I'm with you. I haven't slept for two days. I might do something rash like start buying T205s if we don't find out soon. :eek:

It's the number of times I have been married. They felt sorry for me and named a website after my drama.

Are you sticking with the fifty-fourth or taking a breather?

What was wrong with #32, I thought she was cute.

You must have a great lawyer. 53 divorces/murders and you can still afford to collect cards?:D

You obviously haven't heard of the cemetery find discovered while Steve's eighth was being interred. His lawyer only kept the Wagner.:D:D

So, he paid for his divorce with a little Heinie?:D

probably his little Heinie, that caused the divorce in the 1st place :eek:

I grew up with the '54 Dodgers.

Steve grew up with the 54 "bums".

As of next month we are going to rename the site Net55

Bueller, Bueller,...BUELLER!!!!

The real reason...
 

Ladies and gentlemen, the story you are about to read is (probably not) true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent...and I would never (admit to being so lame as to) take my opening directly frm the old TV show Dragnet, which was in its prime in 1954.

In 1954, there was a boy named Eric. Like many young collectors of the day, he eagerly anticipated the release of Topps' newest baseball card line. As a die-hard Yankees fan who treasured his '52 and '53 Mickey Mantle cards, he could scarcely wait to get his hands on the '54.

He searched in vain, all summer long, for that '54 Topps Mantle, but to no avail. Had he lived in a town with a population of more than 54 and the General Store stocked the Bowman offering that year, things might have been different for poor Eric. However, lady luck was not smiling on him.

Throughout his childhood, and into adulthood, Eric combed the barns and farmhouses of his tiny rural community, hoping against hope that someone would be willing to part with their copy of this elusive card. He never did leave Tinytown, PA, nor did he give up his boyhood dream of grabbing that '54 Mantle. And it wasn't until nearly thirty years later that he stopped searching.

In the spring of 1982, Eric learned that there would be a Baseball Card Show at the local Volunteer Fire House. Figuring he would finally be able to snag the card that haunted him all these years, he woke up early that day and headed down to the fire house. In fact, he was the first one in line...a full two hours before the show opened.

When the doors were finally unlocked, Eric vaulted himself into the show and frantically went from dealer to dealer, asking each of them the same question..."do you have a '54 Topps Mickey Mantle?" He didn't quite understand the reactions they gave him until he stumbled upon the 19th and final vendor set up that day.

The kind dealer handed him a well-worn copy of a thin book, made from newsprint paper, with the title, "Current Card Prices" on the cover. As he flipped through its pages and realized what he was seeing, a look of dawning comprehension came over his face.

"You mean they never effing made one?" he asked the dealer.

"I'm afraid not." came the reply.

Eric dropped to the floor, dead on the spot, from a condition the Medical Examiner could only describe as, "a broken heart."

This message board was created in his memory, many years later, by those who were there that day.

I will throw a simple guess out there. Leons age when it started.
If that doesn't work then I will say the number of Depends that Frank goes through in a week.

Fellow members
 

Please see post #65 for the answer. ;) ;) ;)

Post #65 says I know the answer.Is that the answer?

54 Update
 

It's so much fun seeing everyone jumping for the carrot. I feel like the rabbit at the greyhound track. Eric, I thought your post was autobiographical until the death scene. Please assure us that you are still alive. As for Texxxx, I guess it depends on which week you are talking about. When I'm dealing with you, the stack seems to get a little higher. To the best of my knowledge Leon is not yet 54, so that theory would hinge on whether he has found the Fountain of Youth and is headed backwards.:eek::eek:

Sam Majors may be clairvoyant or he may be a principle somehow involved an undercover plot or he may just be your average Joe man in the street type guy waiting to be discovered by Jay Leno. All I know is that he is not an agent of mine and is in no way connected financially or psychologically with this thread.

I'm considering half time at the Super Bowl for the reveal, and no I will not be there for a live presentation. The name of the thread may change at that time, but the change will be appropriate and shouldn't fool more than 10% of the members.

A few more theories before Sunday would be nice. I may even wrap up my serialized version before then.

