For the latest information about the Bell System Memorial website. "click on the image" to go to the website
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iPad Story of WeCO
Story about Western Electric
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The AT&T Long Lines Department was responsible for connecting the local Bell companies together to provide long distance telephone communication between each Bell company. Here are two logos representing the time period between 1939 and 1963 and the time period after 1969.
Click on logo (s) for moe info. The Creator of the Bell and AT&T Logos
"The [Bass & Yager] design firm had created the famous bell symbol for the nationwide phone monopoly in the late 1960s. This icon--which achieved a remarkable 93 percent recognition rate in the United States [emphasis added] --aspired to the simplicity and directness of a sans serif letterform. In 1984, the familiar bell symbol was transferred to the divested "Baby Bells," and Bass & Yager designed a striated sphere for AT&T, aiming to signify the corporation's international stature and the ascendance of digital communications."
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Yellow Pages
In 1961, the walking fingers logo was introduced to encourage consumers to "let their fingers do the walking" through the Yellow Pages. It became one of the most recognized and well-known advertising themes of all time. One of the biggest corporate oversights in history was AT&T's failure to trademark this symbol. Therefore, the walking fingers logo is in the public domain.
In 1998, the walking fingers logo was dumped by BellSouth Yellow Pages and others for a new logo that incorporated a light bulb and the tagline, "Get an idea."
AT&T logo creation details...
The new AT&T logo (post divestiture) started out with 24 versions and a complex set of rules for its proper usage. This became a real problem for AT&T to deal with and so in the October 6, 1987 issue of the corporate magazine called "FOCUS", they published an article that discussed the logo issue with the employees. To view this article click HERE.
Later, in about 1999, AT&T decided to use a constant eight lines in the logo regardless of the size of the logo in printed form. In 2005 AT&T merged with SBC to form a "new" AT&T. A short animation of the emergence of the new AT&T logo can be viewed by clicking HERE. The logo history involving SBC and AT&T is shown in two PDF documents released on November 21, 2005 when they unveiled the new logo. |
It's a satire on what the new Baby Bells were to be called after divestiture of the Bell System.
Some other satire names given to the newly formed Baby Bells are:
- US West = US Worst
Taco Bell is what they called Telmex after Southwestern Bell purchased an interest in it when it was privatized.
- Bell Atlantic = Bell Frantic. "And before that, when it was known as New Jersey Bell, I called it 'New Jersey Dumb-Bell'"
- Information came from this site: http://www.beatriceco.com/bti/porticus/bell/bellopercomp.html
Taco Bell is what they called Telmex after Southwestern Bell purchased an interest in it when it was privatized.
And Then Along Came Divestiture . . .
Under the terms of the consent decree signed by AT&T, the company was required to divest itself completely from the ownership of all of these companies by January 1, 1984. These Bell Operating Companies were then grouped together with at least two Bell Operating Companies in each group to form seven "Regional Bell Operating Companies" which is often abbreviated as "RBOCs". An interesting look at the financial and other data related to the formation of the "Holding Companies" can be viewed by clicking HERE.
The original seven RBOCs were:
AT&T Divestiture
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Trademarks and Copyrights
Some Annual reports....
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| rapemabell.pdf |
iPad file for Rape of Ma Bell
The Rape of Ma Bell
The Criminal Wrecking of the Best
Telephone System in the World
1988 Lyle Stuart, Inc. - Secaucus, New Jersey
ALFRED W. DUERIG and CONSTANTINE RAYMOND KRAUS
Highly recommend buying this book if you can find it in a used book store or online source for used books. If you are unable to find a copy in the used marketplace, you may download the PDF version which was created from a hardbound copy of the book with permission of the author, Al Duerig. Click HERE OR on the book cover to download.
If you are a serious Bell System person like I am (we call ourselves "Bell Heads"), then this is a must for your collection.
The Criminal Wrecking of the Best
Telephone System in the World
1988 Lyle Stuart, Inc. - Secaucus, New Jersey
ALFRED W. DUERIG and CONSTANTINE RAYMOND KRAUS
Highly recommend buying this book if you can find it in a used book store or online source for used books. If you are unable to find a copy in the used marketplace, you may download the PDF version which was created from a hardbound copy of the book with permission of the author, Al Duerig. Click HERE OR on the book cover to download.
If you are a serious Bell System person like I am (we call ourselves "Bell Heads"), then this is a must for your collection.