Future payphone: Think I found a webcam that has a payphone in the view of it. Go to http://www.westland.net/piercam/. The payphone is right across the street near the Santa Monica pier in Santa Monica, CA. Ask your readers of your website to get the phone number so we can call it. I live in Seattle so I can't go there.

Hammer

Just called at 10:00pm EST on 2-20-06 - I was disapointed that the webcam was not working, but a guy answered on the second ring! What a crazy conversation, the dude was not sober. He reported that the sunset was "insane." He asked me where I was calling from - I am in Atlanta. He asked why I called, and I told him I just wanted to see what the weather was like. He told me it was "nice".

I feel like such a winner now. :)

310 xxx xxxx (the street phone) is giving me a "number no longer in service" message. The other number rang for probably a dozen times, but no one picked up.

shortest conversation ever... it rang about 7 times then them... "hello?" me... "hello" they immediatly hang up. I try calling back about 4 times with no answer. oh well.

3 cop cars watching the damn pay phone... go away piggies! oink, oink, oink

Been busy all night. WTF!

12:12 ET. I called a French man picked up and spoke only French. After talking about nothing for a minute he handed the phone to French woman. She explained that she was on holiday and going to the beach.

I called 2/22/06 at 2:20pm The guy on the phone seemed pretty confused, and didn't know why I was so happy to talk to him. I explained that he was my favorite person in the whole world, and then he hung up.

20:12 EST. I let in ring for a minute, at least. I could see a guy leaning up againt the phone the entire time on the webcam. Meh. Maybe next time.

Am I the millionth person to tell you that your site would be perfect if only it had an RSS feed? The difference between me and the other 999,999 is that I don't use that word lightly. The word "perfect," I mean. I'm throwing around "RSS feed" everywhere I go.

Charley

I made 3 calls and spoke to 3 different people.

1. I chatted with a woman for just a second then she said "My friends left me!" and hung up.

2. I told a guy that he was on a web cam and he asked me if I was making any money off of this. He said that I could be sued and hung up.

3. The third guy was really nice and kinda funny. We chatted for a bit then he asked if I was gay. Yep. So was he. I don't know where he was wanting to take it, but I had to hang up to take another call.

by far the best phone # yet... we should all look for webcams with phone booths in them so far i havent found any in Edmonton, AB canada

A bus just stopped right there and a bunch of people got off. Some just stood there, but wouldn't answer the phone. It just rang then I hung up.

dude. this is so intense. seconds worth of momemtary lags in watching a very attention consuming thing make me keep holding my breath.

the fucking web cam.

i called and watched. it rang. and the people walked by. why not pick up the phone, bike fucker in the yellow shirt!?

7 minutes worth of this ringing. and watching. and holding my breath. and then! a stick figure person seemed to be headed towards the phone!

when they picked up i actually jumped as i had become so mesmerized by the random rate of refresh on the webcam and the lull of the rings.

the stick figure then promptly snarled "fuck off" and hung up the phone.

i tried ringing it again immediately and for the next 5 or so minutes... and then gave up for now.

ok it was cool i called the phone and this person picked up right away i'm like hello and he's like hi who is this so i said "ashley" then i asked him who this was and he said jole and then i'm like "what ru doing" "going to the bar with my friends on the pier" yeah i'm like fun and then he said he had to go because his friends were talking about the movie phone both so we said bye and he left it was sad he sounded cute

phones last night @ 10:30 to 11 talked to some guy who was totally smashed, then he let me go, and left the phone off the hook, so i sat here yelling @ people as they walked by

this morning @8:30 thier time, i called and talked to a guy named jasmin, he asked if i was naked ,gay

After trying to call for about 10 minutes, I think that bastard took the phone off the hook.

just looked at the cam and saw someone walking by, called and he picked up. convo went something like this....

me:hey man

dude:hey

me:you know youre on webcam?

dude:i dont want to be on camera where is it on a building or something?

me:i dont know i can see you from across the street i see the big santa monica pier sign

dude: weird

me: yeah there's this website where you can watch the camera, and the phone number is listed so i called.