It's Chuck Norris's favorite number.

Very simply, 3 was subtracted, the "." dropped, and "54" remained

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/conten...0170104054.png

Intellectually appealing, but flawed in the sixth line of the formula, which belies the result obtained.:eek:

The Curse of 1940, also called Dutton's Curse, was a superstitious explanation for why the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League did not win the league's championship trophy, the Stanley Cup, from 1940–94.

Net = Hockey 54 Years = Duration of the Curse

1940 was also Pre WWII (for the US)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curse_of_1940

Was anyone involved in the naming a Hockey or Rangers Fan?

Silence. Head hurts.

Emc2 = 54

I have it on good authority that the name came from a meeting of "Monster set" collectors, 54 to be exact, who decided to create this forum where only posts pertaining to their beloved set would be allowed. Not sure how nonMonster set posts ever got started.

John

I just emailed Frank quite a long explanation and he can post it whenever he wants to. Nice thread and nice stories guys....

Interesting. In that equation. There appears to be multiple possiblities for the values of e m and c. They can all equal 3, although I'd lean toward that being unlikely, as it would've been more simple to assign a cubed singular varible. Although it is possible assuming that e, c and m could all be the same number, if they were representing different theoretical specifics. The more likely scenario being any combination that has one of them equaling 1, another equaling 3, and the third equaling 9..

In the context of that equation e definitely does not equal mc², in term of a fully whole number valued equation.

Unless, your large 2 represented "square". Then we're left with a different set of possibilities all-together. C could equal 1, while e and m could be interchangeably represent the numbers 2 and 27, 1 and 54, 3 and 18, or 6 and 9. It's possible that c could equal 3, while e and m represent 1 and 6, or 2 and 3. C could be represented by either positive or negative numbers. As it pertains to e and m. They could only both be negative or both be positive, but not 1 of each..

Again, we are not left with a solely whole number valued equation that can make e=mc².

Assuming that both emc2=54 AND e=mc², or emc²=54 and e=mc², fractions and decimals are the only possibilities.

I think it was from a 12 year old named Adam who was missing #54 from his set. He was definitely into older police partner TV shows like "DragNet" and "Car(d) 54 Where are you?".

David, I used the numbers on my telephone keypad, squared the c and multiplied and came up with 72, so if Emc2 is correct, welcome all to

Net72

The first portion of that was assuming that the larger 2 was just a 2... The second portion addressed as if it represented a "square".

3 * 6 * (2*2) = 72

Don't screw around with a math major.:D:D:D

Yes, yes. you confused the hell out of me for a moment there. I see the error, I accidentally assigned c twice in one of those possibilities. I'll go back and fix it.

I've just been playing around anyways. Gimme a break lol.. It's probably been 16 years since I've even seriously entertained a math problem. The last time would've been AP Calculus during my Junior year of HS.. I won't count my semester in college, because I was pretty much drunk or hungover the whole time..

Even with my mistake, I don't see a possibility that I listed which e,m and c would result in any combination of 3, 6 and 2 together.

NEVERMIND. I get it now. It wasn't anything I did. I misread your reasoning, and it went straight over my head..:o:o:o

It's not that hard
 

The answer is really much easier than that guys.

54 cards is the tipping point for most people who tackle the monster. Many, many people eventually try to defeat the monster and nearly all of them slink away with their tails between their legs. But careful analysis by Ted and many other long time collectors identified the number 54 as the point of no return. Once a collector had acquired their 54th card from the T206 set they were once and forever ensnared in the monsters NET.

Or, at the kickoff meeting for the Vintage Card Collectors Forum, each member was given one vote when electing a president. While there were only 12 people in attendance, it was quickly noted that there were 54 votes cast. A quick investigation discovered the discrepancy resulted when each of the Bruce Dorskinds had voted separately.

If this isn't the reason Net54 got it's name, well, it should be...

that was good...

Frank,

After a long night, I did wake up dead this morning...but feel much better now:D

Thanks for your concern:)

Best Regards,

Eric

I'm a frequent thread reader (lurker) waiting for an answer to this one.....

