02367cam a22003613u 4500 32672 UtSlPG 20260610133738.0 m cr n 260607r2010||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d UtSlPG en iso639-1 PS Garson, Clee Direct Wire Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg, 2010 1 online resource : multiple file formats text txt rdacontent computer c rdamedia online resource cr rdacarrier Produced from Amazing Stories January 1943. Release date is 2010-06-03 Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, Greg Weeks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Direct Wire" by Clee Garson is a short story written in the early 1940s, likely during World War II. This narrative combines elements of comedy and satire as it explores themes of patriotism, gambling, and communication under unusual circumstances. The story unfolds in a cigar store run by two bookmakers, Mort Robbins and Mike Harrigan, who find themselves getting bizarre phone calls that lead to unexpected and humorous implications. In the content of the story, Mort and Mike, who are not overly patriotic, mysteriously enlist in the army after a series of strange phone calls where a man claiming to be the Angel Gabriel insists on speaking to Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. As the story progresses, the two men attempt to handle this unusual situation while running their gambling operations. Ultimately, the connection becomes more absurd as they realize that the phone call is not just a prank, but an elaborate joke that plays on their understanding of reality. The twist at the end reveals that the phone was, in fact, disconnected the entire time, emphasizing the absurdity of their circumstances and the comedic genius of Garson's writing. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Original publication data not identified Science fiction Short stories World War, 1939-1945 -- United States -- Fiction Telephone -- Fiction Produced from Amazing Stories January 1943. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/32672 73518 73518