dude: whoa man i just heard the phone ring i just got out of jail

me: holy shit no way, what happened?

dude: i just did 4 months for a gram of weed, there were nothing but riots

me: for a gram? thats crazy

dude: yeah i saw two guys die, one guy had a bunk dropped on him from the top floor, there was blood everywhere.

me: yeah shit thats nuts

dude: where are you now?

me: virginia

dude: what time is it there?

me:8:10am

dude: man so its like 5:20 here

me:yeah man

dude:this is weird.

me:yeah, well take it easy man stay out of trouble

dude: love you

me:later

Called at 11:30p local time on 2/26/06. It went two or three rings and some guy in a white shirt picked up and said "Pizza!" so thinking quickly I said "Yeah can I get a large cheese delivered?" He then said "Pizza!" and hung up. Thats it for now

i tried to call the number but it just did a bussy noise for the hour i tried it didn't look like any one was using the phone any one know why there was a bussy signal? and then does it cost to call that pay phone or any pay phone for that matter?

Someone finally picked up! Was a man from Oregan, and we talked about the weather, and pizza, and hotel rooms.

This webcam is stressful. Before I talked to this afore mentioned person, I watched a lady STAND NEXT TO THE PHONE WHILE I CALLED IT, and not pick up.

Bitch.

(10:30 PM Santa Monica time) A guy answered with a sort of "what up, dog" mentality, which was cool. I told him I was calling from Indiana and was just wondering what's up. He said they just got done eating at a shrimp place (don't remember the name). Apparently, his girlfriend talked him into picking up the payphone.

(10:35 PM) Still trying. I'm attempting to call when there are people walking by, but so many just stroll past it. I guess it takes a certain kind of person to pick up a ringing payphone. I think some of them are eyeing it precariously though, especially when they're waiting for the crosswalk.

(10:41 PM) Got another guy. He seemed a bit disillusioned when he heard I was calling from Indiana. He asked, "Are you watching me?" Of course, I told him there was a webcam across the street, but that I didn't put it there. Then he said "OK, bye", then hung up.

(10:49 PM) Another guy, sounded Hispanic. He answered on like the first ring, but he hung up almost immediately after I said where I was calling from. Not even a goodbye :(

(10:50 PM) Same guy answers with "Yes, may I help you?" He seemed pretty confused.

(10:55 PM) Now busy. Perhaps he left it off the hook, as I don't see anyone there making a call. Oh well, I'm going to bed anyways.

Bill

(11:05 PM) Working now, though for some reason people can't hear me, damn it. Strange. Got two people to answer and I couldn't talk to them.

One of the guys was pretty funny though - he stayed on the line for over a minute, talking to his friends, saying "hello" over and over (including in a breathy stalker-type voice).

Bill

I called last night at 8:44 PM California time. It rang for a while before a guy, who was pretty drunk, finally answered. He was pretty amazed at the idea of the webcam and the website and commented, "Tight!" many times. He then invited me to California before we bid each other goodbye.

i called it for about an hour straight, between 7-8 pacific time. Finally got someone to pick up right when i was going to give up. They were geocaching and one of their caches was to get a picture taken in front of that specific payphone. Lucky for them i was kind enough to take a screenshot and email it to them :)

i sent an update previously about getting in touch with some geocachers via the santa monica pier phone. They asked me to update my email to you to include the names Furbrat and Brewer Chef so that they can have proof that they are the ones in the screenshot i took of them. thanks!

12:02 AM EST- Saw a crowd of people standing around, quickly dialed the number, but a few rings in they all crossed the street! Losers.

I just talked to a guy at 10:14am local time. I told him I was calling from Vermont and was wondering why the street was lined in traffic cones. He told me that there is a security checkpoint set up for people entering the pier. Must be the reason for the webcam in the first place I guess, since it's a war zone there. (war on terror that is) The guy gave up before I could ask him if he was wearing a bullet-proof vest. I will try again...

