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When Plumbers Battled over Pop Culture
In 1981, Tommy Tutone came out with the song “867-5309/Jenny,” which took the world by storm. The song is about a phone number written on a bathroom stall, instructing the passerby to call Jenny for a “good time.” Jenny, per the song lyrics, could be reached at 867-5309—a number Tutone repeats over a dozen times during the four-minute song.
When the song became a hit—and Tutone’s only real success in the music industry—it turned the fictional Jenny’s phone number into a real-life target for prank calls. People would call up 867-5309 with their area code, ask for Jenny, laugh, and hang up. And because of this, real people who happened to be reachable at 867-5309 asked their phone companies for a new phone number. Most people, that is. Some decided to capitalize on the opportunity—and sue to protect it.
The story of the battle over 867-5309 begins at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1999. The university was given the entire block of phone numbers in the 867 exchange in area code 401, and assigned (401) 867-5309 to a student dormitory (there’s also an urban legend floating around that the school specifically assigned two freshman students named Jenny to the room with that number). The students were flooded with prank calls. So, in 2001, the school gave up the number to a regional plumbing company named Gem Plumbing and Heating, who in turn acquired the number in area code 617 (the greater Boston area) as well, which trademarked the number in both regions. If you wanted a plumber in the Boston or Providence areas, you called Gem, not Jenny, but at this well-known phone number.
However, perhaps coincidentally, Gem wasn’t the only plumber who saw the obvious tie-in between bathroom stall graffiti and additional business. Florida-based Clockwork Home Services also wanted Jenny’s number, and, like Gem, they jumped to claim it. Clockwork, under the name Benjamin Franklin Plumbing, acquired the toll-free number (866) 867-5309 and marked it as “867-5309/Benny.” As both numbers worked in Gem’s region, Gem sued, asking the court to stop Clockwork from using its trademarked number in the 401 and 617 area codes. According to USA TODAY, Gem won the lawsuit.
Since then, though, the two plumbers have apparently figured out a way to get along. In area codes 401 and 617, 867-5309 will give you the corporate offices of Gem. And if you dial 1-866-867-5309 in the Providence, Rhode Island, area? You’ll be connected with Benjamin Franklin Plumbing.