What’s in a number?  Previously, I have written posts on two interesting numbers: Twenty-two (22), of “Catch 22” fame, and Twenty-three (23), of “23 skidoo” origin.  “A Writer’s Reflections, August 17, 2018 and on August 1, 2018, respectively.  I did not find any other numbers as interesting — until I came across the meaning of number Eighty-six (86.)  Although appearing quite innocuous, it does have an interesting history.

Surprisingly, eighty-six (86) serves as an English verb, meaning: “1. to eject or bar (someone) from a restaurant, bar, etc, or 2. reject, discard, or cancel.”  (dictionary.com.)  At some time in our lives, everyone has been “86’d,” as by having been rejected for a part in a play, refused service for lack of a collared shirt, or denied acceptance to your first choice college.  How did the meaning derive?  Several theories have developed over the years, but it’s safe to say that no one knows for sure. 

The most popular belief places its origin sometime during the Prohibition era (1920—1933).  Supposedly, a New York City speakeasy, known as Chumley’s, accommodated their customer’s thirst for hard liquor at 86 Bedford Street in Greenwich Village.  Upon arrival, of course, customers would knock on the back door, ask for Joe, and then enter securely without being seen.  When the police raided the place, a paid police department tipster would provide a pre-warning, so guests could escape arrest by fleeing through the front door, prominently displaying the numeral 86.  Accordingly, they were known as having “86 it.”  (Ask George:  Where Does the Term 86 Come From?, stlmag.com)

Other more tenuous theories relate to the standard size of a door or a grave, which measured 8 feet, 6 inches in height or length, respectively.  An obnoxious guest or a departed sot may be either “shown the door,” or interred, thus referred to as having been “86’d” (id.)

Another 86 usage came about in military parlance during the Korean conflict (1950—1953,) when the Air Force patrolled the war zone with the F-86 fighter plane.  When an F-86 shot down an enemy plane, the report described it as having been had been 86’d. (id.)    

After Prohibition ended and The Depression ran in high gear, many former speakeasy patrons found themselves in soup lines to obtain needed nourishment. Bu popular measure, a soup pot contained 85 ladles, so the if you happened to follow number 85, you were “86’d.” (id.)  Like in the 1995 Seinfeld skit about the soup Nazi:  ‘No soup for you!” (Wikipedia, “The Soup Nazi,”)

With so many possible origins, one wonders, which one may be closer to the truth, or whether all of them bear some veracity.  The one that comes up the most is the Chumley’s speakeasy.  In today’s time, with most bars being closed in many states, the speakeasy may come back, with a newly minted number.  A police raid escape from a Covid-19 era speakeasy may be upgraded, or perhaps downgraded, to having19’d it.