Click
here to listen to the origins of Lucius Tate in his own words.
Over the years a
lot of people have asked the question, Who the hell is Lucius
Tate? Ever since the mid-seventies, when copies of unmarked prank call tapes
began spreading from Texas to points all over the world, people
have been asking, Who the hell was making those incredible prank
phone calls? The answer, of course, must remain a secret. But for
the few who know the man, and for those who have made the pilgrimmage
to meet him, he has become a truly legendary figure in the world of
comedy.
Though his characters have become widely known, Lucius himself prefers
to remain anonymous. Lucius Tave (Tave being the correct spelling,
though most folks hear Tate when they listen to the calls), Chevelle
Macaroy, Elrod Johnson, Leon Ripley, Ruby Bigonia... Each voice a
distinctive personality, some so different from one another it's hard to
imagine that they were made by the same person. And the victims of his
calls have become legendary themselves: Julius Pitts, Eileen, Nolan, Jim
Masters, Vera Rolands. Places in town like the Royal Inn Motel,
Brookshires (they closed up, ain't they?), 201 Wool Street,
Arbala and the White Funeral Home have become mythic locations. Even the
Singer Harris department store lives on through the legend of the Lucius
Tave telephone calls.
Of course,
there are always folks out there who don't think prank phone calls are
funny. Threatening and abusive phone calls made to strangers in the
middle of the night don't amuse them. They have considered some of his
calls to be rascist, downright vicious, and hateful. They were not
intended to be. The real life Lucius lives and works with many of the
victims of his pranks. He eats at Julius Pitt's Cafe. He
says hello to these people on the street every day, and waves when he
passes them in his car. To meet him, it's hard to put the voices on tape
with the man in the flesh.... You couldn't meet a more gracious or
friendly person.
So what drives this man to torment people the way he does?
I guess Lucius just loves to wake somebody up at 4 in the morning and ask them if their wife's still doin' that hoin' or to ask if they're going to pay their overdue bill for 15 pair of exotic panties. It tickles him to death. And by God it tickles us too.
If you have a slightly warped sense of humor, it's all just harmless
fun.
So listen to the audio clips on this web site, order a few tapes or a
CD, and laugh your ass off. Then write to mailto:lucius2000@suddenlink.net
and let him know how much you enjoy the havoc he's created.
Click here to listen to the origins of Lucius Tate in his own words.