10:22 am local. Called again; same guys answers, and says: "hello, are you the dude calling from Vermont again?" I say: "sure am". I proceed to ask him if he has ever yelled through an orange traffic cone before and he says: "I'm not going to do that." and then he asks me if I am seeing him on the webcam. I confirm that is the case and he says he has to "get back to work". Not sure what that means exactly, but I think that I will give him a break from answering the phone for a while since he must be protecting us from terrorists or something.

Called once March 2nd, and wow someone answered. A guy who proclaimed he was drunk and that Santa Monica had "no scene..man" and nothing going on ..hes going back east. Waiting for his friends. He also said he was "fighting scumbags and hanging out" and that there was alot of scumbags around.

spoke to a girl named veronica who just got off work in malibu. she works at KFC and was on her way home and had to make a phone call when the payphone rang. don't think the webcam link above is of the actual phone.

first time anyone's ever answered my phoneswarm attempts!

I called at 11:45 PM Eastern. I was watching the webcam as well, a small group walked up to it after about 20 rings. A young girl picked up and said hello. Everyone laughed. The man took it and said, "I think you have the wrong number." He proceeded to hang up.

I called at 12:10 PM Eastern. I was watching the webcam as well, a young girl picked up, named Jeanette. She's 17 and she works at a local restaurant called "Travel Lodge". She wasn't very talkative, though. She hung up before we could talk some more.

I called at 12:15 PM Eastern. The young girl picked up again and we talked for a good 30 minutes!! She was actually pretty interesting. She was bored on a thursday night, so she and her friend were remedying this by waiting on the corner. Her friend's name was Mackenzie.

Just got through for the first time! Had a quick chat with "Jim" who says they just had rain - liar, I can see you on the webcam and it's sunny.

He hung up when I asked what he was up to.

I called at 8:50pm EST, which means 5:50pm over there. I got to speak to someone on the 2nd ring or so. His name was Yeltsin. yes, just like the former russian president. i told him i was from new jersey, and that i was calling because of this website. he was a little freaked out when i told him about the webcam that was across the street. so i pointed out the yellow taxi cab that just passed he and his friends and he laughed. I gave him the URL and i think he's gonna try it out later. He was on his way to some fish market in the pier so he had to go. Great, great website.

-roderick f. ante
jersey city, NJ

some guy called me a fucker, then left the phone hanging in the wind for about 2 minutes lol

I called @ 5:45pm California time. Some lady w/ a loud, annoying voice picked up & said, "Hello?! Hello?!" & I said, "Hello!" & then she said, "He said he's not going there, he's going w/ them." & then before I could say anything else, she hung up. Ahhaha! She must have been waiting by the phone, expecting a call, & I called & interrupted the call she was waiting for, & she thought I was that person. Hahaha, that's funny; I may call again.

So I'm looking at the webcam, and I can see it's 4.30 AM there (I'm in Europe). I see a guy walking along, so I call up and sure enough I get him on the hook. Turns out it was a homeless guy named Bill who was basically hanging around in the area because it was relatively safe compared to most other places in the city. I talked to him for about 5 minutes. I asked him why he was homeless, and he told me he had been run over by a dirt roller at work and his employer had somehow screwed him over in the preceding disability case, so he lost everything he owned because of the costs. He said he was reduced to begging and that he sent 75% of the money he earned to his wife and three kids to help pay the bills. On the side he had plans to develop some kind of new fire fighting device. At first I assumed he was drunk, but he sounded clear and seemed happy to talk to somebody.

I called at 3:00 PM MST today (March 3, 06) and this guy answers and I'm like, "Whattup! This is Nick!" and it's quiet. So I say, "Who is this?" and he hung up on me. I was all prepped to talk about the beach, the Oscars, all sorts of things! And he hung up on me! I thought SoCal people were supposed to all be happy and friendly.

Nick
Flagstaff, AZ

I just called successfully (4:18 SantaMonica time) and talked to some nice guy there. He said it was a beautiful day and I told him that he was lucky, since it's snowing here in Wisconsin. This was fun.

Jamie
Madison, Wi

Jamie again. I just called now (4:30p Santa Monica time) and talked to someone named Dave. He was very pleasant as well. We were both very excited for the Oscars. He said I should get out of Wisconsin and come enjoy sunny Santa Monica. Maybe he works for the travel bureau.

