How The 867-5309 Phone Line Came About

Sally Werner, CEO of CSC, explained how the new number came about: “We got connected with Klick Health kind of the end of last year, and they said, what’s your biggest issue, your number one concern? And I said that people don’t find us soon enough or that they don’t find us at all.” She added, “So obviously it’s our hope to engage with cancer patients, caregivers, family members, early in their trajectory and often.”

Klick Health then returned with an idea that really struck a chord, so to speak. “When they came back to us and said, ‘Hey, Tommy Tutone’s Tommy Heath is willing to donate this song so that people will know how to access you early, often, and never forget the number when they need you. We were just blown away.”

This was exciting for Werner, who described herself as an “’80s girl.” You could say the following video Jenny-rated a ton of attention in the 1980s:

In fact, the song got so much attention that anyone who happened to have 867-5309 as a phone number could expect to get random calls asking for, you guessed it, Jenny.

The idea of using this iconic phone number for CSC clicked fairly quickly with Heath when Klick Health approached him with it. “It instantly felt like the right thing to do, so I jumped right in,” Heath said. “I have family members who have had cancer. I had very mild cases. My sister-in-law is a cancer research nurse.”

Kristine Brown, associate creative director for Klick Health, emphasized, “By tapping cultural nostalgia and pop culture familiarity, the campaign is designed to shorten the distance between diagnosis and support, while driving awareness and action.”

Tommy Heath Has Been Helping Promote The 867-5309 Hotline

Heath isn’t just waiting for everyone to get the phone number off the wall either. He filmed a spot for Instagram in which he revealed, “Believe it or not, I have never called that number, so I think it is about time I did.” He then proceeded to punch CSC-867-5309 into his phone.

About this Instagram spot, Heath told me, “I’m pretty much of a neophyte in the social media world, but I just went out there and told people about it. What CSC is doing is amazing. I didn’t even know anything about the organization, but the more I read about it, the more impressive it is."

What’s also been impressive has been the staying power of the Tommy Tutone hit song. When you ask Google what is the most famous phone number, 867-5309 comes up first. Unlike leg warmers and stirrup pants, awareness of the song seems to have continued across generations. Werner mentioned, for example, that all three of her kids know the number.

And don’t be surprised if you hear the strains of 867-5309 on a stage nearby this summer. “I was a software programmer for a while and took a long time off,” said Heath. “I got back into [the music scene] about 2017 and have been touring every summer.” He joked, “I’ve been on a campaign to let people know about my music and that I’m not just some half-dead guy singing '80s songs.”

Well, he’s certainly more than that. And with 867-5309 now steering folks to a cancer support phone line, who knows how many lives his music will end up improving and saving.