This is my first post here, and I'm waiting an answer to this!

Why five four?!?!?!?!?

Frank posted the answer a few posts back - it was due to the creator being a 1954 Brooklyn fan - not the climatic ending i was hoping for lol:rolleyes:

I would think a true Brooklyn Dodgers fan would have chosen Net55...

Oops, sorry, my bad. I thought I was following this thread pretty closely, but after 10 pages, I guess I wasn't as sup to par as I thought.

Not quite the amazing ending to this I was hoping for either...


lulz???

Half time at the Super Bowl is still in play.

If you're attending a good party, don't worry it'll be there when you get home.

25 hours to go. Should be about 7PM CST

The Saga of "54" and the Truth
 

Few know that Net 54 was the initial online dating site.
Inspired by the Marvelettes' hit single "Beechwood 45789"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucu83CZKeGg
The 5***4 portion of the title is based on encryption of that song title.
Vintage cards were introduced to the site by a gal named Lola
in an effort to get lucky with a member known only as leon.
Interestingly this is the same encryption methodology used by Ebay today.

I have been looking for evidence to substantiate this contention regarding leon, Lola and the Marvelettes. I decided to pick an area code at random (760) and dialed Beechwood 45789. A cub reporter named Farleigh from the Desert Sun in Palm Springs answered the phone. I explained the reason for my call and Farleigh assured me he would look into it.
Well, it wasn't long, before I could finish my venison tostada, that Farleigh returned my call. In the newspaper's archives he found evidence of a clandestine meeting that took place in the early nineties between the Marvelettes warm up band, "The Baker's Dozen", and a group of card soakers know only as "The Dirty Dozen". What makes this even more compelling though is the location of the meeting, the Bistro 29 in Twentynine Palms, just up the highway from Palm Springs. Far be it for me to doubt Farleigh's research and if I'm not mistaken 13+12+29=54. I think I'm getting closer to the truth.

Heading to Bistro 29 tomorrow to look for gum stuck under the tables. I'll run it down to Newport for DNA analysis. I'm guessing members of The Dirty Dozen may be lurking on the Board right now. I realize this is a dangerous mission, but I wouldn't be caught dead in Inkster, Michigan, home of the Marvelettes.

Surveillance video from Homeland Security released today clearly identifies border crossings 54 miles east of Yuma by a band of 12 mean hombres disguised as a mariachi band. When the musical troupe couldn’t play “Cielito Lindo” upon a request from the Border Patrol, they were apprehended. HS confirmed the identity of the band as the "Dirty Dozen", aka the Sonoran Soakers. Seized musical instruments were found to contain rebacked T206s that tested positive for heroin and possibly other contraband. Agents became suspicious when they noticed “crack” in the cracks of a particularly well worn example of Harry Lumley. Apparently the Sonoran Soakers were using the contraband laden cards as envelopes with team names to indicate the final destination of each delivery. With the interception of the Brooklyn bound delivery, residents there are warned to use caution as street violence is expected to increase with the break in the supply chain. If you have friends or relatives in Brooklyn, please keep them in your prayers. Residents of the other 52 cities represented in the T206 set are also urged to exercise caution with the apprehension of the Sonoran Soakers.

Who could have imagined a defunct soul trio and their back up band, a desert bistro, the Border Patrol, drug traffickers, a temptress named Lola, and a member known only as leon were behind our little site known as Net54baseball? As improbable as all this sounds, don’t jump to any conclusions until you hear a member known only as leon’s version

