Does anyone know the origin of the slang expression "Damn Skippy"

[gtuo]

I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any thoughts?

[John Dean]

gtuo wrote:
> I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any thoughts?

Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?
--
John Dean
Oxford
De-frag to reply

[Laura F Spira]

John Dean wrote:
>
> gtuo wrote:
> > I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any thoughts?
>
> Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?
>

Oh dear, I think I could have done without that reminder.

Isn't there a brand of peanut butter called Skippy?

--
Laura
(emulate St. George for email)

[Tony Cooper]

On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 06:17:33 +0000, Laura F Spira
<la...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com> wrote:

>John Dean wrote:
>>
>> gtuo wrote:
>> > I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any thoughts?
>>
>> Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?
>>
>
>Oh dear, I think I could have done without that reminder.
>
>Isn't there a brand of peanut butter called Skippy?

There are those that swear by Skippy, and those that swear by Peter
Pan. And, those that swear at both. I am a Peter Pan Crunchy swearer
by.

--
Tony Cooper aka: tony_co...@yahoo.com
Provider of Jots, Tittles, and Oy!s

[Mark Raymond]

Laura F Spira <la...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com> wrote in
news:3E5C5BFD...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com:

> John Dean wrote:
>>
>> gtuo wrote:
>> > I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any
thoughts?
>>
>> Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?
>>
>
> Oh dear, I think I could have done without that reminder.
>
> Isn't there a brand of peanut butter called Skippy?
>

Not in these parts (where you might most expect it).

To answer the original question (perhaps), the term "Skippy", or just
"Skip", was coined by (the children of) Mediterranean-originated
migrants to Australia who were sick of being referred to as "wogs",
"dagos", ect ect ect.

The term is a direct reference to the TV show "Skippy the Bush
Kangaroo" (which I think is second only to "Neighbours" in terms of TV
exports from here - happy to be corrected by those in the know).

It might also help your understanding of the derogatory nature of the
term to know that kangaroos are considered only slightly above vermin
here, tolerated only because of the 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' of the tourists,
and the fact that it gets a guernsey in the coat of arms. Indeed, there
are more 'roos here now than there were 200 years ago, thanks to land
clearing by European settlers (thus creating large tracts of their
preferred grasslands, instead of the native, open forests that were here
originally).

In this period of drought, 'roos are forced to find feed much closer to
civilisation than normal, and the most abundant is on (unmown) roadside
verges, as they are not grazed. This has led to a 25% increase in road-
kill-related insurance claims this year. I even saw one large example
propped against a pole with a baseball cap on its head.

Mark@home

[Larry Phillips]

On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 02:17:56 -0500, Tony Cooper
<tony_co...@yahoo.com> wrote:

>>Isn't there a brand of peanut butter called Skippy?
>
>There are those that swear by Skippy, and those that swear by Peter
>Pan. And, those that swear at both. I am a Peter Pan Crunchy swearer
>by.

Is Squirrel Peanut Butter available in the US?

Squirrel peanut butter is best by far.
Creamy smooth to the bottom of the jar.
Tastes so good, you'll want more.
Get Squirrel peanut butter at your groc'ry store.

The only peanut butters I've met that I didn't like were those 'no
additive' ones. You know, the ones that start out as oil with a little
peanut matter in it, and end up the consistency of clay, because you
can never get the parts of it mixed well enough.

Larry
---
There are 10 kinds of people --
those who understand binary, and those who don't.
-- Uncle Phil

[Ray Heindl]

Larry Phillips <sa...@non.com> wrote:

> On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 02:17:56 -0500, Tony Cooper
><tony_co...@yahoo.com> wrote:

>>There are those that swear by Skippy, and those that swear by
>>Peter Pan. And, those that swear at both. I am a Peter Pan
>>Crunchy swearer by.

I was a Skippy Super Chunk fan until they started putting it in plastic
"jars". That's when I switched to Smucker's, and never looked back.

> Is Squirrel Peanut Butter available in the US?
>
> Squirrel peanut butter is best by far.
> Creamy smooth to the bottom of the jar.
> Tastes so good, you'll want more.
> Get Squirrel peanut butter at your groc'ry store.

Nice jingle. I've never heard of it in the US though.

> The only peanut butters I've met that I didn't like were those 'no
> additive' ones. You know, the ones that start out as oil with a
> little peanut matter in it, and end up the consistency of clay,
> because you can never get the parts of it mixed well enough.

De gustibus non est disputandum. Since I started using the natural
kind, all the others taste too sweet and/or salty. They make up for a
lack of flavor by adding salt and sugar. Maybe they just don't know
how to make the natural kind where you live (Germany?).

When I was a kid I made my own peanut butter via a meat grinder. It
wasn't too good, as it picked up a noticeable metallic taste from the
grinder. Plus it was kind of dry; I guess I should have added some
extra peanut oil.

By the way, if you nuke the jar (sans lid) for thirty seconds, it's a
lot easier to stir up, especially the first time. But never store it
in the fridge the way the label says; putting cold peanut butter on
warm toast is a loathesome abomination.

--
Ray Heindl
(remove the X to reply)

[Larry Phillips]

On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 22:15:17 -0000, Ray Heindl <rhe...@nccwx.net>
wrote:

>> Is Squirrel Peanut Butter available in the US?
>>
>> Squirrel peanut butter is best by far.
>> Creamy smooth to the bottom of the jar.
>> Tastes so good, you'll want more.
>> Get Squirrel peanut butter at your groc'ry store.
>
>Nice jingle. I've never heard of it in the US though.

It is a nice one. I remember jingles, for some reason, and that one I
don't mind at all. Catchy tune, too, though difficult to convey here.

>> The only peanut butters I've met that I didn't like were those 'no
>> additive' ones. You know, the ones that start out as oil with a
>> little peanut matter in it, and end up the consistency of clay,
>> because you can never get the parts of it mixed well enough.
>
>De gustibus non est disputandum. Since I started using the natural
>kind, all the others taste too sweet and/or salty. They make up for a
>lack of flavor by adding salt and sugar. Maybe they just don't know
>how to make the natural kind where you live (Germany?).

Canada. I do like the flavour of them, but dislike the hassle. I
invariable spill some of the oil on the first stir, and end up with an
ever drier product as it gets used.

>By the way, if you nuke the jar (sans lid) for thirty seconds, it's a
>lot easier to stir up, especially the first time.

Hmm... maybe I should try that. I was also thiking that using two jars
(one empty, to hold some of the product during the firat stirring)
might reduce the spillage.

> But never store it in the fridge the way the label says; putting
> cold peanut butter on warm toast is a loathesome abomination.

Agreed, but I always figured it would go rancid fairly quickly without
being chilled.

[Mark Raymond]

Larry Phillips <sa...@non.com> wrote in
news:9d8r5v8gb3abr2sff...@4ax.com:

[snip]

> Agreed, but I always figured it would go rancid fairly quickly without
> being chilled.
>

Are you kidding? In 37 years I have _never_ stored peanut butter in the
fridge, not even in the hottest summers, where the temp can get over 30
_inside_ the house. PB has kept in the cupboard for _weeks_ without even
hinting at turning.

Yay, preservatives!!

Mark@home

[Charles Riggs]

On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 06:17:33 +0000, Laura F Spira
<la...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com> wrote:

>John Dean wrote:
>>
>> gtuo wrote:
>> > I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any thoughts?
>>
>> Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?
>>
>
>Oh dear, I think I could have done without that reminder.
>
>Isn't there a brand of peanut butter called Skippy?

There is. It is one of the American brands designed for the lower
classes. Me, I only eat Meridian's Smooth Wholenut Peanut Butter, no
sweetner, no palm oil, very expensive, but worth every penny.

