Though not nearly as baffling as The Big Sleep (dir. Howard Hawks, 1946), Murder, My Sweet (dir. Edward Dmytryk, 1944) is the kind of movie with which I choose to concentrate on atmosphere rather than plot. The atmosphere includes much cigarette smoke and three fine glimpses of exchange names: let’s call them WHitehall, OLympia, and GRidley. Where did I get those names? Not from a hat: from a list of Ma Bell’s Officially Recommended Exchange Names.
Dick Powell really is a fine Philip Marlowe. How did that ever happen?
More exchange names on screen
The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse : Baby Face : Born Yesterday : The Dark Corner : Deception : Dream House : The Little Giant : The Man Who Cheated Himself : Nightmare Alley : The Public Enemy : Side Street
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I still remember my Grandparent's Greenwich Village number, which they had for about 60 years: WA(verly)4-1xxx. And my parent's number: UN(iversity)6-0xxx
On Shorpy 31 May 2011: photo of circa 1910 payphone, "Haymarket 502". Haymarket was an exchange, it's reasonable to think 502 is the number.
http://www.shorpy.com/node/10535?size=_original
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