing your own name.
I doubt my kids ever made a prank phone call. And I’m fairly certain my parents never did either. But during those years from the late 1960s through the late 1980s, prank calls were a fairly common form of entertainment. In fact, the comedy group The Jerky Boys eventually turned prank telephone calls into a full-blown career, which proves that sometimes even the most juvenile ideas can have surprising staying power.
Yes, prank phone calls were ridiculous. And yes, they were juvenile. They still are.
But every now and then, when someone mentions a refrigerator running, a lot of us of a certain age still have the same instinctive response:
“Well, you’d better go catch it.”
And somewhere, deep down, the giggles return.
Have a memorable Monday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.thedailyumbrella.com
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