Now doctors are claiming 2 ounces of PB a day are good for you, even
necessary. Next I'll learn that fags are healthful.
--
Charles Riggs
For email, take the air out of aircom and
replace it with eir

[Mark Raymond]

Charles Riggs <chr...@aircom.net> wrote in
news:gdvr5vsgfm7sq6os6...@4ax.com:

[snip]

>
> Now doctors are claiming 2 ounces of PB a day are good for you, even
> necessary. Next I'll learn that fags are healthful.

Yeah, and maybe cigarettes'll be after that.

[Jacqui]

Charles Riggs wibbled:

> Now doctors are claiming 2 ounces of PB a day are good for you,
> even necessary. Next I'll learn that fags are healthful.

Try being pregnant, Charles. "Peanuts should not be eaten" (asthma,
eczema, allergies, anaphylactic shock...) but "peanuts are an excellent
source of protein, have peanut butter sandwiches or a handful of
unsalted peanuts as a snack". (In an article about eating for two,
barely three paragraphs apart.)

Jac

[Larry Phillips]

Not kidding at all. I was speaking specifically of peanut butter
without preservatives. Peanut butter with preservatives (and other
non-peanutty stuff) in it will last until two weeks after doomsday,
but then it isn't as tasty.

[Skitt]

Larry Phillips wrote:
> Mark Raymond wrote:
>> Larry Phillips wrote:

[regarding peanut butter]

>>> Agreed, but I always figured it would go rancid fairly quickly
>>> without being chilled.
>>
>> Are you kidding? In 37 years I have _never_ stored peanut butter in
>> the fridge, not even in the hottest summers, where the temp can get
>> over 30 _inside_ the house. PB has kept in the cupboard for _weeks_
>> without even hinting at turning.
>>
>> Yay, preservatives!!
>
> Not kidding at all. I was speaking specifically of peanut butter
> without preservatives. Peanut butter with preservatives (and other
> non-peanutty stuff) in it will last until two weeks after doomsday,
> but then it isn't as tasty.

I doubt that you'll be eating it then, so it won't matter.
--
Skitt (in SF Bay Area) http://www.geocities.com/opus731/
I speak English well -- I learn it from a book!
-- Manuel (Fawlty Towers)

[Jerry Friedman]

Mark Raymond <askme@nicely> wrote in message news:<Xns932F52E9...@202.161.122.2>...

> Laura F Spira <la...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com> wrote in
> news:3E5C5BFD...@DRAGONspira.u-net.com:
>
> > John Dean wrote:
> >>
> >> gtuo wrote:
> >> > I hear it is southernism, popularized in the nineties. Any
> thoughts?
> >>
> >> Connected to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo-oo-oo?

...

> To answer the original question (perhaps), the term "Skippy", or just
> "Skip", was coined by (the children of) Mediterranean-originated
> migrants to Australia who were sick of being referred to as "wogs",
> "dagos", ect ect ect.

And etc.

> The term is a direct reference to the TV show "Skippy the Bush
> Kangaroo" (which I think is second only to "Neighbours" in terms of TV
> exports from here - happy to be corrected by those in the know).
>
> It might also help your understanding of the derogatory nature of the
> term to know that kangaroos are considered only slightly above vermin
> here, tolerated only because of the 'ooohs' and 'aaahs' of the tourists,
> and the fact that it gets a guernsey in the coat of arms

[snip current status of kangaroos in Australia]

It's nice of you to answer the original question, since no one else
did (that I've seen so far), but I'm still lost. Why did migrants
from the Mediterranean or their children coin the word "Skippy" or
"Skip"? To mean what? Is the term "damn Skippy" used, and if so, to
mean what?

AusE "gets a guernsey" = AmE "makes the team", right? I'm curious: is
your extension of it to mean "has a place" or "shows up" common in
Australia?

--
Jerry Friedman

[Ray Heindl]

Larry Phillips <sa...@non.com> wrote:

> On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 22:15:17 -0000, Ray Heindl <rhe...@nccwx.net>
> wrote:
>
>>> Is Squirrel Peanut Butter available in the US?
>>>
>>> Squirrel peanut butter is best by far.
>>> Creamy smooth to the bottom of the jar.
>>> Tastes so good, you'll want more.
>>> Get Squirrel peanut butter at your groc'ry store.
>>
>>Nice jingle. I've never heard of it in the US though.
>
> It is a nice one. I remember jingles, for some reason, and that
> one I don't mind at all. Catchy tune, too, though difficult to
> convey here.

I googled for the jingle, but no luck. I did discover articles about
various hockey players being named "Squirrel Peanut Butter Player of
the Month"; what an honor!

>>> The only peanut butters I've met that I didn't like were those
>>> 'no additive' ones. You know, the ones that start out as oil
>>> with a little peanut matter in it, and end up the consistency of
>>> clay, because you can never get the parts of it mixed well
>>> enough.

[snip]

>>By the way, if you nuke the jar (sans lid) for thirty seconds,
>>it's a lot easier to stir up, especially the first time.
>
> Hmm... maybe I should try that. I was also thiking that using two
> jars (one empty, to hold some of the product during the firat
> stirring) might reduce the spillage.

It's unfortunate that the manufacturers don't use oversize jars to
allow for the stirring. I usually just put a paper towel down before I
start stirring a new jar.

Another thing that helps is to store the unopened jars upside down.
That way the pool of oil is on the bottom, and less likely to gush over
the side when you stir.

>> But never store it in the fridge the way the label says; putting
>> cold peanut butter on warm toast is a loathesome abomination.
>
> Agreed, but I always figured it would go rancid fairly quickly
> without being chilled.

I use it up fairly quickly, generally within a week or two, so
racidification isn't an issue. I notice that the traces left in the
jar after it's effectively empty don't taste as good as fresh, but the
thin layer on the jar surface is exposed to a lot more air than the
bulk material, so it should be expected to oxidize more quickly.

[Charles Riggs]

Yes. I'd say the subject is still somewhat controversial. With whole
peanuts, I'd never want one that wasn't salted, so that's a
doctor-dictated no-no, as well.

[Mark Raymond]

jerry_f...@yahoo.com (Jerry Friedman) wrote in
news:96efe132.03022...@posting.google.com:

[snip]

> It's nice of you to answer the original question,

You're welcome!

> since no one else
> did (that I've seen so far), but I'm still lost. Why did migrants
> from the Mediterranean or their children coin the word "Skippy" or
> "Skip"?

They didn't: it was an existing term from the TV show. I believe the
kangaroo was called "Skippy" because that's what kangaroos do - skip!
OK, OK, it's really a "jump", but don't we also "skip" stones across
water?

> To mean what?

A locally born + bred person (assumed to be of WASP parentage).

> Is the term "damn Skippy" used, and if so, to mean what?

Not as an independently recognisable phrase. But then, "damned hammer"
would be an equally recognisable nonce construction.

> AusE "gets a guernsey" = AmE "makes the team", right?

Er ... possibly: haven't ever heard the USan version.

> I'm curious:

Always a good start

> is your extension of it to mean "has a place" or "shows up" common in
> Australia?

Hmmmm there's that word "common" again. Prolly less common than it was,
but even those who don't use it would understand what it meant.

Mark@home

[Linz]

"Jacqui" <sirlawren...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:Xns932F918C098...@62.253.162.106...

> Try being pregnant, Charles. "Peanuts should not be eaten" (asthma,
> eczema, allergies, anaphylactic shock...) but "peanuts are an excellent
> source of protein, have peanut butter sandwiches or a handful of
> unsalted peanuts as a snack". (In an article about eating for two,
> barely three paragraphs apart.)

