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NATIONAL DAYPOP CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

National 10-4 Day

National 10-4 Day is a full-throttle salute to CB radio, truckers, and the two little words that told the whole world the message got through: 10-4.

OCT4
Sunday, October 4Every year on October 4
 days to go
Roots
President Jimmy Carter proclaimed October 4, 1978 as 10-4 Day; National Day Calendar added it as an annual observance after a 2012 submission from Albert
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3 ways to celebrate

AT HOME

Host a Trucker Movie Night

Decorate the den with highway signs and queue up a playlist of trucking songs for a family road-trip movie night.

WITH FRIENDS

Play Handle Bingo

Host a CB-lingo game night where everyone takes a trucker handle and scores points for authentic ten-code talk.

AT WORK OR SCHOOL

Make It a 10-4 Day

Start meetings with a quick '10-4' roll call and share a fun fact about CB radio history.

Fast facts

'10-4' comes from the ten-codes used for fast, clear radio talk, and it means message received
1978By 1978 the FCC had issued nearly 14 million CB licenses, and more than 20 million Americans had used a CB radio

The story

Breaker, breaker. On October 4, America turns up the squelch and salutes the golden age of CB radio, when every big rig had a handle and every highway had its own language. National 10-4 Day celebrates the Citizens Band radio craze that put truckers, travelers, and everyday families on the airwaves together.

Read the full story

The day's roots reach back to October 2, 1978, when President Jimmy Carter proclaimed October 4, 1978 as 10-4 Day, saluting CB radio's role in highway safety, emergency communication, and companionship. His own family, he said, was among the millions who had joined the fun.

Decades later, the phrase outlived the fad. '10-4' rolled from the ten-codes of two-way radio into movies, songs, texts, and everyday talk, where it still means exactly what it always has: message received, loud and clear.

Did you know?

01

A Presidential Proclamation

President Jimmy Carter proclaimed October 4, 1978 as 10-4 Day, marking the 20th anniversary of Citizens Band radio.

02

Millions on the Air

By 1978 the FCC had issued nearly 14 million CB licenses, and more than 20 million Americans had used a CB radio at one time or another.

03

The First Family Was In On It

Carter noted his own family used CB radio, and First Lady Betty Ford reportedly operated under the handle 'First Mama.'

04

From Airwaves to Pop Culture

Films and shows like Smokey and the Bandit, Convoy, Movin' On, and B.J. and the Bear carried CB culture and trucker slang into the mainstream.

Keep the party going

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