telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) (08/16/90)
This summer marks the 35th anniversary of the first recorded announcements given over the telephone for other than telephone company purposes. Likewise, the 'time of day' message is from an earlier era. Beginning in 1927, telephone companies began getting tired of people ringing up the operator to ask 'what time is it?', so they established special numbers for that purpose. In the beginning, a live person sat there and announced the time upon request, and there were very few ten second intervals that *someone* did not dial in asking for it. The original number for the time of day in New York City was NERVOUS. A jewelry store in Manhattan sponsored it for many years. Recorded messages giving out the weather forecast started in 1950 in Philadelphia and Cleveland on an experimental basis. It seems a lot of people had been calling the operator to ask what the temperature was that day, and the telcos got tired of that also! :) But for other purposes, recorded announcements began in August, 1955 in Scarsdale, NY when Hitchcock Memorial Church began broadcasting recorded prayers continuously over a special telephone line installed for that purpose. By a year later, churches all over the United States were experimenting with this new technology, offering 'Dial-A-Prayer' telephone lines. New York's Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church averages 800 calls per hour around the clock on their present system. About 1958, theatres began using recorded announcements advertising the pictures and the times they played, however the recorded telephone message concept was mainly used by churches until the middle sixties. In 1968, Chicagoan Sherman Skolnik started a recorded message commentary on the news which ran five minutes in length, was changed daily, and has continued to this day, 22 years later. In the early 1970's, several non-religious recordings were available, including a convention and tourist message in Chicago; a 'gay news and events' recorded message here, and others. Of course today, there are literally thousands of free recorded annoucements to hear, to say nothing of the many operating on premium charge lines (900/976 numbers). Except for telco weather and time messages, public programming / general interest recorded announcements began 35 years ago this week. And, it was just ten years ago that 900 service was started by AT&T, to handle the calls received in the Carter/Reagan debate in 1980. Should we celebrate the anniversary? More than a few people have gotten rich from telephone recorded announcements, that's for sure! Patrick Townson
Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) <cmoore@brl.mil> (08/17/90)
Ten years ago that 900 service was started? (Stated reason was to handle calls received in Carter/Reagan debate, 1980.) It was also written in the Digest that Carter had a toll-free 900 number in 1977 for a special call-in. [Moderator's Note: I realy don't remember if he did or not. I think the first general use of 900 -- where it was offered for sale to companies promoting things -- was following the Reagan/Carter debates. Prior use, including the debate call-in was mostly experimental. PAT]
ofsevit@smurf.enet.dec.com (David Ofsevit) (08/18/90)
> The original number for the time of day in New York City was NERVOUS.
That works in the Boston area; the 637 exchange is the time
announcement. 637 is OFS as well as NER, giving new meaning to "For a
good time, dial OFSEVIT." At least dialing my last name is mostly
harmless!gordon@uunet.uu.net (Gordon Burditt) (08/19/90)
>Should we celebrate the anniversary? More than a few people have >gotten rich from telephone recorded announcements, that's for sure! If the anniversary of the invention of 900 and 976 numbers is to be celebrated, let it be celebrated in the same way as the Hinsdale central office fire, the first use of an atomic bomb in warfare, the invention of the electric chair, the legalization of the COCOT, the millionth "accidental" switching of someone's long-distance carrier without their knowledge, and the coming-to-a-slum-near-you "piss test" pay phones -- for when the drug dealers discover Radio Shack tone generators. Gordon L. Burditt sneaky.lonestar.org!gordon
0004248165@mcimail.com (CTC Wang Labs) (08/21/90)
Several issues ago our Moderator wrote: > The original number for the time of day in New York City was NERVOUS. David Ofsevit <ofsevit@smurf.enet.dec.com> has noted: > That works in the Boston area; the 637 exchange is the time announcement. In both the 617 (Metro-Boston) and 508 (Eastern Mass) NPA's, any number in the 637 exchange will give you the NewEngland Tel time announcement, although the 'official number' is 637-1234. In the days of 'named exchanges' this was the MERidian (637-) exchange [Websters: (archiac) the hour of noon]. I have a feeling that while NER-VOUS [637-8687] works just fine, the 'original' exchange in NYC was also MERIDIAN ... Comments?? Dave Bonney <bonney@office.wang.com> MCIMail: 422-4552