Student receives Paris Hilton's recycled number, along with a lot of late night calls

Getting calls at 3AM almost every night thanks to bad luck and a recycled number may be most people's idea of hell, but when the inherited number is Paris Hilton's there's a certain element of hilarity added to the mix-up. Due to standard 6 month cellphone number recycling, college student Shira Barlow started receiving calls meant for the former jailbird: primarily from callers that are clueless to being dumped by the socialite, along with the usual rabble of adoring fans and bitter haters. The reason anyone knows about this is because the LA Times happened to call the number, getting through to Shira who explained the story of how she got Paris' number. Poor Paris, she seems to have nothing but trouble with phones.

[Justin @ Jul 8th 2007 9:04AM]

Poor Paris my eye!

[Xavier Gill @ Jul 8th 2007 1:30PM]

please please please no more posts of this thing

[oki @ Jul 8th 2007 9:06AM]

lol thats hilarious, i def would abuse that number some how haha.

[Dorko @ Jul 8th 2007 9:09AM]

... and it goes a little something like this...

"Hey, Baby. Where you at? Are you holding? Me and my boys are looking to PARTY!"

Oh crap. Are you still in jail?

[Maestro @ Jul 8th 2007 9:30AM]

That's funny...and I know funny.

[Paul @ Jul 8th 2007 9:36AM]

And this has what to do with gadgets?

[bryson430 @ Jul 8th 2007 9:42AM]

and I thought I would be safe from Hilton news here....but no.

[PynkFloydd @ Jul 8th 2007 9:47AM]

First the excessive iPhone stories. Now excessive paris hilton stories?!?!!? For shame Engadget! ...for shame!

[Steve @ Jul 8th 2007 9:57AM]

This student was obviously using an iPhone. Otherwise it wouldn't be here.

[BigBirdUK @ Jul 8th 2007 3:36PM]

But will she play Doom?

[alpha @ Jul 8th 2007 9:58AM]

How is this related to gadget? Stop the crap

[strider_mt2k @ Jul 8th 2007 10:26AM]

Oh Engadget, please don't make this mistake again.

While she is a tool, she doesn't qualify as a Gadget per se.

Still...she is so robotic and completely without a soul....tough call there.

But please please can the celeb stuff?

Please?

[duber @ Jul 8th 2007 10:27AM]

I wish somebody hacked my phone!

Eeeeeeewwwwwww....

[2Perfect @ Jul 8th 2007 10:40AM]

In other news, there are no news about gadgets today.

[Gerard Boyers @ Jul 8th 2007 10:53AM]

Come on Engadget, what do you think you're doing. Expanding your horizons? Celeb gossip may be interesting, but its nothing to do with gadgets. Go post it on TVSquad or something. Please.

[C. Taylor @ Jul 8th 2007 2:00PM]

C'mon Engadget! Why did you post this, and then FORCE me to read it? Clearly I am too busy to read things that don't interest me; that's why I take the time to comment on how much of my time it wastes. I'm sure that there is PLENTY of gadget happening on a Sunday in August, and this is just distracting you from it! How much did this irrelevant piece delay your breaking news of Microsoft maybe making a laptop case?

Maybe from now on when I see a post that doesn't interest me, I'll just scroll wordlessly by.

[CurtSchilling @ Jul 8th 2007 10:59AM]

You think that's bad? My phone number is a single digit off from movie phone. Yes, the 333-film number in my area. It's almost like that episode when Kramer got the number and started giving out movie times. I've done it a few times out of anger and gave out wrong info.

[strider_mt2k @ Jul 8th 2007 11:30AM]

You lucky...

I would enjoy that to the point of recording my exploits and releasing it as a comedy album.

You should do the same!

[Travis @ Jul 8th 2007 12:13PM]

Wow. You guys really need to chill out. I'm sorry that its Sunday morning and there is no breaking gadget news - no press releases, announcements, nothing. Please go enjoy this summer day and stop complaining. The news will be here tomorrow morning. See you then.

