That’s clearly not so. When telephones first started having numbers, they were assigned within a specific switchboard or exchange. Most were just a few numbers long. If you wanted someone in another exchange, you’d ask the operator for “Fillmore 123″ if your friend had number 123 in the Fillmore area.

Then, thanks to an undertaker named Strowger, we got dial telephones, and the operator was phased out for most calls. The exchange names became the prefixes for the phone numbers, and the phone company settled on using the first two letters of the old exchange name plus a number (so that you could have more than one block of four-digit phone numbers within an exchange). Your friend at “Fillmore 123″ became “FI8-0123″.

Thus, the first three numbers never represented the last name of the individual user, but the first two numbers were the equivalent of the first two letters of the telephone exchange which covered the area in which they lived.

There were some blocks of exchange numbers reserved – no exchange could start with one or zero (that would indicate long distance, or connect to the operator), none could have a one or zero as the second digit (originally, this was by default, as neither one nor zero had any letters associated so they couldn’t occur in an exchange name, later on x0x and x1x prefixes were used for area codes, when direct distance dialing was introduced), and the last two digits could not be 11 (x11 numbers are reserved for special functions like 411 information or 911 emergency). The 555 block was, as noted above, originally reserved for information or dummy numbers.

The “prefix” 555 was established as the Entertainment DID range sometime around the late 40′s by At&t or as they were called back then “Ma Bell”.

DID stands for Direct Inbound Dial. That range was targeted for a busy signal.
Therefore as time went on most curious idiots would get the clue that when they see 555 its a fake number.
Overtime most people knew if they called a 555 number other than 555-1212 they would get a busy signal. Classic conditioning.

Remember At&t is run by X-Military.

The one I heard was when phone numbers were first developed, the idea was the first 3 numbers were an extension of the last name. Therefore, someone “Campea, John” would have number beginning with 226 (CAM).

The reason 555 was chosen was there was no last name that would start with the 3 letter combination of j,k,l. 777 wasn’t used because of names like “Spright”. But I don’t know my 999 wasn’t also considered, unless some guy is named Zywig.

Again, it may or may not be true but when I researched this a few years ago that is what I found.

Also, some 555 numbers are actually used now. Sadly, some kids cartoons from the 80′s and 90′s use 555 numbers that call porn hotlines now…

The reason movies/tv use the 555 prefix for their numbers has nothing more to do with the fact that it used to not be a legitimate exchange. All exchanges in the US and Canada are designated as a city code, and the 555 was never associated with in until (I believe) the 80′s, as mass population growth warranted the use. Anyways, it’s still fun to know the little things.

BTW, if you dial 800-555-1212 you get a directory assistance for 800 numbers in both countries…

Cheers

i blogged this back in april as well.. its a great movie piece.

Interesting. I always wondered about that.