Aren't they getting closer to saying peanuts are a no-no during the
breastfeeding months, since that's more likely to be the trigger?
Either way, it's annoying, like all these healthy eating things.

[R H Draney]

Mark Raymond <askme@nicely> wrote in

news:Xns9330E8292...@202.161.122.2:

> They didn't: it was an existing term from the TV show. I believe
> the kangaroo was called "Skippy" because that's what kangaroos do
> - skip! OK, OK, it's really a "jump", but don't we also "skip"
> stones across water?

More of a "hop", I think, but there was already a TV character called
Hoppy....

(This, with any luck, will lead us into a discussion of the peculiar
names used for various gaits...I'm particularly fond of "pronk"
myself)....r

[Jerry Friedman]

Mark Raymond <askme@nicely> wrote in message news:<Xns9330E8292...@202.161.122.2>...

> jerry_f...@yahoo.com (Jerry Friedman) wrote in
> news:96efe132.03022...@posting.google.com:
>
> [snip]
>
> > It's nice of you to answer the original question,
>
> You're welcome!
>
> > since no one else
> > did (that I've seen so far), but I'm still lost. Why did migrants
> > from the Mediterranean or their children coin the word "Skippy" or
> > "Skip"?
>
> They didn't: it was an existing term from the TV show. I believe the
> kangaroo was called "Skippy" because that's what kangaroos do - skip!
> OK, OK, it's really a "jump", but don't we also "skip" stones across
> water?
>
> > To mean what?
>
> A locally born + bred person (assumed to be of WASP parentage).

Okay, I think I've got it. Immigrant and second-generation Australian
children of Mediterranean origin were tired of being called wogs and
dagoes and the like, so they started referring to children of
long-standing Australian families and presumably British origin (I
assume you don't mean WASP--surely Scots and Welshpersons count) as
Skippy or skippies, after a TV kangaroo.

> > Is the term "damn Skippy" used, and if so, to mean what?
>
> Not as an independently recognisable phrase. But then, "damned hammer"
> would be an equally recognisable nonce construction.
>
> > AusE "gets a guernsey" = AmE "makes the team", right?
>
> Er ... possibly: haven't ever heard the USan version.

To make the team is to be allowed to play on the team, maybe
especially if its size is limited. Or does "get a guernsey" mean
"start", that is, be recognized as the team's best player at your
position and play at the start of the game?

> > I'm curious:
>
> Always a good start
>
> > is your extension of it to mean "has a place" or "shows up" common in
> > Australia?
>
> Hmmmm there's that word "common" again. Prolly less common than it was,
> but even those who don't use it would understand what it meant.

Well, that answers my question. If I'd said the kangaroo has a
starting spot on the Australian coat of arms, Americans would think I
was being original. But you were using an expression that's known in
Australia. (More what I meant than "common", even though "common" is
what I said.)

--
Jerry Friedman

[Dena Jo]

Larry Phillips <sa...@non.com> wrote:

> Canada. I do like the flavour of them, but dislike the hassle. I
> invariable spill some of the oil on the first stir, and end up with an
> ever drier product as it gets used.

The only peanut butter I eat is the natural kind. I pour the oil and spoon
the peanut butter into a large mixing bowl and mix it thoroughly there,
then spoon it back into the jar. It's extra work and extra washing up but
a lot easier to mix.

Laura Scudders smooth, unsalted, is my favorite. I highly recommend the
brand.

--
Dena Jo

[Mike Oliver]

Dena Jo wrote:

> Laura Scudders smooth, unsalted, is my favorite. I highly recommend the
> brand.

I agree wholeheartedly with the brand recommendation -- but
prefer crunchy, salted.

[Mark Raymond]

jerry_f...@yahoo.com (Jerry Friedman) wrote in
news:96efe132.03022...@posting.google.com:

[snip]

>> > To mean what?

>>
>> A locally born + bred person (assumed to be of WASP parentage).
>
> Okay, I think I've got it. Immigrant and second-generation Australian
> children of Mediterranean origin were tired of being called wogs and
> dagoes and the like, so they started referring to children of
> long-standing Australian families and presumably British origin (I
> assume you don't mean WASP--surely Scots and Welshpersons count)

Irish is/was more common.

> as Skippy or skippies, after a TV kangaroo.

Indeed: now you've got it!

[snip]

>> > AusE "gets a guernsey" = AmE "makes the team", right?
>>
>> Er ... possibly: haven't ever heard the USan version.
>
> To make the team is to be allowed to play on the team, maybe
> especially if its size is limited. Or does "get a guernsey" mean
> "start", that is, be recognized as the team's best player at your
> position and play at the start of the game?

"to get a guernsey" has drifted a little further from its sporting
origins than "to make the team", I suspect. There is definitely no
sense of being the best, though ... my Australian Oxford Concise has the
figurative meaning of "to gain recognition or approval", but I would
never use it in that sense (nor have I ever heard it used that way).

Do you ever use / hear the phrase "to get a look in"? This is as close
as I can get in meaning.

Mark@home

[rzed]

"Mark Raymond" <askme@nicely> wrote in message

news:Xns9331D2067...@202.161.122.2...

> jerry_f...@yahoo.com (Jerry Friedman) wrote in
> news:96efe132.03022...@posting.google.com:
>
> [snip]
>
> >> > To mean what?
> >>
> >> A locally born + bred person (assumed to be of WASP parentage).
> >
> > Okay, I think I've got it. Immigrant and second-generation Australian
> > children of Mediterranean origin were tired of being called wogs and
> > dagoes and the like, so they started referring to children of
> > long-standing Australian families and presumably British origin (I
> > assume you don't mean WASP--surely Scots and Welshpersons count)
>
> Irish is/was more common.
>
> > as Skippy or skippies, after a TV kangaroo.
>
> Indeed: now you've got it!
>
> [snip]
>
> >> > AusE "gets a guernsey" = AmE "makes the team", right?
> >>
> >> Er ... possibly: haven't ever heard the USan version.
> >
> > To make the team is to be allowed to play on the team, maybe
> > especially if its size is limited.

So you get to wear a jersey, then. I've never heard "get a guernsey" but
would it be derived from "get a jersey"?

[Mark Raymond]

"rzed" <rza...@ntelos.net> wrote in news:sR18a.17092$Xa4.15755
@fe01.atl2.webusenet.com:

> So you get to wear a jersey, then. I've never heard "get a guernsey" but
> would it be derived from "get a jersey"?

Well, you can practically swim from one to the other, so the two terms are
interchangable, at least as far as sporting (esp Rugby) tops are concerned.
Kiwis (I suspect under British influence) have extended "jersey" to include
regular jumpers.

This means that "guernsey" is becoming less and less frequently used, and
often only gets a guernsey in this particular phrase. Prolly due entirely
to the alliteration ...

Mark@home

[gtuo]

Ok, I am not sure i got answer to my question, but i certainly learned
about peanut butter..

First, I believe that "skippy" peanut butter is named after a popular
U.S. Comic character from the 1930's. My thinking was that "damn
skippy" came from that character.

So it sounds like it is from this Australian Tv show? and from their a
epithet for old school Australians?

on the P.B. front, a different question.. i am told that "peaunts"
where referred to as "ground nuts" when first introduced to the UK.
Does that mean peanut butter was ground "ground nuts"?