[Gerard Boyers @ Jul 8th 2007 2:52PM]

Why don't they just leave the real news up until tomorrow then? At least yesterday's posts are remotely acceptable. Surely that would be better than updating the homepage with this drivel.

[CurtSchilling @ Jul 8th 2007 12:40PM]

I just like it when someone asks me for a movie and I just give them arbitrary times without even asking them what theatre they're going to or anything. Every now and then though, I'll whip out the paper and actually give out real times. Funny thing is, most of the times, it's just kids or women. Yes, it's rarely ever men. Is it because women are afraid of the Internet? Now there's a story. But really... who uses movie phone in 2007?

I've also had occurences where I've gotten into in depth conversations with said females going to the movies. For example, when I actually go to look up movie times in those few times, I'll make small talk. One time I got into this conversation about how why this girl was going to the movies by herself and if she wanted a partner. I didn't actually go, but Hell, I probably could have. Too bad I didn't have these ideas when I was single.

[Emte @ Jul 8th 2007 1:07PM]

Engadget!! Is this really gadget news. I'm so sick of hearing about this chick. I hoped that here would be the one place I would be free of it, an now you proved me wrong. Thanks for killing my gadget high so early on a Sunday morning.

[Trevor @ Jul 8th 2007 1:13PM]

old news.

http://howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1195784

[Steve Handjobs @ Jul 8th 2007 1:38PM]

I didn't realize that Paris Hilton knew how to operate a cell phone.

[Jesse S @ Jul 8th 2007 1:52PM]

"Due to standard 6 month cellphone number recycling"

What? I have _never_ heard of that. I've had my cell phone number for, oh, about 5 or 6 years. Come to think of it, this makes no sense. Why would a cell company do this? All it would do is create problems.

Unless of course, you mean after someone gets a new phone/number, the old one is recycled after 6 months. But again, that makes _no_ sense. Wouldn't they just recycle it right away?

[TheBigB @ Jul 8th 2007 2:22PM]

Dude, if you'd think with a clear mind for a sec, they would do that last thing you mentioned to prevent this from happening, but clearly there were a lot of people who haven't called her in 6 months.

[Jesse S @ Jul 8th 2007 5:11PM]

Why am I "Low Ranked"? I'm asking a question. Seriously. I do not understand this "6 month number recycling." Can someone just explain it to me?

[Juaquin @ Jul 8th 2007 5:53PM]

Hahahaha

Seriously?

Ok. Because there are so few telephone numbers, old ones that are no longer being used (since Hilton got a new number, the old one was just sitting around) are given out after 6 months.

They do not switch your number after 6 months - I too have had my number for many years. They just give out old ones that aren't being used anymore after 6 months. Simple, really. Why doesn't that make sense?

[nj @ Jul 8th 2007 2:42PM]

i have this same problem(luckly not on par with a celebritys number) but i got a new number recently and i get calls from people speaking chinese and calling me "jin" all the time. it gets anoying so i can only imagine this poor students pains.

[dramamoose @ Jul 9th 2007 12:52AM]

Jin? Maybe they're actually speaking Korean.. Try telling them you are a survivor from Oceanic flight 815, and you're "Lost" on an island in the pacific, and to get help.

[Ben @ Jul 8th 2007 4:38PM]

Wow Readers of Engadget why is everyone blaming Engadget for doing their job for basically reporting everything out there even if it has to do with Apple, Paris Hilton or anyone else. People need to chill, if you think its useless news SIMPLE dont Read it!

[Chris @ Jul 8th 2007 5:50PM]

I enjoyed this story, thank you engadget.

[David @ Jul 8th 2007 5:57PM]

By the way, what phone does she have. Does she still have Tmobile Sidekick, or she is on something else these days?

[Tavis Veighey @ Jul 8th 2007 6:08PM]

She was probably giving a free iPhone with free service. Those who can afford it, get it for free. :P

[chrish @ Jul 8th 2007 6:42PM]

Nobody here give a rats a** about paris.