—jomariem “Hardly anyone had an answering machine, although they were widely available, until the later ’80s. No one home? The message waited until there was. “Most of us were in our 20s when caller ID first came online in 1995 — the same year the internet really became a thing for most. That seemed revolutionary too.
“Up through the ’80s, it was technically illegal to use anything but regulation Bell telephones you had to order and lease through the phone company. Novelty companies did sell phones, but few people had them.” —kingdietrich —JadeFishes —etconner “And remember how, if you wanted to buy a movie back then, they were $100?” —sisterhavoc