Heay baby, wanna 86?

May 22, 2011 2:43 PM

Why do some Victoria's Secret panties have an 86 on the butt?

So, Victoria's Secret panties have many catchy slogans on the butt, like "Nice Buns" and "I heart bananas". They also have three different styles with the number 86 on the bum.

Is this some kind of double entendre? Just a graphic motif? A play on "69"? Was the store founded in 1986? 1886? My friend thinks they were just looking for a round number, but I think there must be a joke in there somewhere. Any thoughts?

posted by ladypants to clothing, beauty, & fashion (11 answers total)

The company was founded in 1977.
posted by dfriedman at 2:47 PM on May 22, 2011

answers.yahoo.com

Looks like it checks out.
posted by phunniemee at 2:47 PM on May 22, 2011

I thought it was from the slang "86'd"

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=86%27d
posted by digdan at 3:16 PM on May 22, 2011

The optimum target market's birth year?
posted by fairmettle at 3:45 PM on May 22, 2011 [4 favorites]

The designer's favorite football (or other sport of your choice) player's jersey number?
posted by easily confused at 4:22 PM on May 22, 2011

Random thoughts on the matter:

H is the 8th letter of the alphabet. F is the 6th. Someone's initials?

If you imagine the 8 falling on its side, it looks like breasts or buttocks. The 6 turned on its side looks like a scrotum and penis. Maybe it is some sort of hieroglyphic numeralporn?

In conclusion, I have not been helpful at all.
posted by Renoroc at 5:27 PM on May 22, 2011 [2 favorites]

I'm pretty sure it means the bar term - 86 means you aren't allowed in. I know plenty of people to who use it in daily conversation, like "fuck that guy, eighty six"

And 'no entrance', um, makes sense to be on someone's butt.
posted by special agent conrad uno at 6:49 PM on May 22, 2011

Looks like a jersey number.
posted by gjc at 6:53 PM on May 22, 2011

I like the "no entrance" hypothesis. It reminds me of the jeans people used to wear with the handprints on the bum that said "Can't touch this!" (Maybe those were only popular at the Queens Center Mall in 1990.)

A friend suggested that getting "eighty sixed" means being asked to leave a bar or casino, and suggested that the panties may be referring to egress of some sort.

A different friend agrees with Renoroc, that they were going numbers that looked suggestive without going all out and using 69. But then why not the classic calculator favorite 55378008? (or just 80085 for that matter?)
posted by ladypants at 7:13 PM on May 22, 2011 [2 favorites]

86, in restaurant terms, also means "used up"... which could apply...
posted by buckaroo_benzai at 9:53 PM on May 22, 2011

Second on "used up." From my days as a waiter, "86'd" or "86 on the (eg., prime rib)," was universally used by the cooks to inform the wait staff of the unavailability of a food item. This most frequently applied to specials, which tend to disappear toward the end of the evening. So, from the waiter's perspective 86 means: "take it off the menu," or often, "stop selling the special." 86 used by a bouncer, or whatever, is just "this person isn't served here," and really a bastardization of the legitimate term.

"This rump roast is not offered," I think, is a likely meaning.
posted by L'oeuvre Child at 12:30 AM on May 23, 2011 [1 favorite]