Monday, August 4, 2008

Telephone exchange names on screen (no. 4)








Related posts
Telephone exchange names on screen
Telephone exchange names on screen (no. 2)
Telephone exchange names on screen (no. 3)

comments: 2

angvou said...

I never quite understood the letter exchanges... I do remember my grandmother's number starting with "HA-6" when I was little....

I always found this curious in old movies: someone gets cut off mid-conversation and they then agitatedly keep yelling "hello" into the receiver while "flashing" the dial tone button (for lack of a better descriptor). How was that supposed to restore the connection?

Michael Leddy said...

Angela, the Telehone EXchange Name Project has the exchange thing covered.

It's funny that you should mention that movie bit: after my children brought home a rotary phone from a thrift store yesterday (what great kids!), I called the local time and temperature number and did exactly what you describe. I think that back in the day the purpose was to get the operator on the line to reconnect the call. I wonder if it ever worked.