“72” or “Seventy-two” (two cups of coffee)
Newspapers.com 26 October 1937, Stuart (FL) Daily News, "Ye Editor's Easy Chair," pg. 2, col. 1: "Seventy-two." (Two cups of coffee.)
“71” or “Seventy-one” (a cup of coffee)
Newspapers.com 26 October 1937, Stuart (FL) Daily News, "Ye Editor's Easy Chair," pg. 2, col. 1: "Seventy-one." (One cup coffee.)
“Civic Fame” (statue topping the Manhattan Municipal Building)
"Civic Fame" is the 1913 statue by sculptor Adolph Alexander Weinman (1870-1952) that tops New York City's David N. Dinkins Municipal Building. New York's famed civic models…
Parlor City (Green Cove Springs, Florida nickname)
Binghamton, New York, has been called the "Parlor City (of the Southern Tier)" since 1873. "Parlor City" means a city that is refined, with beautiful homes, gardens and cultural…
Wedge Sandwich
A regional sandwich name in Westchester (Yonkers) for the hero/sub/hoagie is "wedge." "According to some people, a wedge sandwich is a loaf of bread, sliced in two and filled with…
“I should worry, I should care, I should marry a millionaire…”
"I should worry" became a famous slang phrase in the United States in 1912 and 1913. "I should worry. I should fret. I should marry a suffragette..." and "I should worry, I…
“I should worry. I should fret. I should marry a suffragette…”
"I should worry" became a famous slang phrase in the United States in 1912 and 1913. "I should worry. I should fret. I should marry a suffragette..." and "I should worry, I…
“Take a local, take an express, don’t get off ‘til you reach success”
"Take a local, take an express, don't get off 'til you reach success" is a motivational rhyme that was printed in The Echo (New Lebanon, NY) on March 6, 1951. It refers to local…
“55” or “Fifty-five” (root beer)
Newspapers.com 10 July 1985, The Times-Mail (Bedford, IN), "Soda jerk unique on American scene" by Ink Mendelsohn, pg. 5, col. 4: FIFTY-FIVE -- root beer Newspapers.com 29 November 1997,…
“5” or “Five (a large glass fof milk)
Newspapers.com 29 November 1997, Pueblo (CO) Chieftain, "Word Mysteries" by Chris Woodka, pg. 5A, col. 4: 5 -- Large glass of milk (2 1/2 was a small glass).
“21” or “Twenty-one” (a customer who doesn’t tip)
Newspapers.com 8 April 1939, Sheboygan (WI) Press, "What Is Your Number?," pg. 14, col. 2: 21 -- The customer who doesn't tip.
“99” or “Ninety-nine” (an exceptionally pretty girl has arrived)
Newspapers.com 8 April 1939, Sheboygan (WI) Press, "What Is Your Number?," pg. 14, col. 2: 99 -- An exceptionally pretty girl has arrived.
“90” or “Ninety” (a pretty girl has arrived)
Newspapers.com 8 April 1939, Sheboygan (WI) Press, "What Is Your Number?," pg. 14, col. 2: 90 -- A pretty girl has arrived.
“91” or “Ninety-one” (English muffin)
Newspapers.com 1 April 1946, Roanoke (VA) World-News, "Observant Citizen" by W. C. Stouffer, pg. 6, col. 7: "Fifty-one" means a hot chocolate and "ninety-one" for an…
“88” of “Eighty-eight” (customer is waiting for the check)
Newspapers.com 1 April 1946, Roanoke (VA) World-News, "Observant Citizen" by W. C. Stouffer, pg. 6, col. 7: "Eighty-eight" means the guy is standing there with his dough…
“87 1/2” or “Eighty-seven and a half” (good-looking customer)
Newspapers.com 27 September 1981, The Herald Statesman (Yonkers, NY), "Counterwailing" by Dan Carlinsky, Suburdia Today, pg. 18, col. 4: 87 1/2: There's a good-looking girl in the…
“99” or “ninety-nine” (manager)
Newspapers.com 9 February 1930, Tampa (FL) Sunday Tribune, "Soda Jerkers Here Talk in Language Hard to Understand," pt. 4, pg. 6, col. 2: 99 -- Here's the manager. Newspapers.com 29…
“98” or “Ninety-eight” (assistant manager)
Newspapers.com 9 February 1930, Tampa (FL) Sunday Tribune, "Soda Jerkers Here Talk in Language Hard to Understand," pt. 4, pg. 6, col. 2: 98 -- Here comes the assistant manager.…
“91” or “Ninety-one” (seltzer)
Newspapers.com 27 September 1981, The Herald Statesman (Yonkers, NY), "Counterwailing" by Dan Carlinsky, Suburdia Today, pg. 18, col. 4: 91. Glass of seltzer.
“44” or “Forty-four” (coffee)
Newspapers.com 27 September 1981, The Herald Statesman (Yonkers, NY), "Counterwailing" by Dan Carlinsky, Suburdia Today, pg. 18, col. 4: 44. Cup of coffee.