SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                              Washington, DC 20549


                       _________________________________


                                    FORM 8-K

                                 CURRENT REPORT

                     PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

                        SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934


                Date of earliest event reported: October 9, 1997


                         PEOPLES TELEPHONE COMPANY, INC.
        ---------------------------------------------------------------
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


             NEW YORK                 0-16479             13-2626435   
        -------------------       -----------------   -----------------
        (State or other juris-    (Commission File     (IRS Employer 
        diction of incorporation)   Number)               I.D. No.)


                   2300 N.W. 89th Place, Miami, Florida 33172
        --------------------------------------------------------------
               (Address of principal executive office) (Zip Code)


       Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (305) 593-9667


                                               
Item 5.   Other Events


     On October 9, 1997, the Federal Communications  Commission ("FCC") issued a
remand order with respect to the compensation which interexchange  carriers must
pay to payphone providers, including the Company, for subscriber 800 and carrier
access code calls  ("dial-around  compensation").  The FCC had originally issued
its Payphone Implementation Orders in late 1996 requiring a flat monthly interim
dial-around  compensation  rate of $45.85 per  payphone,  beginning  November 6,
1996,  calculated at a rate of $.35 per call applied to an industry  average 131
calls per payphone per month.  This flat rate structure was then scheduled to be
replaced by a per-call  compensation  rate of $.35 beginning on October 7, 1997.
Those orders were  remanded to the FCC for further  consideration  by the United
States  Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia  Circuit (the  "Court") on
July 1, 1997, and  subsequently  vacated by the Court in a  clarification  order
issued on September 16, 1997. The FCC's latest order replaces the vacated orders
and  prescribes  a  dial-around  compensation  rate of $.284 per call  beginning
October 7, 1997.

     While the FCC's latest order does not completely finalize the payment terms
for the initial interim  compensation period of November 6, 1996 through October
6, 1997,  the order does  tentatively  conclude that the new $.284 per-call rate
will  apply to all  applicable  calls  retroactively  for this  initial  interim
period.  The FCC further indicated in its latest order that it will finalize the
compensation  obligations  for  this  interim  period  in  a  subsequent  order.
Accordingly,  the  Company  is  presently  evaluating  the  impact  of the FCC's
tentative conclusions on its financial results.

     The  foregoing   contains  forward  looking  statements  which,  given  the
uncertainties  of the regulatory  process and the potential for court challenges
to any further FCC rulemaking, may not ultimately be realized.


                                   SIGNATURES


     Pursuant to the  requirements  of the Securities  Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant  has duly  caused  this  report  to be  signed  on its  behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.



                                         PEOPLES TELEPHONE COMPANY, INC.


Date: October 16, 1997                   /s/ William A. Baum    
                                         ------------------------------
                                         William A. Baum
                                         Chief Financial Officer