PLA is born. Brad Carter (RBCP) is homeless in Portland, dialing into BBSes from the airport. His friend Zak (el_jefe), on a southern-Illinois 618 BBS, declares he's starting a hacker group called the Phone Losers of America. The name sticks.
Brad re-headers old text files into PLA001–013. "The PLA now officially existed." PLA014 "Cordless Phone Hell" (the Dino Allsman saga) and PLA015 "Beige Boxing" become foundational. Front-page newspaper stories + an arrest warrant follow him across the country.
The zine ends with Issue 46 (May 5, 1997) — 46 issues over three years, distributed entirely over dial-up BBSes.
The audio era. RBCP launches PLA Radio as internet radio (2002), then a podcast (Jan 2006). Prank-call tapes, PLA TV, Cacti Radio, The Big Beef Bueno Show, and The Phone Show all orbit this period.
PLA takes the stage at HOPE (Hackers On Planet Earth, the 2600 conference) in NYC for anniversary panels.
The Snow Plow Show debuts as a 3-episode YouTube video run (Sep–Nov). RBCP quits after 3 — video is too much work. Named after a Toothpaste For Dinner comic: "For Sale. Snow Plow. Works good. Should rhyme but doesn't."
The real beginning. On May 28, 2013, the modern audio show airs — "While My Keytar Gently Weeps." A few days later: "Oh, this is called The Snow Plow Show now." Broadcast from The Situation Room, a baking attic in Albany, OR.
The Elite Cactus Squad ($5/mo) launches, with the members-only Hobosode as the reward. Car Ding calls (started 2011) become the show's signature weapon.
The FBI raid. Agents seize the Situation Room's drives over a borrowed Safeway complaint-database login used in two episodes. RBCP tells the whole story on-air (Ep 318). Sentenced Oct 2017: probation + ~$19,600 restitution. Most gear came back.
The studio moves to Portland and becomes the Prank Call Call Center. The dings continue.
900+ episodes and counting. Twice a week, plus the Hobosode, plus a reeeeeaaallly long voicemail segment at the end. CACTUS.
| Show | Era | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| PLA 'Zine | 1994–97 | The original phreaking/hacking humor e-zine. 46 issues, BBS-distributed. |
| PLA Radio | 2002–~12 | Internet radio → podcast. The first long-running PLA audio show. |
| The Snow Plow Show | 2013–now | THE flagship prank-call podcast. Long voicemail outro. ~2x/week. |
| The Hobosode | 2014–now | $5/mo members' bonus episode (Elite Cactus Squad). |
| Brad's Cactus Shack | strand | Bonus content + the in-lore "cactus bar in Roy, New Mexico." |
| The BeverlyBot Show | 2021– | Built around the BeverlyBot phone gag + voicemails. |
| Party Time | 2015– | Laugh Track Matt & Zax host; RBCP calls in. |
The war cry, mascot, and visual motif. From a friend, Amigados, who'd call and say nothing but "cactus." Obey it.
Leave a note: "Sorry I dinged your car! Call me." The number's a Google Voice; PLA fields the furious callbacks pretending to be the (nonexistent) dinger.
An annual September event built entirely around car-ding calls. Yes, there is a Dingtember song.
Phreaking term: a lineman's handset used to tap a phone line at a junction box. Central to PLA015. (Historical/parody.)
Playing tones that mimic coins dropping into a payphone. The origin of the "RedBox" in RedBoxChiliPepper.
Coordinated group calls — many listeners hit one target at once. "Cactus" inevitably ensues.
A "Lenny" stalling-bot reskinned with clips of a genuinely furious woman RBCP once called. It curses you out, forever, automatically.
A recurring character voice made with a Roland VT-3 voice changer.