If you ever heard Tommy Tutone’s famous song, “867-5309/Jenny,” you may or may not have succumbed to calling the phone number sung repeatedly in the chorus. It’s a catchy tune and a memorable song. As you can imagine, this one-hit wonder generated a line of unsolicited phone calls from teens across the country asking for…well, Jenny.
Tommy Tutone’s hit song was released in 1981, before the advent of caller ID and reverse phone lookup. Imagine 867-5309 was your phone number the year that song was released. There’s no way to screen your phone calls during this time.
A question that begs to be answered is: Why do real numbers appear in plot lines? The answer is: This wasn’t always the case.
According to Bell System, a telephone service company, numbers beginning with 555 were reserved for special use, such as for TV series, movies and songs.
Writers Used Fictitious Numbers in Songs, Movies and TV Series
Scriptwriters used fictitious numbers beginning with 555 to avoid prank calls. In present times, however, writers often use real numbers and area codes relevant to the setting for believability.
Movies and TV series that used 555, sans the area code, included:
- The Rockford Files, 1974
- Ghostbusters, 1984
- Seinfeld, 1991
- Last Action Hero, 1993
- Wag the Dog, 1997
Movies and TV series started ditching the 555 phone numbers and replaced them with real numbers, baiting fans to dial them. Phone numbers planted in shows and films as Easter eggs, with actual recordings tying back to the content or character included:
- Magnolia, 1999
- Scrubs, 2004
- The Office, 2008
- Breaking Bad, 2013
- Stranger Things, 2019
If every serious drama or suspense listed a number beginning with 555, it would jolt you out of the story. This is especially true after years of Hollywood using the pretend prefix 555, which is widely known as an unreachable number.
Stranger Things fans will be happy to hear about a phone number they will enjoy calling where there’s no danger of annoying the recipient on the other end of the line: Brett Gellman’s number from the popular TV show, Stranger Things has a comical, true-to-character voice recording. The voicemail will always be full.
The anticipation of calling a real number listed in your favorite TV show will deliver fun reactions from fans. It also keeps the excitement alive. Remember the fictional character Saul Goodman of Breaking Bad? The Just Call Saul billboard number still connects callers to a live recording from Saul.
Curious who owns the numbers with actual recordings from your favorite characters and shows?
Try Enformion’s reverse phone lookup feature.
How Does the Enformion’s Reverse Phone Lookup Work?
Enformion has a comprehensive database of public and proprietary information.
When you visit the reverse phone lookup search, input the area code and number.
The owner’s full name and current and past residencies will appear, as well as email addresses.
Enformion’s reverse phone lookup helps to differentiate prank calls from important calls. The reverse phone lookup is also essential in deciphering whether callers claiming money owed are sham callers or originate from reputable companies.
What Other Services Does Enformion Offer?
In addition to the reverse phone lookup feature, Enformion is an easy-to-navigate platform with myriad features, including:
- Up-to-date directory
- Relevant data on all public records
- Comprehensive reports
- Current and past residencies
- Social media accounts
- Email addresses and phone numbers
With Enformion, you will have accurate, up-to-date data on essential information to help you screen prank callers, filter unimportant calls, and find out the real owners of phone numbers.
For more information about ways to search for phone numbers or to use a number to find someone, contact us today.