My personal PB experiences involve Red Wing brand a cult fave from the
Western New York area. try it...IF you can find. it. I also have a
warm spot for the USDA government surplus that we used to get in
school (note that in this case government is pronouced as "gummiment"
as in "gummiment cheez")

[Don Aitken]

On 7 Mar 2003 17:04:44 -0800, gtu...@hotmail.com (gtuo) wrote:

>on the P.B. front, a different question.. i am told that "peaunts"
>where referred to as "ground nuts" when first introduced to the UK.
>Does that mean peanut butter was ground "ground nuts"?
>

I suppose so, but they were called ground nuts because they grow in
the ground, attached to the roots of the relevant plant. Strictly
speaking, I believe they are not nuts at all. They are still called
ground nuts (or groundnuts) in commerce in the UK, but the retail
market has used "peanuts" since the 1960s; before that they were
always "monkey nuts".

--
Don Aitken

[Larry Phillips]

On Sat, 08 Mar 2003 02:42:38 +0000, Don Aitken <don-a...@freeuk.com>
wrote:

Is there any area in which they are still called 'goobers' or 'goober
peas'?

Oh Drat! STS again.

peas, peas, peas, peas,
Eating goober peas.
Everyone's delerious,
Eating goober peas.

[Larry Phillips]

On 7 Mar 2003 17:04:44 -0800, gtu...@hotmail.com (gtuo) wrote:

>on the P.B. front, a different question.. i am told that "peaunts"
>where referred to as "ground nuts" when first introduced to the UK.
>Does that mean peanut butter was ground "ground nuts"?

Yes. Along the same line...

"This coffe tastes like mud!"
"Well it should. It was ground this morning."

[Jacqui]

gtuo wibbled:

> on the P.B. front, a different question.. i am told that "peaunts"
> where referred to as "ground nuts" when first introduced to the
> UK. Does that mean peanut butter was ground "ground nuts"?

One is told to look out for "groundnut oil" on ingredients when trying
to avoid peanuts, so I guess so...

Jac

[mUs1Ka]

"Don Aitken" <don-a...@freeuk.com> wrote in message
news:88ii6v0vjtfali903...@4ax.com...

They still are "monkey nuts" when sold in their shells.
m.

[rakta...@gmail.com]

Seems to be an Americanism. Never heard it in Australia. Only on/in US media - books, film, TV.

Nothing to do with the kangaroo.

[Mack A. Damia]

On Sun, 12 Jan 2014 11:57:22 -0800 (PST), rakta...@gmail.com wrote:

>Seems to be an Americanism. Never heard it in Australia. Only on/in US media - books, film, TV.
>
>Nothing to do with the kangaroo.

damn skippy

1. Rock on, baby!
2. Copasetic
3. You couldn't be mo' righter!
4. I couldn't agree more

Superior Court Judge: "Young man, you were caught with a 14-year-old
girl in your dorm room."

21-year-old Defendant: "Damn skippy, bubba. Moistie little thang,
too."


damn skippy

interjection
�exclamation of excitement or approval.

(Citation from "Ashes to Ashes", Reaper (TV, 2007), Season 1 Episode
9)

--

[Horace LaBadie]

In article <57c4a8bc-3475-4aaa...@googlegroups.com>,

From the famous comic strip character, I imagine.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skippy_%28comic_strip%29>

[Tom McCreadie]

Mack A. Damia wrote:
>damn skippy
>
>interjection
>�exclamation of excitement or approval.
>
>(Citation from "Ashes to Ashes", Reaper (TV, 2007), Season 1 Episode
>9)

The terse style reminds me of 'darn tootin' - though that's an emphatic,
confirmatory 'yes' to a rhetorical question, rather than an 'exclamation of
excitement or approval'.

[Jeffrey Turner]

I'm guessing a comic strip that ended in 1945 is not the source.

[Peter T. Daniels]

I suspect that when, on *2.5 Men*, Berta calls Alan "Skippy," it's
a reference to the "alternative newspaper" comic "Skippy the Pinhead,"
and that's probably the same reference in *Reaper* (which was a
wonderfully entertaining show).

[Horace LaBadie]

In article <c63359e7-0901-4dbc...@googlegroups.com>,

ZIPPY the Pinhead.

[Peter T. Daniels]

Ah, it's been a while. Then who's Berta's Skippy?

[Horace LaBadie]

In article <13e2cc1c-5ddd-4fed...@googlegroups.com>,

You would have to ask Chuck Lorre. Maybe he's a fan of the 2001 movie,
Skippy.

It's not as though a person has to know the origin of a phrase to pick
it up.

The Crosby comic strip is being run on the Web.

<http://www.gocomics.com/skippy#.UtQ1PevytiI>

[John Varela]

Very interesting. I'd never heard of Skippy. Before 1945 I'm sure I
was reading the Katzenjammer Kids and Prince Valiant, so can only
guess that Skippy wasn't in the Times-Picayune.

--
John Varela

[Jerry Friedman]

On 1/13/14 3:49 PM, John Varela wrote:
> On Sun, 12 Jan 2014 21:40:46 UTC, Horace LaBadie
> <hlab...@nospam.com> wrote:

...

>> From the famous comic strip character, I imagine.
>>
>> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skippy_%28comic_strip%29>
>
> Very interesting. I'd never heard of Skippy. Before 1945 I'm sure I
> was reading the Katzenjammer Kids and Prince Valiant, so can only
> guess that Skippy wasn't in the Times-Picayune.

As I recall from a roommate's class in comics, Skippy had brilliant
moments. It was also a source of useful catchphrases: "To me this is
all very disgustful" and "I carry a dime, and besides me dime, I carry a
knife." Well, I'm not sure when the latter would be useful, but I like it.

Cot/caught aficionados will note "Yawcob" for, I assume, "Jakob".

--
Jerry Friedman

[Mike L]

On 13 Jan 2014 22:49:29 GMT, "John Varela" <newl...@verizon.net>
wrote:

<Voice cracking with emotion> Ah! After all these years, another
Katzenjammers reader! "Vot der dumblast? Fetch der dod-rotted hot
water kettle!" "Lena, you iss a smart liddle gazebo!" Etc, etc.

--
Mike.

[Bertel Lund Hansen]

Mike L skrev:

> <Voice cracking with emotion> Ah! After all these years, another
> Katzenjammers reader! "Vot der dumblast? Fetch der dod-rotted hot
> water kettle!" "Lena, you iss a smart liddle gazebo!" Etc, etc.

If the Danish translation is acceptable, you can count me in. It
was called "Knold og Tot" in Danish - something like "Clod and
Tuft" in English. Those were the names of the two rascals.

--
Bertel, Denmark

[John Varela]

Hans and Fritz, IIRC. And what was the name of the good little boy?

--
John Varela

[Jeffrey Turner]

Skippy is just sort of the generic WASP nickname. A friend of mine got
called Skippy 20 years ago by a comic in a nightclub.

--Jeff

[Bertel Lund Hansen]

John Varela skrev:

I had forgotten there was one. Nut I found out that the comic
still is produced in Denmark, but I think they are reprints of
the old series:

http://www.saxo.com/dk/knold-og-tot-2013_haeftet_9788776796709

"Store Danske Encyklop�di" writes that it is the only comic from
the beginning of the 1900s that is still in print all over the
world.

--
Bertel, Denmark

[Peter Moylan]

Although I did encounter the original, what sticks in my mind is the
Catchandhammer Kids, starring Hans und Feets. I don't recall who did the
parody; it might have been Mad magazine.

--
Peter Moylan, Newcastle, NSW, Australia. http://www.pmoylan.org
For an e-mail address, see my web page.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Wednesday, January 15, 2014 2:45:31 AM UTC-5, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:

> I had forgotten there was one. Nut I found out that the comic
> still is produced in Denmark, but I think they are reprints of
> the old series:
>
> http://www.saxo.com/dk/knold-og-tot-2013_haeftet_9788776796709
>

> "Store Danske Encyklop�di" writes that it is the only comic from

> the beginning of the 1900s that is still in print all over the
> world.