Jamie
Madison, Wi

I just got the "Quality Inn"?

Hey, I just found your site on Cockeyed.com and thought I'd look into it. I'm here at my college computer center killing time, and thought I would have some fun. I called the Santa Monica Pier number and watched the pay phone from the web cam. People walked by as I rang the line for about 5 minutes. Finally a man with a name I can't remember to spell, something like Joeb or something finally answered and started talking some Matrix lingo, had a laugh and I told him about the site, and that I was watching him. He thought that was pretty cool and said he was going to check the site out. He then started pointing and telling me about the position of the moon and the sun and told me to look up the astrology behind it and see what it means... I don't think I will. Fun Site!
Tones Bones

Took a bit for someone to finally pick up but when someone finally we did chated about the weather for awhile. Asked me where I was from and then informed me that he was on a senior trip from Charlette, NC. Apparently he was cold, was a windy day and the shorts wernt doing it for him. At the end of the conversation he made sure that I knew I was calling a payphone. Wanted to know how I was doing it...

Cara here. I called tonight at 8:55 Ca time. I live on Florida's East coast. 2 rings and Mark picked up!. My first time someone picked up!!! I told him that I was just calling the pay phone to see if anyone would pick up, then I told him about Phoneswarm. He said that he had just been hanging out on the beach and relaxing. I plan on doing that Sat. Mark is 19 and moved to Ca from NY about 5 years ago. He was amazed that I had seen him walk by and then called him. He loved the idea of two random people having a mini conversation. I hope he comes here and reads this post. Thanks Mark for picking up. The converstaion ended like this:
Cara: Well right on Mark for picking up the phone. Have a good night.
Mark: Thanks, Take care

Wonderful!!!

ROFL! What are we teaching our kids these days... There was a school bus part precariously close to the phone... I call the number at like.. 11:06 AM their time... and some little mexican girl picks up... I can actually hear the teacher in the background.

Jeez, teach kids not to answer the phone. :P

Called: 11:52 AM Talked to "George" who said he was working on some High Voltage...

Very cordial, talked a moment with me and asked who I wanted to speak too... I then said: "Just find anyone on the corner, I don't mind"

He then proceeded to talk to someone passing him... "Hey, Hey, there's someone who wants to talk to you".. "He wants to talk to you"... Man: I can't.. I'm on my way to work.

"George" told me to call back and he would find a chick for me, cause he's gonna be around for a bit.

I also told him where to find the cam.

Called the phone at 2:10PM (local Calif. time) and some guy answers. I tell him I'm Tom, and ask his name. He says he's Jesus. I ask him if he is THE Jesus. He says yes, he is. I ask him if I will be able to get into heaven. He says, "Stop whacking off and maybe I'll cut you a break." Then he hangs up.

Hammer here, I can't believe my suggestion for this phone made it to your website! I haven't been to your website in a while and was surprised to see that a phone number was found for the payphone at the Pier.

I called this Friday evening at 9:07 pm. On the second try I did get someone that knows the Seattle area in particular the city of Bellevue which is across the lake (Lake Washington) from Seattle. I told him about the website and he was interested in checking it out. I had him wave his arm so I could see him better. He was a pretty cool guy. My call lasted until 9:11pm

Thanks for placing my suggestion on your website. It rocks!

i just called twice(about 1pm pay phone time)and talked to two different guys... the one was british i believe...he said it was very nice there and then had to go... the next guy yelled out for "bob" the fake guy i was asking for then said if he sees bob he'll let him know i was calling for him. this is way fun... i'm going to keep calling.

emily
casper, wyoming

Talked with a very polite man about the weather at 10:56pm. No rain, snow or hail to report. The best part was watching his wife get impatient as we chatted... :)

I read about this site on the Geocaching forums and tried calling twice today while folks were near the phone. Both times someone picked up and then hung up the phone without speaking :(

Wicked fun! I called at 10:02 eastern time, it rang a long time, then a girl picked up. She lived in California. She did not believe I was watching her on the webcam till I described the cars going by. then I talked to her boyfriend, and he was in awe that I called from Rhode Island and it was time for bed here! He was nice. Then he said he had to go, they were going to check out the pier. This site is awesome. I am going to tell everyone!!!

