History Main / HollywoodCB

Named for the most common culprit, the Citizens' Band (CB) radio. This appears to be entering ForgottenTrope territory with the advent of smartphones and the Internet - in particular, {{Twitter}} has been touted as the [[http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2351932,00.asp spiritual successor to CB]].

** The "speaker's own voice" issue could probably be HandWaved by invoking [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subvocalization subvocalization]] -- methods of turning it into audible speech have appeared in science fiction at least as far back as ''Literature/{{Neuromancer}}''.

* The two-way radios in ''Videogame/TombRaider2013'' are treated as functionally identical to cellphones. Characters are routinely able to interrupt each other. Lara's party has clearly never heard of "radio silence", and will often broadcast their location, despite being surrounded by enemies who are searching for them who could very well be listening in. The only consideration for range is when they try to transmit off the island, which Lara does by climbing a radio tower and using the radio built into the top. When she does, she hears a signal being transmitted on loop from a rescue plane, which she interrupts. Additionally, when Lara's distress call from the tower is answered (interrupting Lara, as usual), the rest of her crew can hear it on their radios, despite almost certainly being on different frequencies.

* ''Videogame/TombRaider2013'': Characters routinely interrupt each other over their two-way radios. The only consideration for range is when they try to transmit off the island, which Lara does by climbing a radio tower and using the radio built into the top. Also, Lara's party will often tell each other where they are over the radio, despite being surrounded by enemies who are searching for them who might be listening in. Additionally, when Lara's distress call from the tower is answered (interrupting Lara, as usual), the rest of her crew can hear it on their radios, despite almost certainly being on different frequencies.

[[folder:Music]]

* The song "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convoy_(song) Convoy]]" and [[Film/{{Convoy}} the film it spawned]]. Two parody songs, "CB Savage" and "Yovnoc," also came out around that time. "CB Savage" (by Rod Hart) was about two truckers who hear a CampGay on their radio, and by the end of the song they find it was a Smokey disguising his voice to catch them speeding.

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* The prisoners of [[Series/HogansHeroes Stalag 13]] take advantage of a one-way version of this--when their plot involves "leaking" information to Klink and Schultz, they sometimes wire up the bug in the lamp and [[BluffTheEavesdropper talk amongst themselves while letting the information "slip"]] (sometimes complete with badly written scripts). When they do this, Klink and Schultz are ''always'' sitting right next to the radio receiver, listening intently. Hogan refers to this as "calling room service".

* ''BJ and the Bear''
* The ''Series/CharliesAngels'' episode "Angels Go Truckin'".

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!!Examples:


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[[caption-width-right:292:"[[TrailerParkBoys Breaker, Breaker, this is Rocketship 27. Aliens fucked over the carbonator on engine number 4, we're gonna have to make an emergency landing on Juniper]]."]]

** Also played straight, when [=McClane=] is able to interrupt Hans in mid-sentence.

** The "speaker's own voice" issue could probably be HandWaved by invoking [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subvocalization subvocalization]] -- methods of turning it into audible speech have appeared in science fiction at least as far back as ''{{Neuromancer}}''.

* ''MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'''s radio was essentially the same as the above Codec, though it also worked around the "speaker's own voice" issue by having Snake communicating back to MissionControl via a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throat_microphone throat mike]].

** The "Codec" supposedly puts the sound straight into your earbones so only you hear the person talking to you (with ample opportunity for FridgeLogic, considering the speaker's own voice should still be very audible to their surroundings - this becomes particularly ridiculous in ''MetalGearSolid2'', where characters standing barely two feet away from one another will decide to switch to nanocommunications for privacy). Plus, despite supposedly being an audio-only device, the HUD displays it almost like a videophone. On top of that, you have a number of people whose frequencies you have to find.

* VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty DOES make it clear that switching to nano-communication involves lip-movement only, what they say is inaudible to observers, as demonstrated by Ocelot's surveillance of Raiden and Ames.
* ''MetalGearSolid3'''s radio was essentially the same as the above Codec, though it also worked around the "speaker's own voice" issue by having Snake communicating back to MissionControl via a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throat_microphone throat mike]].

-->-- '''''{{Convoy}}''''', [=C.W. McCall=]

* ''Film/DieHard'' -- Averts this. [=McClane=] gets a bad guy's walkie-talkie, and talks to Al the policeman, and it's made clear that the bad guys can hear everything he's saying, hence why he goes by "Roy" instead of using his real name.
** Also plays it straight, when [=McClane=] is able to interrupt Hans in mid-sentence.
** In ''Live Free Or Die Hard'', [=McClane=] uses the bad guy's [=CBs=] to contact the FBI. He knew the correct frequency and had a world-class amateur hacker working for him InAWorld where hacking can do goddamn everything.
* ''SmokeyAndTheBandit''

* The song "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convoy_(song) Convoy]]" and [[{{Convoy}} the film it spawned]]. Two parody songs, "CB Savage" and "Yovnoc," also came out around that time. "CB Savage" (by Rod Hart) was about two truckers who hear a CampGay on their radio, and by the end of the song they find it was a Smokey disguising his voice to catch them speeding.