What do you mean by "in print"?

[Cheryl]

Until this thread, I associated it almost entirely with peanut butter.


--
Cheryl

[Tony Cooper]

To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.

"Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
someone who has parked carelessly.

That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
sarcastic reference to the customer.

I would not expect it as a nickname, but "Skip" is a fairly common
nickname.

--
Tony Cooper - Orlando FL

[Mike L]

On 15 Jan 2014 02:46:42 GMT, "John Varela" <newl...@verizon.net>
wrote:

Gosh! Good question...Ernest, perhaps? The cast grew steadily over the
years, just as the range of equipment increased. The potency of the
glue, however, was spectacular right from the start.

"Himmel! A double-header!"
<Spanking and weeping> "...no more dod-rotted nature-faking!"

--
Mike.

[R H Draney]

Tony Cooper filted:

>
>To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
>to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
>person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.
>
>"Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
>someone who has parked carelessly.
>
>That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
>sarcastic reference to the customer.
>
>I would not expect it as a nickname, but "Skip" is a fairly common
>nickname.

Originally it was meant as a nickname for someone whose given name matched his
grandfather's but not his father's...people lost sight of this derivation, just
as there are now kids named "Trey" who are not the third consecutive holder of
their given name....r


--
Me? Sarcastic?
Yeah, right.

[John Dawkins]

In article <13e2cc1c-5ddd-4fed...@googlegroups.com>,

Berta calls Alan "Zippy", not "Skippy".
--
J.

[John Varela]

On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 21:13:59 UTC, Mike L <n...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:

> On 15 Jan 2014 02:46:42 GMT, "John Varela" <newl...@verizon.net>
> wrote:
>
> >On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 00:00:30 UTC, Bertel Lund Hansen
> ><kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
> >
> >> Mike L skrev:
> >>
> >> > <Voice cracking with emotion> Ah! After all these years, another
> >> > Katzenjammers reader! "Vot der dumblast? Fetch der dod-rotted hot
> >> > water kettle!" "Lena, you iss a smart liddle gazebo!" Etc, etc.
> >>
> >> If the Danish translation is acceptable, you can count me in. It
> >> was called "Knold og Tot" in Danish - something like "Clod and
> >> Tuft" in English. Those were the names of the two rascals.
> >
> >Hans and Fritz, IIRC. And what was the name of the good little boy?
>
> Gosh! Good question...Ernest, perhaps? The cast grew steadily over the
> years, just as the range of equipment increased. The potency of the
> glue, however, was spectacular right from the start.

The boy prodigy was Rollo Rhubarb. (I had to look that up.) WikiP
has a good article about the strip including The Captain and the
Kids. I had forgotten about Miss Twiddle.

> "Himmel! A double-header!"
> <Spanking and weeping> "...no more dod-rotted nature-faking!"

--

John Varela

[Jerry Friedman]

On 1/15/14 3:26 PM, R H Draney wrote:
> Tony Cooper filted:
>>
>> To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
>> to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
>> person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.
>>
>> "Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
>> someone who has parked carelessly.
>>
>> That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
>> sarcastic reference to the customer.

I understand it as a little boy's nickname. I don't think I've heard it
as a "Mac"-like form of address the way you and Jeffre Turner have, but
the connotation of childishness would explain the sarcastic tone.

>> I would not expect it as a nickname, but "Skip" is a fairly common
>> nickname.
>
> Originally it was meant as a nickname for someone whose given name matched his
> grandfather's but not his father's...

You sure about that? I always thought it was for either a boy who liked
to skip or one who his parents thought of him as a cute or bossy little
captain.

However, many surnames become given names. "Skip" is an English surname
meaning "ship" or "basket", and "Skip" could be a nickname for "Skipper"
(basketmaker) or "Skipton (Skippen, Skipping, etc.)" (sheep-farm) or
"Skipwith" (a village in Yorkshire originally meaning "outlying place of
sheep").

http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Skipton

Speaking of ships, where's the onomast when we need him?

The first hit I can find at Google Books for "Skip" as a nickname is
from 1857. It's short for the surname "Skipton".

http://books.google.com/books?id=ckNWAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA28

The first where it doesn't come from the character's surname is from
1881. It's a boy named Skipwith Despard.

http://books.google.com/books?id=WiAeAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA42

I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
doubt that's the origin.

> people lost sight of this derivation, just
> as there are now kids named "Trey" who are not the third consecutive holder of
> their given name....r

I believe that, though I wouldn't be surprised if someone told me that
some Treys were the third child or third son in the family.

--
Jerry Friedman

[Tony Cooper]

On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 21:34:06 -0700, Jerry Friedman
<jerry_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:

>On 1/15/14 3:26 PM, R H Draney wrote:
>> Tony Cooper filted:
>>>
>>> To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
>>> to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
>>> person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.
>>>
>>> "Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
>>> someone who has parked carelessly.
>>>
>>> That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
>>> sarcastic reference to the customer.
>
>I understand it as a little boy's nickname. I don't think I've heard it
>as a "Mac"-like form of address the way you and Jeffre Turner have,

You've never heard anyone say "Hey, Mac, you gonna..." or summat like
that? You must hang around with nothing but high-class people.

but
>the connotation of childishness would explain the sarcastic tone.
>
>>> I would not expect it as a nickname, but "Skip" is a fairly common
>>> nickname.
>>
>> Originally it was meant as a nickname for someone whose given name matched his
>> grandfather's but not his father's...
>
>You sure about that? I always thought it was for either a boy who liked
>to skip or one who his parents thought of him as a cute or bossy little
>captain.

I've known a few Skips in my life, but I've never asked one how he got
that name. I assume the most common situation is when the nickname
starts out as Skipper (given by someone with some seafaring
background) and is shortened to Skip.

Does there really have to be a logical reason why a person gets a
nickname?

[Bertel Lund Hansen]

Jerry Friedman skrev:

> I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
> nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
> doubt that's the origin.

What does "cast" mean here? My usual dictionary is no help.

--
Bertel, Denmark

[Jerry Friedman]

On 1/15/14 10:48 PM, Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 21:34:06 -0700, Jerry Friedman
> <jerry_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> On 1/15/14 3:26 PM, R H Draney wrote:
>>> Tony Cooper filted:
>>>>
>>>> To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
>>>> to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
>>>> person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.
>>>>
>>>> "Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
>>>> someone who has parked carelessly.
>>>>
>>>> That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
>>>> sarcastic reference to the customer.
>>
>> I understand it as a little boy's nickname. I don't think I've heard it

>> as a "Mac"-like form of address the way you and Jeffrey Turner have,

(Typo corrected. Sorry, Jeffrey.)

> You've never heard anyone say "Hey, Mac, you gonna..." or summat like
> that? You must hang around with nothing but high-class people.

The "it" that I've never heard that way was "Skippy". I've heard "Hey,
Mac" (not for decades), but not "Nice parking job there, Skippy."

> but
>> the connotation of childishness would explain the sarcastic tone.
>>
>>>> I would not expect it as a nickname, but "Skip" is a fairly common
>>>> nickname.
>>>
>>> Originally it was meant as a nickname for someone whose given name matched his
>>> grandfather's but not his father's...
>>
>> You sure about that? I always thought it was for either a boy who liked
>> to skip or one who his parents thought of him as a cute or bossy little
>> captain.
>
> I've known a few Skips in my life, but I've never asked one how he got
> that name. I assume the most common situation is when the nickname
> starts out as Skipper (given by someone with some seafaring
> background) and is shortened to Skip.

