Episode Details
Back to Episodes
December 21, 1999: Open Lines
Published 1 year, 7 months ago
Description
Art Bell opens the show with a startling announcement: all long-distance telephone service to Pahrump, Nevada, has been down since late afternoon, leaving him unable to take calls from the outside world. With only local lines working, he transforms the broadcast into an unprecedented Pahrump-only open lines night, inviting his desert neighbors to call in on local numbers while the rest of the nation listens to a one-way show.
Local callers share their experiences with the outage, reporting that credit card machines are also failing and internet service is spotty. A caller who works in the telecommunications industry explains that a switching failure in the local equipment likely caused the trunk lines to block all toll traffic. Art speculates about whether the outage could be an accidental Y2K test, given the approaching millennium deadline.
The evening takes on a warm, small-town character as Art reconnects with familiar Pahrump residents, including a woman his late wife Ramona once gave rides to and Joe from the now-closed local pizza shop who remembers a secret olive oil recipe Art brought back from Paris. After an hour of local conversation, Art signs off and sends the network to tape, marking one of the most unusual broadcasts in the show's history.
Local callers share their experiences with the outage, reporting that credit card machines are also failing and internet service is spotty. A caller who works in the telecommunications industry explains that a switching failure in the local equipment likely caused the trunk lines to block all toll traffic. Art speculates about whether the outage could be an accidental Y2K test, given the approaching millennium deadline.
The evening takes on a warm, small-town character as Art reconnects with familiar Pahrump residents, including a woman his late wife Ramona once gave rides to and Joe from the now-closed local pizza shop who remembers a secret olive oil recipe Art brought back from Paris. After an hour of local conversation, Art signs off and sends the network to tape, marking one of the most unusual broadcasts in the show's history.