Payphones make a couple of appearances in the 1984 HBO film The Glitter Dome. In the first scene Sgt. Wellborn, played by John Lithgow, wakes up from a nightmare to the sound of an incoming call from a snitch, Elliott Raimeus, played by Julian Munoz, calling from a Los Angeles payphone. The Glitter Dome appears to be Munoz’s one and only professional movie credit.

The next scene is a little more interesting, demonstrating as it does an ephemeral element of bar and payphone culture that has pretty well completely vanished. In generations past a payphone at a bar commonly doubled as the house phone, and customers at the bar could expect incoming calls at that phone. It’s like the bar was their home away from home. Few payphones today allow incoming calls.

In the second scene Al Mackey, played by James Garner, is told by the bartender that there is a call for him: “Phone, Al.” Without hesitation Al goes over to the payphone and has a brief conversation with Willie, played by Margot Kidder.