So we agree on that possibility.

> Does there really have to be a logical reason why a person gets a
> nickname?

There's usually some kind of reason. When I was in college, I knew
three roommates, two of them pretty good friends of mine, who read in
/The Official Preppy Handbook/ that Skip, Trip, and Bunny were typical
preppy nicknames, so they decided to nickname themselves that way. You
might not consider that logical. Anyway, it didn't last. I don't even
remember which was which.

--
Jerry Friedman

[Rich Ulrich]

Broken leg: For years and years, a "plaster cast", made of
plaster of paris, was the splinting method of choice.

Wikip describes newer and lighter materials, in an article
on "orthopedic casts".

What I remember seeing within the last decade have
been removable splints, so I don't know if any "casting"
is used any more.

--
Rich Ulrich

[Tony Cooper]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:53:36 +0100, Bertel Lund Hansen
<kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:

A hard plaster cast that is put on a broken arm or leg.

http://jointsage.com/wp-content/uploads/cast.jpg

There are also "soft casts" made of fiberglass that are more flexible
and used where less support is required.

[R H Draney]

Jerry Friedman filted:

Sure there's a logical reason...my grandfather's parents named him Ralph because
they considered it a fine unabbreviatable name, so naturally he was known as
"Jim" his entire life...my parents named me Ronald Jr, so Grandpa Jim announced
that he was going to call me Zebedee, and for the next ten years nobody called
me anything else....r

[R H Draney]

Bertel Lund Hansen filted:

Your usual dictionary wants replaced:

"a bandage stiffened with plaster of Paris, molded to the shape of a limb that
is broken, and used to support and protect it."

[Tony Cooper]

On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 23:01:18 -0700, Jerry Friedman

Well, yeah, a reason. Logical reason, though? A logical reason is
one like the use for a skipped generation. However, when some
relative or friend comes up with one out of the blue, and it sticks,
it isn't necessarily the result of a logical path.

Many nicknames remain - blessedly, as mine - only in family use. It's
only when a family member blurts it out your sixth birthday party that
it becomes public. And, I still haven't forgiven my father for that.

My brother is the only person now living that knows mine, and he's on
the brink of senility, age-wise, so I may be safe.

[Tony Cooper]

On 15 Jan 2014 22:29:19 -0800, R H Draney <dado...@spamcop.net>
wrote:

>Jerry Friedman filted:
>>
>>On 1/15/14 10:48 PM, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>
>>> Does there really have to be a logical reason why a person gets a
>>> nickname?
>>
>>There's usually some kind of reason. When I was in college, I knew
>>three roommates, two of them pretty good friends of mine, who read in
>>/The Official Preppy Handbook/ that Skip, Trip, and Bunny were typical
>>preppy nicknames, so they decided to nickname themselves that way. You
>>might not consider that logical. Anyway, it didn't last. I don't even
>>remember which was which.
>
>Sure there's a logical reason...my grandfather's parents named him Ralph because
>they considered it a fine unabbreviatable name,

Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
another.

[Bertel Lund Hansen]

Tony Cooper skrev:

> Name shortening irritates me.

My two oldest grandsons are now 9 and 7 years old. They are named
Zakarias and Vitus. Zakarias has been called many names both by
his parents and his friends, and for a long time it irritated
him, but now he has accepted being called "Zakke", although he
still prefers his real name.

Vitus was and still is called "Vitte", but he doesn't mind.

With one exception I have never used anything but the proper name
when I have talked to people. I had a pupil in school whose name
was "Christoffer". A very common short name for that is
"Stoffer". I called him Stoffer which he didn't mind at all. I
don't quite know why this was an exception, but "Stoffer" is a
nice name.

I myself had no nickname while I went to school. I was called
some ridiculous names by some pupils (behind my back or
indiscoverably silent) when I was a new teacher. That was a
nuisance.

--
Bertel, Denmark

[LFS]

On 16/01/2014 07:00, Tony Cooper wrote:

>
> Many nicknames remain - blessedly, as mine - only in family use. It's
> only when a family member blurts it out your sixth birthday party that
> it becomes public. And, I still haven't forgiven my father for that.
>
> My brother is the only person now living that knows mine, and he's on
> the brink of senility, age-wise, so I may be safe.
>

Am I the only one now speculating about what Tony's nickname might be?
I'm guessing it's not Choochyface.
--
Laura (emulate St George for email)

[LFS]

Would you rather be Ant?

My parents, who hated being addressed as Reen and Russ, were happily
convinced that my name couldn't be shortened. But I have friends who
address me as "Lor" which I tolerate but don't like. Even worse is the
adding of "..zza": I definitely draw the line at Lozza.

[Tony Cooper]

Yes, that's it. I'll take it. Easier to live with than the real one.
I may even add it as a sig line.

[James Hogg]

gipsbandage, says my Gyldendal.

--
James

[Tony Cooper]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 07:33:56 +0000, LFS
<la...@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> wrote:

>On 16/01/2014 07:03, Tony Cooper wrote:
>> On 15 Jan 2014 22:29:19 -0800, R H Draney <dado...@spamcop.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Jerry Friedman filted:
>>>>
>>>> On 1/15/14 10:48 PM, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Does there really have to be a logical reason why a person gets a
>>>>> nickname?
>>>>
>>>> There's usually some kind of reason. When I was in college, I knew
>>>> three roommates, two of them pretty good friends of mine, who read in
>>>> /The Official Preppy Handbook/ that Skip, Trip, and Bunny were typical
>>>> preppy nicknames, so they decided to nickname themselves that way. You
>>>> might not consider that logical. Anyway, it didn't last. I don't even
>>>> remember which was which.
>>>
>>> Sure there's a logical reason...my grandfather's parents named him Ralph because
>>> they considered it a fine unabbreviatable name,
>>
>> Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
>> Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
>> another.
>>
>
>Would you rather be Ant?

I was Anthony to my family, teachers, and schoolmates until I was in
my early teens. In Indianapolis, only Italians were named Anthony. I
had nothing against the Italians, but I got tired of being asked if I
was Italian so I tried to get people to call me Andy, Abie (my first
two initials are A and B), Acee, or Flash. (Well, Flash was never a
serious contender) No one cooperated, so I went for Tony.

You might wonder why Tony was less Italian in my mind than Anthony,
but all the Italians I ever knew went by Anthony. Years later, Tony
become the caricature name for an Italian, but not then. This was
Indianapolis, not Boston or NYC.

Then I become Tony to teachers and schoolmates.

My father never called me Tony. My mother would use Tony in public,
but would also follow that by confessing that my real name was
Anthony. It was almost one word "My son
TonywhoserealnameisAnthony...". She had picked Anthony after Anthony
Eden or Anthony Adverse, because she thought they were dignified names
compared to Pat or Mike or Joe or John, and she wasn't going to give
it up.

So, Ant was never an issue.

To this day, when the doctor's office calls out "Anthony", because
that's what's on their record, I think of my mother and father.

Note: Agent's spellcheck wants to change "TonywhoserealnameisAnthony"
to "pantyhose". That's not it, either, Laura.

[Peter Moylan]

After my two youngest children were born, I was having a smoke outside
the hospital building -- that was in the days before it was a hanging
offence -- and got to talking with another man there. When he asked what
the children were called, I told him that the boy was Jonathan. "Oh,
Jon", he said. "That's a good name. You can't shorten that."