* Hanna-Barbera's ''CBBears'' were three ursine detectives who operated from a garbage truck and received assignments from "Charlie" via C.B. radio.

* Everybody in ''TheCannonballRun'' seems to have their CB radio tuned to the same frequency. Possibly the racers had agreed to a specific frequency before the race started, but also they have no trouble communicating with plenty of random truck drivers during the race. Relatively justified since in the CB heyday channel 19 was a ''de facto'' standard for truckers on the interstate; there were exceptions for specific routes but they were pretty well known. Maybe they simply stayed on 19, or changed to 19 when they wanted to talk to a trucker.

* In the first ''{{Tremors}}'' movie, the people of Perfection use a CB radio to warn the Gummers of impending Bad Things possibly coming their way. Actually justified in this case, since it's made clear that they can't reach anyone outside their valley with their [=CBs=], and it would make sense for everyone to use the same frequency.

* ''TheDukesOfHazzard'' -- Anybody could pick up his CB and call anyone, and that person was on that frequency.

* Memorably subverted in ''TheYoungOnes'', in which Neil is instructed to make the static noises himself when using his police walkie talkie.

[[quoteright:292:[[Film/{{Contact}} http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/contact_8347.jpg]]]]

-->'''''{{Convoy}}''''', [=C.W. McCall=]

-->'''{{Convoy}}''', [=C.W. McCall=]

** In ''Live Free Or Die Hard'', [=McClane=] uses the bad guy's [=CBs=] to contact the FBI. Partially justified in that he knew the correct frequency and had a world-class amateur hacker working for him InAWorld where hacking can do goddamn everything.
** In practice, talking to law enforcement over a CB just is not going to happen unless they're specifically monitoring CB frequencies, which is unlikely except possibly for a highway patrol unit. CB and law enforcement almost always use very different frequency bands everywhere in the world.

** Somewhat averted as Bandit and Snowman also were seen to be working out an agile-comms plan (switching from channel to channel) to avoid police monitoring just after the Trans-Am was driven out of Snowman's trailer before they set off towards Texas. "What channel are we on" is asked by Bandit to Frog (Sally Field) before unit-to-unit comms commences.
** Also note that Sheriff Justice speaks into a different mic when talking other police officers, than when talking to The Bandit.

* Everybody in ''TheCannonballRun'' seems to have their CB radio tuned to the same frequency. Possibly the racers had agreed to a specific frequency before the race started, but also they have no trouble communicating with plenty of random truck drivers during the race.
** Relatively justified since in the CB heyday channel 19 was a ''de facto'' standard for truckers on the interstate; there were exceptions for specific routes but they were pretty well known. Maybe they simply stayed on 19, or changed to 19 when they wanted to talk to a trucker.

** To be fair, the Island ''did'' have plenty of man-made constructions, and it is possible that the Others may have built a repeater to extend the range. (according to Lostpedia)

* Dialed UpToEleven in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' - The "Codec" supposedly puts the sound straight into your earbones so only you hear the person talking to you (with ample opportunity for FridgeLogic, considering the speaker's own voice should still be very audible to their surroundings - this becomes particularly ridiculous in ''MetalGearSolid2'', where characters standing barely two feet away from one another will decide to switch to nanocommunications for privacy). Plus, despite supposedly being an audio-only device, the HUD displays it almost like a videophone. On top of that, you have a number of people whose frequencies you have to find.

*** VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty DOES make it clear that switching to nano-communication involves lip-movement only, what they say is inaudible to observers, as demonstrated by Ocelot's surveillance of Raiden and Ames.
** ''MetalGearSolid3'''s radio was essentially the same as the above Codec, though it also worked around the "speaker's own voice" issue by having Snake communicating back to MissionControl via a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Throat_microphone throat mike]].

* The song "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convoy_(song) Convoy]]" and [[{{Convoy}} the film it spawned]].
** Two parody songs, "CB Savage" and "Yovnoc," also came out around that time. "CB Savage" (by Rod Hart) was about two truckers who hear a CampGay on their radio, and by the end of the song they find it was a Smokey disguising his voice to catch them speeding.

* The ''CharliesAngels'' episode "Angels Go Truckin'".

** Two parody songs, "CB Savage" and "Yovnoc," also came out around that time. "CB Savage" was about two truckers who hear a CampGay on their radio, and by the end of the song they find it was a Smokey disguising his voice to catch them speeding.