Lately, Denver TV has been awash in nutty spots for Benjamin Franklin Plumbing, all pointing out that the number to dial for service is the same as the one that forms the hook in "867-5309/Jenny," the ridiculously catchy Eighties-tastic smash by two-hit wonder Tommy Tutone. (The group's other hit, by the way, was the Top-40 scraping "Angel Say No," which hardly anyone remembers -- probably including members of the group.) But that's the case only with the national, toll-free line, which uses an 866 prefix. Numerous sites, including this one and this one, list a 303-867-5309 number, but they're wrong; I dialed it and got a no-longer-in-service message, which would have been a real drag had my toilet just exploded. In fact, the local Benjamin Franklin number is 303-340-3400, and the nice man I reached when I called it says the Denver office has never used the 867-5309 digits -- a decision that undoubtedly cuts down on drunk dialing by nostalgic boomers. He added that potential customers in the area would probably be better off tapping in the local number rather than the corporate one. That way, you'll get more direct service -- and you won't have a Tommy Tutone song stuck in your head all day.
For those who'd like the melody to rattle around their brain pan for a while, click "More" to see the spot. -- Michael Roberts
