The Sons of the Desert inspired chapters in other United States cities, and then in the United Kingdom and other countries. In keeping with the tongue-in-cheek “desert” theme, each local chapter of the society is called a “tent,” and each is named after a different Laurel and Hardy film. There are more than 100 active "tents" worldwide, mostly in the United States and United Kingdom. Members meet up regularly to enjoy Laurel and Hardy movies in an informal atmosphere. Many chapters formed in the 1960s are still active today. In addition to local and regional meetings, the Sons of the Desert holds international conventions every
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy for ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha, the official "Hitchhiker's" Appreciation society. Other items that first appeared in the mid-1980s were T-shirts, including those made for Infocom (such as one bearing the legend "I got the Babel Fish" for successfully completing one of that game's most difficult puzzles), and a Disaster Area tour T-shirt. Other official items have included "Beeblebears" (teddy bears with an extra head and arm, named after "Hitchhiker's" character Zaphod Beeblebrox, sold by the official Appreciation Society), an assortment of pin-on buttons and a number of novelty singles. Many of the above items are displayed throughout the 2004 "25th