(FORTUNE Magazine) – When retailers reported October sales in mid-November, Gap had huge news: It had finally broken its streak of 30 straight months of declining same-store sales. The company's wretched run was epic, more than doubling the longest NFL losing streak in history. (That record, incidentally, is held by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 26 games, which included the entire 1976 season. When asked about the team's execution, head coach John McKay replied, "I think it's a good idea.") Here's how Gap stacks up against some other notable losers. --Cora Daniels

9 months Longest stretch of back-to-back losing months posted by the Dow (August 1941 to April 1942)

14 months Length of the same-store sales slump that nearly felled Ann Taylor in the mid-90s

30 months Time it took Gap to get its groove back

144 months Elapsed time since Kevin Costner appeared in an Oscar-winning movie

216 months Period that Emmy glory eluded All My Children star Susan Lucci (18 years)

528 months Span during which Republican Harold Stassen ran for President a record nine times (1948 to 1992)