I noticed that no one posted some of the common phrases and sayings from the 1930s so I found a list off of a website and pretty much pasted it here to let you guys know some of the lingo. The group that did the communism movie used some of the words on this list to make the movie that much more authentic. Just in case anyone was wondering what they meant and where we get some of our words from today, here's the list:
Abercrombie A know-it-all
Abyssinia I'll be seeing you
Aces, snazzy, hot, nobby, smooth, sweet, swell, keen, cool Very good
All the way Chocolate cake or fudge with ice cream
All wet No good
Ameche, horn, blower Telephone
Apple Any big town or city
Babe, broad, dame, doll, frail, twist, muffin, kitten Woman
Baby Glass of milk
Bean shooter, gat, rod, roscoe, heater, convincer Gun
Beat Broke
Behind the grind Behind in one's studies
Big house, hoosegow Prison
Bleed to extort or blackmail
Blinkers, lamps, pies, shutters, peepers Eyes
Blow your wig Become very excited
Booze, hooch, giggle juice, mule Whiskey
Brodie A mistake
Brunos, goons, hatchetmen, torpedoes, trigger men Hired gunmen and other tough guys
Bulge Having the advantage
Bumping gums, booshwash Talk about nothing useful
Butter and egg fly, hot mama, sweet mama, sweet patootie, dish, looker, tomato An attractive woman
Butter and egg man The money man, the man with the bankroll
Buzzer Police badge
Cabbage, lettuce, kale, folding green, long green. color of money
Cadillac One ounce packet of cocaine or heroin
Canary A female vocalist
Cats or alligators Fans of swing music
Cave One's house or apartment
Check or checker A dollar
Chicago overcoat Coffin
Chicago typewriter, chopper, gat "Tommy Gun", Thompson Submachine Gun
Chisel Swindle, cheat, work an angle
Cinder dick Railroad detective
City juice, dog soup Glass of water
Clam-bake Wild swing
Clip joint Night club or gambling joint where patrons get flimflammed
Copper Policeman
Crumb A fink, a loser by social standards
Crust To insult
Curve Disappointment
Cute as a bug's ear Very cute
Dead hoofer or cement mixer Bad dancer
Dick, shamus, gumshoe, flatfoot Detective
Dig Think hard or understand
Dil-ya-ble A phone call
Dingy Silly
Dizzy with a dame Very much in love with a woman, sometimes at great risk to themselves, especially if she's someone else's moll
Dog house String bass
Doggy Well dressed but in a self conscious way
Dollface Name for a woman when a man is pleading his case or apologizing
Doss Sleep
Drilling, plugging, throwing lead, filling someone with daylight, giving someone lead poisoning Shooting a gun (at someone)
Drumsticks, pins, pillars, stems, uprights, get away sticks, gams Legs
Dukes, paws, grabbers, meat hooks hands
Those are common words up through the "Ds" to give you a little taste of what people were saying. To see the whole list check the site out here http://www.paper-dragon.com/1939/slang.html
I really like 1930's slang. I'm always curious about the origins of words. I think it gives them more depth for me when I know their real meanings.
ReplyDeleteI was going to post on 1930s slang as well! At least I will drop a pretty little comment. I think slang is a really interesting part of culture. Slang words are modern only for a time. The breadth of the English language does not expand to encompass such hip words--they live in the moment and then wait for us to rediscover them.
ReplyDeleteThis is really funny Dan! Thanks for sharing. Thinking about how differently people talk is often overlooked and it always has so much to teach us.
ReplyDeleteDo you know how the word "abercrombie" came to use in the 1930s? I definitely think it's the most intriguing and interesting word of slang circa 1930s.
ReplyDelete