# First question on SDMB GQ **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 5, 2003, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866 "2003-02-05T03:34:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![insider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bbe5ce/32.png) [@insider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/insider)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/1 "2003-02-05T03:34:06Z")
What was the first question on the SDMB GQ? What was Cecil’s first column about? I tried to look it up in the archieves but could not find it. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/2 "2003-02-05T03:51:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by insider \* > \*\*What was the first question on the SDMB GQ? \*\* [ul]It probably was: **"Does anyone have a question?"** As to Cecil to might have had to do with words ending in “gry”. :D[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/3 "2003-02-05T03:55:47Z")
At the Straight Dope Home Page, you can click on the FAQ and get to [Cecil’s First Column.](http://www.straightdope.com/faq/firstcolumn.html) ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/4 "2003-02-05T05:05:45Z")
Cool; that’s exactly 30 years ago this week. Happy professional birthday, Cecil! ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/5 "2003-02-05T14:43:52Z")
The earliest _extant_ **GQ** thread I can locate is [url=http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=715]Multiple Moons… [/quote] . This assumes that threadid numbers are true representations of the order threads were posted. Limitations:[ul][li]The SDMB, I am led to believe, existed on AOL long before the version we use now.[_]I searched backward starting at about threadid 1000 until I found this one. Then I looked at every threadid back to 600 and found no other **GQ** threads. I did not search all 714 threadids before this one, so I may have missed something.[_]There are literally scores if not hundreds of invalid threadids (which I assume are threads which have been pruned), so it is very possible that there are earlier threads from **GQ** which simply have not come down to us today.[/ul][/li] Hope this helps. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/6 "2003-02-05T14:45:07Z")
Aw, crap. Here’s the link, anyway: [Multiple Moons…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=715) Oh, and for the curious, the 714 threadids before the one I linked to all appear to be **ATMB** and what we now call **CCC**. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/7 "2003-02-05T15:03:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by C K Dexter Haven \* > \*\*At the Straight Dope Home Page, you can click on the FAQ and get to [Cecil’s First Column.](http://www.straightdope.com/faq/firstcolumn.html) \*\* Interesting. I think Cecil should still give out LPs for the best question of the week. I can’t imagine _that_ would increase the workload for biblio, DrMatrix and manhattan… ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/8 "2003-02-05T16:05:09Z")
Hell, **Munch** , if Cecil so much as _acknowledged_ the best question of the week, I’d be happy. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/9 "2003-02-05T16:29:57Z")
I think I’d be happier if he ridiculed the worst question of the week. ---
**Author:** ![beajerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@beajerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beajerry)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2003, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/first-question-on-sdmb-gq/152866/10 "2003-02-05T20:09:54Z")
Cecil was giving away Beach Boys LP’s? Is that a reward or a punishment?