Accidental Eavesdropping

One or more characters accidentally overhear someone else's conversations, usually by picking up their phone calls on their phone, radio, baby monitor, etc. or through an air vent or similar.

3rd Rock from the Sun

Appearances

• The Dick Van Dyke Show: Season 3, episode 5, "All About Eavesdropping" (1963). Rob and Laura get a baby monitor, which picks up the Helpers' conversations through their baby monitor next door.
• My Favorite Martian: Season 2, episode 5, "Dial M for Martin" (1964). When a cut telephone wire hits Martin, his head begins to function as a telephone, picking up the neighbors' conversations.
• The Munsters: Season 1, episode 4, "Rock-a-bye Munster" (1964). Grandpa fixes the TV with war surplus radar parts, which causes it to show footage from inside the house, so Herman hears Lily talking to Marilyn talking about a boy Marilyn babysits coming to stay with them, but Herman thinks they're talking about Lily having a baby.
• NewsRadio: Season 2, episode 12, "Bitch Session" (1996). While Dave's crawling under his desk to adjust a faulty phone jack, the staff holds a bitch session about him in his office, thinking he's at the dentist, and Dave hears ever word.
• 3rd Rock from the Sun: Season 5, episode 20, "Dick Solomon's Day Off" (2000). Don leaves his police scanner at the Solomons' apartment, and it starts picking up a woman named Andrea's phone calls. Sally, Harry, and Tommy get so invested in listening to the phone calls that they track down Andrea at the dry cleaner, and Harry ends up going out with her.
• Frasier: Season 11, episode 6, "I'm Listening" (2003). Frasier walks into the living room while Ronee's on the phone and accidentally overhears her making a date with a guy named Richard. When he tells Martin, Martin yells at him for eavesdropping. Later, he's on the kitchen floor looking for his missing money clip when he accidentally overhears Ronee and Martin arguing. Finally, he climbs into the back of Ronee's car to look for his money clip again, and Ronee and Martin climb into the front seat and have a serious conversation about their relationship.
• Spin City: Season 3, episode 26 "Klumageddon: Part 2" (1999). Will checking her computer's power cable behind her desk, Nikki overhears Mike talking to Carter about Janelle breaking up with the mayor, but she thinks they're talking about her and Mike is going to break up with her.
• Just Shoot Me!: Season 4, episode 5, "Jack Vents" (1999). Nina has a maintenance man clear out the air duct in her office, and she starts hearing Jack's therapy sessions through the vent, so she decides to use what he talks about to get him to do what she wants.