“Frank, I beg to differ. Let me explain the truth behind Net54. When the forum was originated, it was right after the demise of the original Full Count board, which was started by John Spencer and (current) board member Mike Williams, in around 1998. After a two or three years John got tired of getting threatened with lawsuits, and all that went on, and shut it down. Elliot Bassin and Mike Williams both immediately started chat boards to take its place and for our hundred to two hundred (I guess) members to go. It was decided one forum was better than two. For a few days both were running. One, Mike’s, was hosted by Yahoo, I believe, and the other by a chat board hosting company called Network54.com (where the non-sports guys still are). It was decided that the Network54 one was a bit better operationally so Mike shut his down and we became http://www.network54.com/Forum/153652 , which is the web address of the old board. It is still there for read-only purposes, though everything has been transferred to our new board. There are a few reasons, which is another story, to keep that board alive…but as read only. As we got much bigger our s/w and hosting provider, Network54.com, didn’t update their s/w and their service wasn’t great. It didn’t have many features of the newer s/w on the market. Network54 still has rather antiquated s/w but it works for many forums, just not ours. In March of 2009 we started looking for a different hosting and chat solution for our forum. I asked questions of members, analyzed several different chat solutions and decided to buy the s/w, Vbulletin, which has one of, if not the, largest base of chat forums on the market. At this exact time I asked several friends of a good name for the new forum since we were moving away from “”Network54.com” and it could easily be changed. The new name was actually going to be Net55baseball.com, but after further thought I decided to capitalize on the historical marketing of Net54 and made the name very similar, Net54baseball.com, which it is today. Whenever someone says “Network54” they are not correct and I cringe a bit, but it’s not a big deal. The name todays stands at Net54baseball.com and that is the story of 54, which was almost 55 J.”

I apologize for the nonsense before “The Truth”, but appreciate your indulgence. Thanks to all for your contributions and if anyone wants to add anything to the front end of “The Truth”, please feel welcome to do so. My initial concept for the thread was simply the question about 54. Although correct, I’m not sure Leon’s story completely answers the question, but it seems at least that the “54” part of our title has absolutely nothing to do with baseball.

The saga part (my nonsense) was not preconceived. It just happens.

Glad it's out now, I'm not good with secrets. :D

Fun thread Frank.

Great thread....so anticlimactic though! I had fun researching the importance of 54. Regardless, what, then, is the reason behind the name "network 54" from whence this board originated?

Well, that was silly, good fun.....:D

Well, now we know. Better entertainment than the halftime show...

Thanks Frank...
 

The suspense of this thread just blew out the lights at the Superdome. Good work..

Thanks Frank and Brian C.
 

Wanted to thank Frank for this entertaining thread. Brian Coat's theory was awesome!

"Or, at the kickoff meeting for the Vintage Card Collectors Forum, each member was given one vote when electing a president. While there were only 12 people in attendance, it was quickly noted that there were 54 votes cast. A quick investigation discovered the discrepancy resulted when each of the Bruce Dorskinds had voted separately."

Thanks gentlemen

Patrick

now thats an answer worth waiting for!

Damn that was long and exhausting...I only fell asleep twice during the explanation :D;)

This thread and that answer had an "Al Capone's Vault" kinda feel to it.

Rich

The "real" explanation is quite interesting, although it does not match up well against "at the kickoff meeting for the Vintage Card Collectors Forum, each member was given one vote when electing a president. While there were only 12 people in attendance, it was quickly noted that there were 54 votes cast. A quick investigation discovered the discrepancy resulted when each of the Bruce Dorskinds had voted separately." I really prefer that one and I'm still half convinced it is the real one.

John

Don't know about Bruce's legend, but I sure would like to meet him. I'd invite him over, but I don't have room in my driveway for his 43 cars.

Small tweak to Leon's version...I shut the Full Count board down due to some extremely disparaging comments about 9/11, not threatening lawsuits.

Prior to all the crap, these were great, great days!

http://web.archive.org/web/200108060...mages/logo.gif

Thanks Mike. I had heard John (and maybe you but for sure John) had got threatened with lawsuits. Maybe that was only a rumor though.....at any rate glad to have you here with us again after all of these years.

www.network54.com was simply the hosting site for the forum

Leon...that happened too, but there was no teeth to them :)

Appreciate your kind words!

Mike

Well duh! But where did the hosting site come up with the name?? There aren't any hosting sites called Network3 or Network45...are there?

Ok, now we are back to an all girl singing group from Inkster MI.......:D