BUM BAR BASTARDS -

Stats: Earliest known prankster in recorded history

Pranksters Jim Davidson and John Elmo created a prank call empire by calling the same New Jersey dive bar (called "Tube Bar") and pranking the owner over and over again. This all began back in 1975, predating the Jerky Boys. That bar owner was an angry, gravely voiced man with the mouth and temper of a sailor, which set the stage for some very funny calls. Let me talk to Al Coholic!

JERKY BOYS -

Stats: Released 6 CD's and a DVD movie, and a VHS.

What can be said about the Jerky Boys that hasn't already been said? The JB's capitalized on a fresh new idea of releasing prank calls on a commercial CD. Their first two albums each surpassed the 2 million sales mark. Much of their appeal had to do with the use of character impressions as they yanked people's chains with catch 22 type scenarios.  Example: Pushy blue collar guy calls a "piano tuner" to try to get him to come out to pull free an angry Rottweiler dog that has managed to get tangled inside the piano wires. 

CAPTAIN JANKS - MP3 sample -

Stats: VIP member of the Howard Stern "Wack Pack"

Mr. Janks' niche has been getting on the air and pranking various on-air hosts. He has a long laundry list of victims including Dan Rather, Phil Donahue, Rosie O'Donnel, Jerry Lewis, etc. Janks tormented news anchors and talk show hosts for years, then stopped for a few years, then (like a nearly forgotten serial killer) reappeared with a vengeance, menacing them once again. 

TERRORIZING TELEMARKETERS - MP3 Sample -

Stats: Released 5 CD's and 2 DVD's. Aired on Howard Stern and Crank Yankers

Jim Florentine has turned tormented many a telemarketer. He's dreamed up endless angles to get even with them (for annoying all of us). Jim is not afraid to overstep the boundaries of decency with his calls. 

REVENGE ON THE TELEMARKETERS - MP3 Sample -

Stats: Released 3 CD's.

Tom Mabe zeroed in on something we can all relate to: Prank telemarketers! Tom's "Dead Body" call has gotten millions of hits on YouTube due to being at the top of search engines like Google and Yahoo.

PHIL HENDRIE -

Stats: Once broadcasted a syndicated radio show from KFI-Lost Angeles

"Phil Hendrie" radio show was a live unfolding of on-air pranks pulled on listeners who weren't "in on the joke". Phil's crazy "guests", whom he interviews over the phone, are actually Phil himself. He quickly toggles back and forth between his high fidelity studio microphone and a low quality "phone" feed. There's always a new listener who isn't in on the joke and who calls the show to argue with Phil's "guests". That's when it gets fun! The show is also great because it's TOPICAL. Phil always manages to come up with something that ties in with the news of the day, but with a VERY controversial twist that is sure to incense unsuspecting listeners.

THE DIMENSION CABLE CALLS - MP3

Stats: Bootleg calls appeared on a CD released by a studio called "Studio Q" in the Midwest.

These little known inbound calls first surfaced on a CD called "the Studio Q Christmas CD" released by a small studio in the Midwest. Don't bother looking for the CD on Amazon. Word is that only a few copies of the CD were given to a few  employees of the studio. The PCWF committee has never seen an actual copy. Contact us if you find one. Evidently these calls were recorded somewhere in the San Francisco Bay Area. Callers think they are speaking to Dimension Cable repair department.

LUCIUS TATE - MP3 sample

Stats: Released 4 CD's. V

Also known as "Leon Johnson". This guy was never afraid to yank people's chains.

CELEBRITY PRANK CALLS - YouTube Video Link

Stats: Various pranksters make these calls

Their prank calls are made by various pranksters using samples of celebrity voices, so how do you attach an artist to these? It's always funny when someone starts having a conversation with a recording. 

PAPPA JOHN PIZZA PRANKS - YouTube Video Link

Stats: Bootleg calls

A guy was getting lots of wrong number calls for Pappa John pizza so he decided to have fun yanking people. From the sound of these we're guessing that somewhere a PJ's lost a few customers!

MARK KNOPFLER - YouTube Video Link

Stats: 

"Amanda White" call is the lone gem by Mark Knopfler. No it's not the guitarist from band Dire Straights making these calls, but rather some guy from the Odessa Texas area (apparently). This call was made sometime before 1995.

JONES-Z

Stats: Bootleg call

"Jones-Z" 7-Eleven call. This call was made in 1990 (during the height of the Gulf War) to a Hollywood California 7-Eleven store on the corner of Sunset Blvd and Curson. The guy working at the store sounds like some rock 'n roller type. The caller "Jones-Z" pretends to be a pushy Arab, demanding that the guy get on his skateboard and deliver Haagen Dazs ice cream to his nearby 7-Eleven because he has customers waiting. When Jones-Z tells the guy "I will set your whole country on fire", the guy announces it to all of the customers in the store. 

CRANK YANKERS - 

Stats: 2 seasons aired on Comedy Central, 1 season on MTV2.

Crank Yankers gathered together a few celebs as well as 2 professional pranksters, Touch-Tone Terrorists and Jim Florentine to record prank calls for Comedy Central. Our fav is the "Steven Hawking" call to a "sex line" using voice assistance technology.

HOWARD STERN SHOW - YouTube Link

Stats: Howard Stern broadcasts on Sirius Radio

Using sound clips from a message left for Robin by "Hate Man", Sal and Richard pranked a 976 girl.