Local Life

Retro RFH Girls’ Night TGIF Calling

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RFH girls’ night at home circa late 1970s/early ’80s
Photo/Leslie Gunther

What do you get when you put a gaggle of RFH girls in a flowery ’70s wallpapered kitchen with a nouveau push-button wall phone? A girls’ night starring the phone. We’re not saying that was the case here, just imagining. Follow us in this inspired daydream into the past. Hey, there was such a thing — a girls’ night starring that phone.

Yes, that — that thing on the wall — is what the grooviest of land lines looked like back then.

Well, the girls look pretty innocent and they pretty much were. But, that phone was begging for a night of prank calls. Remember that? Before caller ID, the prank was a weekend ritual for some, especially when stuck indoors on a cold night. That and watching Love Boat. Or something. On the ol’ black-and-white tube TV — color if the parents sprung for it. And if nobody else was watching the one TV in the house — with the channel flipper being affixed to the TV. Remember that?

Commercial break called for those truth-or-dare calls. “Is your refrigerator running?” “Do you have Prince Albert in a can?” Yeah, those were the dumbest of pranks that incited a night full of giggles, popcorn and spit out soda over the belly laughs we teens inspired over our silly selves. But the irresistible prank of those days was played on the guy one or a few in the klatch liked. And sometimes that prank was played on the girl who couldn’t make it to the prank party that night.

Yeah, the rest knew who she “like liked” and called her in a very poorly disguised voice of the guy asking for a meet-up. Ohhhhhh, the pain of the poor girl who kinda knew, but fell for it all in a whim of really wishful thinking — even though the guy sounded an awful lot like a girl with a bad cold and there were giggles and snorts in the background. The worst part of this devious little kick? Watching their girlfriend wait for the guy to show. Bad, bad best friends.

Then there was the hang-up. Let’s not forget that without the clear benefits of cell phones, the hang-up was quite common. That’s because a mom or dad answering the phone was always the downside of a good prank plan or dare. Buzz kill without the buzz.

Then there was the one-ring signal. That meant, “It’s me. Don’t wanna talk to your mom or dad. Call me back.” As if they didn’t know. And with the call-back came an extended circle of pranks.

Some graduated to the truly diabolic, just-for-kicks late-night call to a random number in the phone book (remember that thing??). When a sleepy (no doubt) wife would answer, she would be met with throaty, hushed “Hello, is your husband home?” Then there were laughs over the prospect of just how much that couple’s night just got more interesting.

And let’s not forget the best of friends rallying to prank a deserving heel of a guy who hurt their friend with a fake call from a fake girl who feigned interest in the cad.

Hey, some took the prank into adulthood to stand by their girlfriends in tough times and solicited a call or three to help mend a broken heart or just keep the tradition and childhood friend laughter going.

Then, with the advent of caller ID, came the call from that prankster now-adult girlfriend: “Bad news. Our prank night fun has been ruined. The damn phone numbers of callers shows up right on the phone!”

Well, there was still the phone booth …

Don’t try this at home, kids. Oops. Can’t. As if … Way to ruin a good girls’ night, cell phones! Hey, step away from the phone and go on the hunt for a phone booth. That’ll take all … year?