Customer Reviews

What's The Number For 911?: America's Wackiest 911 Calls

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm Leland Gregory, the author of the book, "What's the Number for 911?" and I wanted to correct Alexis Mendez's faulty review of my book. 1) The chimp story - well, humor is subjective and if he didn't think it was funny, so be it.
2) I published the story of the man who choked to death on a fish months before the Darwin Awards book - therefore, it can't be referred to as a Wanna Be.
3) Urban Legends: the story of the woman who couldn't find the 11 on her phone was given to me by a 911 dispatcher along with the transcript of the call (how Mendez can claim it's an urban legend without knowing my source is beyond me). The man with his penis caught in a drain. I have the original call of this incident, which, by the way, occurred on July 15, 1994 at the Scottish Inn in Lakeland, Florida (it's available for anyone to hear on my CD, "Wacky 911"). The insecticide in the toilet which caused an explosion was reported in The Jerusalem Times, then Reuters, then United Press International - I always use two unique sources for my stories, so if it's an urban legend, then several reporters and two of the biggest news agencies in the world got fooled first.
I feel silly defending my material like this but I hate the fact that I was accused of false and/or faulty reporting by someone who justified their criticism by using false and/or faulty information.
PS: I gave my own book 5 stars to make up for his review.
Leland

Gosh this is a funny book! If you ever wondered what kinds of nonsense clutters up the emergency phone systems, then look no further. You get over 220 pages of short snappy stories about folks whose idea of an "emergency" is ... well ... here are some examples:

having the hiccups ... too few towels in hotel room ... pet parrot flying outside ... not finding an open gas station ... needing a smoke alarm battery ... hunger for a pizza ... neighbor's dog barking ... wondering when is Cinco de Mayo ... checking lottery winners ... not knowing the police phone number

One great story is on page 60:

"Police in Houma, Louisiana, issued a citation in April 1992 to Velma Ann Wantlin for improper use of the 911 emergency line. Wantlin, twenty-eight at the time, called 911 to report the following emergency situation: her husband was preventing her from watching the season finale of Knotts Landing."

Most of the stories and quotes from real callers range from silly to quirky to bizarre. The final chapter relates the actual 911 line chatter in a situation that literally blows up at the end -- a dramatic, sobering way to end the book. (See page 223.)

You'll laugh at these funny phone foibles -- but take a closer look. An emergency is an urgent situation requiring help, and usually it's a matter of life and death. When people tie up the 911 system and the emergency services with stupid or frivolous requests, other people may die as a result.

I particularly appreciate finding this book because it provides the lighter side of some of the serious problems I wrote about in my own book, Dial 911 and Die. Leland Gregory's funny book entertains while it shows what "not" to do with 911.

A dispatcher's job can be rewarding, exciting, challenging, and sometimes very humorous. As most dispatchers will tell you the most memorable 911 calls are not necessarily the high-rise fires, suicide interventions, or the ones in which we provide life-saving medical information. It's those strange, unbelievable, stupid, or funny calls we take everyday that make our job worth doing.

After all anyone can save lives. The seasoned dispatcher is the one that can keep from bursting into hysterical laughter when someone calls to tell them that while they were hanging drywall they accidentally slipped and lodged a screwdriver in their rectum, when oh by the way they so happen to be naked at the time. Humor plays a huge role in keeping us sane. We can laugh and joke at just about anything.

Leland Gregory's book is a painful and acurate description of the job of a 911 dispatcher. I don't think there was a call in the book that I haven't taken personally in my career. A must read for anyone considering a 911 career.

...... that's what I thought.
I work as an Emergency Medical Dispatcher and thought I had heard it all until I read this.
You guys in the states get calls just as crazy as we do here in Australia.
Great for a laugh and also an education on when NOT to call 911 (000).

I would highly recommend this book, particularly to fellow 911 dispatchers. We need a good laugh sometimes and this is it. We've all dealt with the stupid people who call to ask what time it is and when the opera starts - but these are some classic stories. Even if you aren't a 911 dispatcher - here's a great book about what it's really like.

I really enjoyed this book, I read the whole book on a slow night shift at work (911 center). Full of great stories some that i could relate to. However the book is starting to fall apart after reading one time

I got this book for my mother just before she went into the hospitol for cancer removal and it helped her laugh a little and keep her mind off of things. It is definitely a book with some good laughs in store.

I gave this book to my son in law as a gift with some other books he called to tell me he laughed so hard he had tears running down his face, He said it was one of the best gifts he recieved.

This book is one of the funniest I have seen for a while.

It is filled with strange-but-true stories about some of the 911 calls that are considered to be weird and strange.

If you work for the 911 service, this is one book you shouldn't miss.

This book was both funny and scary. Sure, it's funny to read about bizarre 911 calls. But it's also scary to learn that some people are dumb and inconsiderate enough to call 911 for stupid things, such as finding out which gas stations are open.

The dark side of this book kept me from enjoying the humor. When I read the "America's Dumbest Criminal" books, I whipped right through them. This book took longer. I think that's because reading about stupid criminals getting their just desserts makes us cheer. But 911 calls (except the trivial ones) are generally made by everyday people who need help.

Still, it's an education. It makes me appreciate the work 911 operators go through.

Anne M. Marble Reviewer, All About Romance