This is a typical example of the species. Glass or plexiglass sides. The word telephone in white letters on a red or blue background, maybe a sign with a bell imprinted on it. I've seen these in varying states of repair and/or disrepair as the case may be. So, while leaning this one is in pretty good shape. As the popularity of cell phones increased, the site of telephone booths decreased. Finding this one brought back memories for JR and I.
When I was a kid and all the way into the 90s phone booths dotted the landscape. It was a well known policy to always carry a dime in your pocket or if you weren't wearing something with pockets like a skirt or a dress you kept the dime in your shoe. Just in case you needed to call home. Then it went up to a quarter. There is no keeping a quarter in your shoe. It would just rub a blister. Blisters suck. As anyone who's ever had a blister can attest to.
Clark Kent would go into a phone booth, shut the hinged door, spin around and emerge as Superman. It was trilling in its day.I was a little afraid of them. What if I shut the little hinged door and then it wouldn't open again? What if I had already used my dime then found out that the door wouldn't open? How could I call for help? Calling collect wasn't an option. My mother would have killed me. Making a collection call was only for real emergencies. Getting stuck in a phone booth wouldn't not have been emergency enough. Of course, none of these things ever happened.
Now that I think about it I was sort of a neurotic mess as a young child. I have a feeling that therapy is going to cost a bit more than a dime.
Love,
M
The one thing I remember about them was that consistant smell of Pee. That and the fact they never worked for someone had cut the wire from the hand set.
ReplyDeleteI like your post about the phone. Have you ever tried for your blog? If not, you must try for your blog.
ReplyDeleteVince: I had blanked the memory of the smell out of my head but you are so right. Pee was the predominant smell. Also, the fact that the phone book was always missing.
ReplyDeleteLOL @ Vince. That's exactly what I was going to say. If you ever came across a phone booth that some drunk hadn't used as a urinal then you felt really lucky.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the biggest bummer about the demise of the phone booth is that it has really hurt hookers. The girls could pretend to be on the phone in case any police happened to drive by. Poor girls don't have that prop anymore.
Holy cow - it's literally been years since I've seen a telephone booth;even the few public phones left (usually outside of convenience stores, have you noticed that?) are phones just hanging on a wall, flanked by a plastic shield.
ReplyDeleteHmmm, I have never used a phone booth in my life. I didn't realize they could smell so bad, be used as hooker escape routes, or cause so much neurosis. I do remember Superman though, and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it weird how they just kind of disappeared from the landscape? There are still public phones but no actual booths. RIP phone booths.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised you found this one...it's been so long since I've seen ONE.
ReplyDeleteI loved the look of a telephone booth. Bygone days.
ReplyDeleteOh memories, memories. I still crack myself up when I hear me say.....dial a number.
ReplyDeleteThe new ones here in NYC are a 1/4 of a booth....and they all still smell like pee !!!
ReplyDeleteWow, I had forgotten all about phone booths. Too cool! Would be a good time out room for the kids.
ReplyDeletewhere is this phone booth?
ReplyDeleteThis phone booth is at Lake Livingston Texas. It just seemed so out of place that I had to take a picture of it.
DeleteThis is priceless!!!!!! Thank you for the belly laugh. I copied and sent the pic of your phone booth to my 8 y/o grandson to see if he knew what it was. I'll bet he doesn't!
ReplyDeleteDeb from NJ
Haha! This article is so nostalgic and fun. Yeah, I think most of us share the same sentiments with regards to these telephone booths when we were younger. Had so much fun reading this. :)
ReplyDeleteMichele, I loved your article on Phone booths. I have a hobby/blog where when i am out on the road & see something that catches my eye, I stop shoot a pic or 2 and then work the photo into my blog. Phone booths, pay phones etc are one of them, I chuckled when I read about having a quarter. I remember it being a dime :-) (showing my age) I am working my blog today & needed help in titles, tags etc. So, that's how I ended up here. My phone was down by the PHL airport in cargo city. Ok, here's the cheap plug for my blog...www.lovesphotoalbum.com
ReplyDeleteNO! it's not porn. My last name is Love. That's for the article john