I just talked to a women, I gave her the link to the webcam. She asked why the phone was always ringing. Haha.

St. Patty's Day! I called from Seattle and some dude answers and says: "Are you my stalker?" Of couse i say yes and we talk about the weather and he finishes with:"Later, dude, we're gonna go smoke some bud..." Right on, random youth of America.....

Finally got through to someone who was willing to talk!!! This girl picks up, there with her friend. I think her name was maria? I told her I was calling from Wisconsin, and not to hang up, I wasn't prank calling.

"This is california, right? What's it like there?"
"Who is this??"
I told her my name, and jumbled though the info about the site and why it's here, connecting people randomly, etc., and that she was on a webcam. I spent a few minutes trying to convince her she was on camera, though she kept saying, "What am I wearing?" "Don't know, you're too small on the screen! Oh, a bus just went by! White car! People on the crosswalk!!"

She asked what the address of the webcam was and I told her, and I also begged her to come to phoneswarm as well. She said she would, but I don't know... "one more thing," I asked, "did you have a good day today? I mean, really a good day?"
"Yeah. I did. Gotta go! Bye."
*Click*

well called the first time (my little brother did) and he didnt really have anything to say ( i told him to think of something) so he claimed he dialed a 9 instead of a 6 and that was that, the guy there was on to us, he asked if we were on a computor.

so then we see he's left and so we call again, this time on speaker, it looks like its off the hook but its ringing so we're good, anyway some woman picks up and asks if we're looking for somebody, "nope, just decided to call a payphone is all", "well i just decided to answer one!" "what a coincidence" brother- "um, er, ya know you're on camera right now?" "im not on camera right now" -click- well thats that then, we'll call later when people are less afraid of talking to complete strangers.

Adam, Jake

-rings for like 15 times-

hello?
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?!
good
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?!
yes!
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?!
good!, brother- yes!, at same time

repeat this for at las 20 times
-click-

well that was interesting

probably the last one for me
somebody answered, informed me i was calling a payphone, i told him i knew, and that he should try it sometime, told me to take care of the wife and kids, told im i would, click.

you guys get the frendly ones...

6:55pm-7:15pm_march 18/06
rings about 9 times...
demiho(some latain neame: hello?
me:hey
demiho: hi
me: um,hey i just wanted someone to talk to
demiho: cool
me: yea,so how are you
demiho: um...pretty good
me: ah glad to hear it
demiho:yea...
me: its like 9:55 here
demiho:...
me:um,b-by the way w-what time is it there?
demiho: um...about 7:15(he go the time wrong lol)
me: wow...3 hours!
demiho: yea,
me: so,where are you?
demiho: um, at santa Monicas
me: wow!...all in californa
demiho: yea...
me: yea, in in connecticut
demiho: ah,(getting sceptic)so are you planning a vacation here?
me:(lying to keep the convo rolling). um,yea i mean with my family and all
demiho:...
me: um, btw is it cold there at all?
demiho: um, no its pretty fine weather.
me: ah, is freezing here in CT,i dont wanna even go outside
demiho: ah,
me: yea,....Well you probably have things to do so i guess i let you go
demiho: aight...
me: yea, well have a good night and take care
demiho: you to
me: oh,and dont be a stranger...
demiho:(laughs) hhahah, all right
i-ill see y-you
me: all right good bye..
-click-

I got so excited when I pulled up the webcam and saw someone leaning against the phone, but by the time I got to my own phone they were gone. I spent a few minutes listening to the ring and watching. Then it went busy. I called back and spent a few more minutes listening. Then I realized I could *see* there was no one around, so I didn't need to stay on the line the whole time. I decided to hang up and re-dial only when someone enters the frame... Well, I did this twice, when all of a sudden, I got the message, "We're sorry -- you're calling a number that has been disconnected or is no longer in service..." I checked the number and dialed again. Same result. No longer in service.