On April 27, 1986 a Little after Midnight a Person calling Themselves Captain Midnight Overrode HBO’s Signal. The Signal was Interrupted during the Opening Credit to the Movie The Falcon and The Snowman with a Message Warning Cable Customers (Specifically Satellite Subscribers) against HBO and Showtime’s Billing Practices. The question is Why would someone go to such Lengths and Risk getting in Serious Trouble to Protest Rising Cost of Cable Rates?! It turned out it was a 25 Year Old Young Man Named John MacDougall, and This is The Story Behind the Captain Midnight HBO Signal Hack.
In America before 1972 all Television was Absolutely and Completely FREE as The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) had Determined that the Airwaves are in fact Owned by the Public. The FFC set up Basic Censorship Guidelines to Preserve the Decency of the Airwaves. That all changed in 1972 with the Creation of CABLE TV which required Viewers to have a Cable Hook up in Their Home to be able to View Programming. The Benefit of Cable was there were NO FCC Guidelines so Cable Shows could have Cursing, Intense Violence, and Nudity and one of the First Cable Companies was The Home Box Office (HBO).
At this Time HBO used Satellite Technology to Transmit Information from Main Offices to the Various Cable Companies. Satellite Owner’s learned how to Tap into those Transmissions and were able to get FREE CABLE which believe it or Not wasn’t Considered Illegal! Obviously this Seriously Pissed off HBO who came up with the Solution to Scramble the Signal at the Transmission End and Unscramble it at the Receiving End starting on January 15, 1986. Now Satellite Owners could watch HBO if They opted for HBO’s Satellite Package that required the Purchase of a $395 Descrambler and Then a Monthly Subscription Fee of $12.95 per Month. Needless to Say this caused the Satellite Industry to freak the fuck out and Protest to No End.
Meanwhile a 25 year old Young Man from Ocala Florida named John A. MacDougall who had owned MacDougall Electronics for the Past 2 Years with a Good Bit of Success. Unfortunately John suddenly started to Tank Big fucking Time as the Incentive of Free Cable No Longer Existed, and Satellite Dishes were Big, Ugly, and Took Up a Great Deal of Space. Even with Sales Slipping Down the Shitter John didn’t object to HBO charging for Their Service He just had an Issue with How Much They were Charging. You see on Top of a the Monthly Service Fee Satellite Owner’s paid More than HBO Home Subscribers.
John being a Electronics Engineer managed to get Work as an Operations Engineer at Central Florida Teleport which was an Uplink Service to/for Satellites. On April 27, 1986 from Central Florida Teleport John preceded to Override HBO’s Signal with a Message that remained on Screen for Approximately 4 Minutes Straight before HBO regained Control. The FCC Immediately launched an Investigation, and John starts to Freaking Out More and More as He soon becomes One of Three Prime Suspects in the Investigation. Eventually John is Arrested and Charged in the Incident and then Plead Guilty as Advised by His Attorney. In the End John got off with a Slap on the Wrist with a $5,000 Fine, One Year Unsupervised Prohibition, and a One Year Suspension of His Radio License.
Below is the Original Captain Midnight Hack Footage along with a ABC News Report on the Incident. Enjoy.
Thanks for Watching,
Presented by Les Sober