Operator
Wondery
During the 1-900 number craze of the Nineties, one company provided the vast majority of phone sex. American Telnet was an empire founded by the man who called himself “The Telephone Pimp.” He ran the company “like General Motors” and got filthy rich doing it. But for the (mostly) women who answered the calls and delivered fantasies 24-7, it was a different story. The powerful stigma against sex work was always lurking just beneath the surface, until it threatened to tear apart the whole company. Hosted by Tina Horn (Why Are People Into That?), OPERATOR is an eight-part series about big ambitions, Shakespearean-level corporate backstabbing, men and women at the cutting edge of a technological revolution...and on the front lines of a sexual one.
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7 Listeners
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Best episodes
Top 10 Operator Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Operator episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Operator for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Operator episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Press One Now | 1
Operator
11/08/21 • 33 min
Mike Pardes has already had a colorful career before he ever hears about pay-per-call phone sex. He’s been on all sides of the transaction, so it makes sense that he would be the one to bring sexual fantasies to millions of landlines across the country. With one phone call from a lawyer, American TelNet is born.
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5 Listeners
The Business of Pleasure | 2
Operator
11/08/21 • 31 min
Pardes assembles his team of executives, including an ex-Marine named Victoria. She’ll oversee the operators who answer the phones 24/7, 365 days a year. And computer prodigy Michael Self builds the technology that keeps the calls (and cash) flowing in, even as a Category 5 hurricane approaches their Florida offices.
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This series is produced by Topic Studios, Hardball Entertainment, Five by Eight Productions, the Department of Motion Pictures, and Wondery.
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4 Listeners
Hang Time (Explicit) | 4
Operator
11/22/21 • 38 min
Okay, you’ve waited long enough. This episode takes you inside the phone room to hear phone calls based on the manuals, the stories, and host Tina Horn’s own years of sex industry experience. We’re taking a break from the behind-the-scenes drama at ATN to go deeper into the sex part of phone sex — while also showing the hard work of sex work. (Note: This episode contains graphic sexual content.)
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3 Listeners
The Coup | 7
Operator
12/13/21 • 24 min
Michael Self betrays Mike Pardes and stages an elaborate company takeover, in a last ditch attempt to save First Call, his off-ramp from the phone sex business. What Self doesn’t realize is that the bad blood between the ATN partners has long been brewing, and he’s about to be double-crossed himself.
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3 Listeners
11/15/21 • 25 min
As the dial-a-porn business is booming, the folks at ATN constantly face new hoops to jump through: Federal regulators. Outraged politicians. Anti-porn crusaders. Victoria’s operators need to keep the calls sexy and selling without running afoul of FCC language regulations. Meanwhile, Michael Self works around the clock to build tech despite his own embarrassment at being in the phone sex industry.
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3 Listeners
Being on Top | 5
Operator
11/29/21 • 28 min
ATN’s business is at its peak, but a national exposé on Dateline brings unwanted attention to the 1-900 industry. Pardes thinks there’s no such thing as bad publicity, but Michael Self disagrees and starts looking for a way out.
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1 Listener
The End of the Line | 8
Operator
12/20/21 • 39 min
With the internet slowly encroaching on the phone sex industry, Mike Pardes hires a group of Cuban exiles to replace Michael Self’s team of tech nerds. By 2004, the FCC has banned 1-900 numbers, and with profits plummeting, American TelNet is forced to close. Life after ATN looks different for everyone: Michael Self attempts to use his tech skills towards something other than servicing ‘horny dads’, Victoria continues to be every employer’s dream, and Mike Pardes lives a bachelor life in Florida - while also trying to reunite his actual family.
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1 Listener
Introducing: Operator
Operator
10/25/21 • 2 min
During the 1-900 number craze of the Nineties, one company provided the vast majority of phone sex. American Telnet was an empire founded by the man who called himself “The Telephone Pimp.” He ran the company “like General Motors” and got filthy rich doing it. But for the (mostly) women who answered the calls and delivered fantasies 24-7, it was a different story. The powerful stigma against sex work was always lurking just beneath the surface, until it threatened to tear apart the whole company.
Hosted by Tina Horn (Why Are People Into That?), OPERATOR is an eight-part series about big ambitions, Shakespearean-level corporate backstabbing, men and women at the cutting edge of a technological revolution...and on the front lines of a sexual one.
You can binge all episodes of Operator exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+. Find Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
1 Listener
It’s Not Personal | 6
Operator
12/06/21 • 28 min
At ATN headquarters, Victoria works harder and longer than ever, only to watch everyone else get a raise except her. Meanwhile, Michael Self starts a “cleaner” offshoot of the company, but Mike Pardes is less than enthused when it doesn’t take off. Desperate, Self decides to take matters into his own hands...
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See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
1 Listener
09/11/23 • 11 min
Dr. Robert Hadden was a trusted OB-GYN at Columbia University. Friendly, caring, unassuming... and behind the closed door of exam rooms, one of the most prolific sexual predators in New York City. During his 25-year career, he assaulted hundreds, perhaps thousands, of patients, under the guise of medical exams. Those who tried to warn Columbia were ignored or not believed. When it appeared that no one — not Hadden, not Columbia — would be held to account, it was the survivors who undertook a decade-long fight for justice.
From Wondery, Exposed: Cover-Up at Columbia University is a story about power: who has it, who loses it, and what it takes to get it back.
Follow Exposed on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen ad-free by subscribing to Wondery Plus in Apple Podcasts or the Wondery app.
Listen to Exposed: Wondery.fm/Exposed
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Operator have?
Operator currently has 66 episodes available.
What topics does Operator cover?
The podcast is about Society & Culture and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Operator?
The episode title 'Press One Now | 1' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Operator?
The average episode length on Operator is 10 minutes.
How often are episodes of Operator released?
Episodes of Operator are typically released every 14 days, 1 hour.
When was the first episode of Operator?
The first episode of Operator was released on Oct 25, 2021.
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