[Peter Moylan]

On 16/01/14 18:00, Tony Cooper wrote:

> Many nicknames remain - blessedly, as mine - only in family use. It's
> only when a family member blurts it out your sixth birthday party that
> it becomes public. And, I still haven't forgiven my father for that.

Sometimes it's the other way around. My brother is Michael inside the
family, but Mick everywhere else.

[musika]

On 16/01/2014 05:48, Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Wed, 15 Jan 2014 21:34:06 -0700, Jerry Friedman
> <jerry_f...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> On 1/15/14 3:26 PM, R H Draney wrote:
>>> Tony Cooper filted:
>>>>
>>>> To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is similar
>>>> to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't know the other
>>>> person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic manner.
>>>>
>>>> "Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting on
>>>> someone who has parked carelessly.
>>>>
>>>> That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making a
>>>> sarcastic reference to the customer.
>>
>> I understand it as a little boy's nickname. I don't think I've heard it
>> as a "Mac"-like form of address the way you and Jeffre Turner have,
>
> You've never heard anyone say "Hey, Mac, you gonna..." or summat like
> that? You must hang around with nothing but high-class people.
>

"Got a light, Mac?"
"No, but I've got a dark brown raincoat."


--
Ray
UK

[musika]

Just be grateful they don't call you "Lol".

--
Ray
UK

[LFS]

I'd be happy to call you Flash, Mr C.

>
> You might wonder why Tony was less Italian in my mind than Anthony,
> but all the Italians I ever knew went by Anthony. Years later, Tony
> become the caricature name for an Italian, but not then. This was
> Indianapolis, not Boston or NYC.
>
> Then I become Tony to teachers and schoolmates.
>
> My father never called me Tony. My mother would use Tony in public,
> but would also follow that by confessing that my real name was
> Anthony. It was almost one word "My son
> TonywhoserealnameisAnthony...". She had picked Anthony after Anthony
> Eden or Anthony Adverse,

The largest book on the library shelf when I was young and never
borrowed. My mum was always urging me to read it: I have no idea whether
this was because she had read it and thought it good or because she felt
sorry for a neglected volume gathering dust.

because she thought they were dignified names
> compared to Pat or Mike or Joe or John, and she wasn't going to give
> it up.
>
> So, Ant was never an issue.
>
> To this day, when the doctor's office calls out "Anthony", because
> that's what's on their record, I think of my mother and father.
>
> Note: Agent's spellcheck wants to change "TonywhoserealnameisAnthony"
> to "pantyhose". That's not it, either, Laura.
>


--

[Cheryl]

On 2014-01-16 5:20 AM, Peter Moylan wrote:

> After my two youngest children were born, I was having a smoke outside
> the hospital building -- that was in the days before it was a hanging
> offence -- and got to talking with another man there. When he asked what
> the children were called, I told him that the boy was Jonathan. "Oh,
> Jon", he said. "That's a good name. You can't shorten that."

My mother was strongly opposed to shortening names, and tried to choose
names that were unlikely to be shortened. It worked with me. The next
sibling is now, I think, called by a nickname by most of her adult
friends but is still called by her full name by family. The third was
called "Pammie" from infancy until her teens, when she rebelled and
insisted on "Pam", and the fourth insisted on the full "Edward" all his
life, but, especially when he was a little boy with a long name, always
met people who insisted on trying to shorten it.

I guess that's about a 50% success rate, depending on how you classify
no. 2.

I've never really understood why people try to change the names of those
they have just met. I can see how people who are very close can call
each other by nicknames, but not why someone who is introduced to
"Edward" immediately starts calling the new acquaintance "Ed" or "Eddie".

--
Cheryl

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 07:33:56 +0000, LFS
<la...@DRAGONspira.fsbusiness.co.uk> wrote:

I hope you never meet Cilla Black[1] and say or do something funny
enough to trigger her catchphrase "A lorra lorra laughs".

[1] Professional name of Priscilla White.

--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)

[charles]

In article <52d773c7$0$306$1472...@news.sunsite.dk>,

Bertel Lund Hansen <kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:

short for "a plaster cast".

--
From KT24

Using a RISC OS computer running v5.18

[Tom McCreadie]

Tony Cooper wrote:

>Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
>Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
>another.

We had a new girl called Virginia in our class.
We called her Virgin for short...but not for long.
__
Tom McCreadie

[CDB]

On 15/01/2014 11:34 PM, Jerry Friedman wrote:
> R H Draney wrote:
>> Tony Cooper filted:

>>> To me, "Skippy" is a term used somewhat disparagingly that is
>>> similar to "Buddy", "Mac", and "Pal". It's used when you don't
>>> know the other person's name. It's usually used in a sarcastic
>>> manner.

>>> "Nice parking job there, Skippy", for example, when commenting
>>> on someone who has parked carelessly.

>>> That nightclub reference above might fit if the comic was making
>>> a sarcastic reference to the customer.

> I understand it as a little boy's nickname. I don't think I've heard
> it as a "Mac"-like form of address the way you and Jeffre Turner
> have, but the connotation of childishness would explain the sarcastic
> tone.

When Pierre Poilievre was getting up in the House every day as
Parliamentary Secretary to defend our largely-indefensible PM, he was
derisively referred to (maybe even addressed) as "Skippy". He looks
like someone who would have been pushed around in school not long ago.

<http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/at-least-pierre-poilievre-didnt-throw-a-shoe-at-mounties/article1370099/>

http://b.tinyurl.com/6h5b3da

[who is skippy?]

[charles]

In article <lb8o60$pgt$1...@speranza.aioe.org>,

I have a distant memory of Skippy being a kangaroo - some childrens' tv
series from long ago?

[CDB]

On 16/01/2014 8:55 AM, charles wrote:

Now you've gone and done it. I'll be haunted all day by a boosh kangaroooo.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Thursday, January 16, 2014 1:13:07 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:53:36 +0100, Bertel Lund Hansen
> <kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
> >Jerry Friedman skrev:

> >> I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
> >> nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
> >> doubt that's the origin.
> >What does "cast" mean here? My usual dictionary is no help.
>
> A hard plaster cast that is put on a broken arm or leg.

It's considered really bad form (and pretty much useless) to use the
word being defined in the definition.

> http://jointsage.com/wp-content/uploads/cast.jpg

Bertel might also need to know about the odd children's gait known as
"skipping." I wonder how a description entirely in words would read.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Thursday, January 16, 2014 2:03:23 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:

> Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
> Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
> another.

Does your Church know you as Tony rather than Anthony?

When your friend writes to you, does he write <Tone> or <Tony>?

[Katy Jennison]

On 16/01/2014 07:33, LFS wrote:

My sister's nickname at school was Sprout. There was logic to it, but
not the sort that's immediately guessable. It derived from my own
erstwhile nickname, which in turn derived from a pronunciation of my
initials, which were CBJ.

--
Katy Jennison

[Jerry Friedman]

On 1/16/14 5:09 AM, Cheryl wrote:
> On 2014-01-16 5:20 AM, Peter Moylan wrote:
>
>> After my two youngest children were born, I was having a smoke outside
>> the hospital building -- that was in the days before it was a hanging
>> offence -- and got to talking with another man there. When he asked what
>> the children were called, I told him that the boy was Jonathan. "Oh,
>> Jon", he said. "That's a good name. You can't shorten that."

Snort.

> My mother was strongly opposed to shortening names, and tried to choose
> names that were unlikely to be shortened.

...

The reverse of this is the parents who give their children names with a
many possible nicknames so the children can choose. Henry, Harry, Hal,
or Hank--but the record holders are probably Margaret and Elizabeth.

