Inferno spoke with Jeff Goldblatt in a phone interview
about his popular project, the Rejection
Hotline.
“Hello, this is not the person you are trying to
call…Unfortunately, the person who gave you this
number did not want you to have their real number. We
know this sucks, but don’t be too devastated.”
If this sounds familiar, then you have either rejected
someone or have been rejected through the Rejection
Hotline. Either way, you are one of millions of people to
have experienced a huge pop culture phenomenon.
Jeff Goldblatt created the Rejection Hotline in 2001,
born from a private joke between he and his friends.
When asked how he came up with the idea, he explained
that one day while visiting a bar he witnessed an awkward
encounter where a man approached a strikingly
beautiful blonde young woman and failed to get her
number. He used this scenario as his inspiration to begin
the Rejection Hotline, a fake phone number that pick-up
victims can use as a subtle way to reject those they are
not interested in.
This hotline was created to provide pure entertainment
for people. But in 2002, the humorhotlines.com
Web site turned it into a business, establishing the RH
Brands, LLC. It immediately started a nationwide buzz.
Originally from Framingham, Mass., Goldblatt attended
Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., and graduated
with a degree in Journalism and Creative Writing. Like
many college students, he was not sure what he wanted
to do with his life post-graduation. He knew that he refused
to be one of those people who hate their jobs.
“I was pretty fortunate to fi nd something that I enjoy
doing, something I was able to make a career out of,”
Goldblatt said.
In the early stages of the hotline enterprise, Goldblatt
received no profi t from it. After four years of being the
self-proclaimed “America’s Worst Entrepreneur,” he realized
that it was time to fi re himself and hire someone
with more experience, thus handing over the CEO title to
his friend and business partner Brian Kujawski.
Goldblatt could not be more proud of his company.
He has facilitated millions of pranks across the country
and has been the cause of the laughter of millions of
people.
“I would much rather have millions of callers than
make money,” he said. “I believe that it is important for
people to have a sense of humor and a smile on their face
at all times.”
The company has expanded by creating three new
hotlines a month. Some include the It Could Always
Suck More Hotline, the Psychiatric Hotline, and the Angry
Santa Hotline, which all started receiving millions
of calls. Since most of the new hotlines have nothing to
do with “rejection,” which was the original idea behind
the Rejection Hotline. The company has since developed
into a full humor company.
Goldblatt is looking forward to surpass the number
of callers they had last year on April Fool’s Day, when
they received millions of phone calls making it the busiest
call logging days of the year.
Goldblatt said that his hotlines make pulling pranks
easy for those who are not naturals at it.
When asked what his advice for the novice prankster
was, Goldblatt stressed to keep it simple.
“It is essential to make sure that you do not do too
much because pranks can always back fi re on you,” he
said. “Remember to plan for all the worst case scenarios
and just allow the humor hotlines to take care of it for
you by delivering the news.”
For a quick April Fool’s Day prank, call the assistance
hotline at (413) 497-0033.
But callers can still enjoy and utilize the original Rejection
Hotline by calling (212) 660-2245.
For more information, visit www.humorhotlines.com
and spread the humor.