--
Jerry Friedman

[Jerry Friedman]

On 1/16/14 12:24 AM, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> Tony Cooper skrev:
>
>> Name shortening irritates me.
>
> My two oldest grandsons are now 9 and 7 years old. They are named
> Zakarias and Vitus. Zakarias has been called many names both by
> his parents and his friends, and for a long time it irritated
> him, but now he has accepted being called "Zakke", although he
> still prefers his real name.
>
> Vitus was and still is called "Vitte", but he doesn't mind.
>
> With one exception I have never used anything but the proper name
> when I have talked to people.

Aren't there any Danes who prefer being addressed by a nickname? If so,
I don't see why you want to ignore their preference.

And how do you manage? I introduce myself as Jerry, which could be for
Gerald, Gerard, Jeremiah, Jeremy, Jerome, and probably others (not to
mention spelling variants). If you met me, would you ask what my real
name was and then call me that, or just avoid my name as much as
possible, or what?

> I had a pupil in school whose name
> was "Christoffer". A very common short name for that is
> "Stoffer". I called him Stoffer which he didn't mind at all.

He might even have liked it.

> I
> don't quite know why this was an exception, but "Stoffer" is a
> nice name.

My graduate adviser, Gordon Baym, called (and probably calls) his
colleague Chris Pethick "Stoffer". They'd both spent a lot of time at
the Niels Bohr Institute or Nordita or both.

> I myself had no nickname while I went to school. I was called
> some ridiculous names by some pupils (behind my back or
> indiscoverably silent) when I was a new teacher. That was a
> nuisance.

Just when you were new?

I shudder to think what my students call me behind my back.

--
Jerry Friedman

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

On 15 Jan 2014 22:31:21 -0800, R H Draney <dado...@spamcop.net> wrote:

>Bertel Lund Hansen filted:

>>
>>Jerry Friedman skrev:
>>
>>> I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
>>> nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
>>> doubt that's the origin.
>>
>>What does "cast" mean here? My usual dictionary is no help.
>

>Your usual dictionary wants replaced:
>
>"a bandage stiffened with plaster of Paris, molded to the shape of a limb that
>is broken, and used to support and protect it."
>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthopedic_cast

[Tony Cooper]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 08:24:34 +0100, Bertel Lund Hansen
<kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:

>Tony Cooper skrev:
>
>> Name shortening irritates me.
>
>My two oldest grandsons are now 9 and 7 years old. They are named
>Zakarias and Vitus. Zakarias has been called many names both by
>his parents and his friends, and for a long time it irritated
>him, but now he has accepted being called "Zakke", although he
>still prefers his real name.

My brother, a resident of Denmark for the past 45 or so years, has a
son named Sören who now is known as "Zorn" and a granddaughter named
Nana by his other son. Nana, to many of us in the US, is a nickname
for our grandmother.

[Tony Cooper]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:33:48 -0800 (PST), "Peter T. Daniels"
<gram...@verizon.net> wrote:

>On Thursday, January 16, 2014 2:03:23 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:
>
>> Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
>> Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
>> another.
>
>Does your Church know you as Tony rather than Anthony?

My church? Anyone knowing my name there would have to be the one that
is omniscient. Even the monthly collection envelopes mailed here are
addressed to my wife.

>
>When your friend writes to you, does he write <Tone> or <Tony>?

If it ever happens, I'll let you know.

My wife participated in a Christmas exchange, and hosted the evening,
with a group of women that she has known for decades. In the next
week or so, our mailbox contained several hand-written thank-you
notes. It's only mentionable because the mailbox so infrequently
contains hand-written letters.

My daughter-in-law demands that our grandchildren write thank-you
letters to relatives who send Christmas and birthday gifts. Verbal
thank-yous are OK for gifts delivered in person, but not for
out-of-town people.

[Rich Ulrich]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:31:29 -0800 (PST), "Peter T. Daniels"
<gram...@verizon.net> wrote:

>On Thursday, January 16, 2014 1:13:07 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:
>> On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:53:36 +0100, Bertel Lund Hansen
>> <kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
>> >Jerry Friedman skrev:
>
>> >> I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
>> >> nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
>> >> doubt that's the origin.
>> >What does "cast" mean here? My usual dictionary is no help.
>>
>> A hard plaster cast that is put on a broken arm or leg.
>
>It's considered really bad form (and pretty much useless) to use the
>word being defined in the definition.

But this one works in two ways - it might successfully
jog the memory, and, if not, it serves as a searchable term.

>
>> http://jointsage.com/wp-content/uploads/cast.jpg
>
>Bertel might also need to know about the odd children's gait known as
>"skipping." I wonder how a description entirely in words would read.

--
Rich Ulrich

[Tony Cooper]

On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 13:02:08 -0500, Rich Ulrich
<rich....@comcast.net> wrote:

>On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:31:29 -0800 (PST), "Peter T. Daniels"
><gram...@verizon.net> wrote:
>
>>On Thursday, January 16, 2014 1:13:07 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>> On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:53:36 +0100, Bertel Lund Hansen
>>> <kanon...@lundhansen.dk> wrote:
>>> >Jerry Friedman skrev:
>>
>>> >> I had a student who asked to be called Skip, which he said had been his
>>> >> nickname since the time in high school when he had a cast on his leg. I
>>> >> doubt that's the origin.
>>> >What does "cast" mean here? My usual dictionary is no help.
>>>
>>> A hard plaster cast that is put on a broken arm or leg.
>>
>>It's considered really bad form (and pretty much useless) to use the
>>word being defined in the definition.
>
>But this one works in two ways - it might successfully
>jog the memory, and, if not, it serves as a searchable term.
>

I usually look for a photograph of the item using Google images. That
usually is more descriptive than a definition.

[R H Draney]

Jerry Friedman filted:

>
>The reverse of this is the parents who give their children names with a
>many possible nicknames so the children can choose. Henry, Harry, Hal,
>or Hank--but the record holders are probably Margaret and Elizabeth.

I'm still waiting to hear of the parents who follow George Foreman's example and
name their six daughters Elizabeth but call them Elsie, Liz, Lisa, Betsy, Betty
and Beth....

Come to think of it, didn't JS Bach have at least three sons named Johann?...r


--
Me? Sarcastic?
Yeah, right.

[James Silverton]

A conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is called Ton Koopman
and, at least on the radio, the "O" vowels are pronounced the same.
--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Thursday, January 16, 2014 11:57:07 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Thu, 16 Jan 2014 06:33:48 -0800 (PST), "Peter T. Daniels"
> <gram...@verizon.net> wrote:
> >On Thursday, January 16, 2014 2:03:23 AM UTC-5, Tony Cooper wrote:

> >> Name shortening irritates me. A friend of mine calls me "Tone".
> >> Sound-wise, it's shorter, but it just takes away a letter and adds
> >> another.
> >Does your Church know you as Tony rather than Anthony?
>
> My church? Anyone knowing my name there would have to be the one that
> is omniscient. Even the monthly collection envelopes mailed here are
> addressed to my wife.

Do you think you were never baptized or confirmed? Since "Tony" isn't
a saint's name, did you choose a saint's name as your second middle
name ("confirmation name")?

> >When your friend writes to you, does he write <Tone> or <Tony>?
>
> If it ever happens, I'll let you know.

Then it's not "taking away a letter and adding a letter."

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Thursday, January 16, 2014 1:40:15 PM UTC-5, R H Draney wrote:

> I'm still waiting to hear of the parents who follow George Foreman's example
> and name their six daughters Elizabeth but call them Elsie, Liz, Lisa, Betsy,
> Betty and Beth....

But supposedly his are all called "George."

> Come to think of it, didn't JS Bach have at least three sons named Johann?...r

Gardiner observes that just about every male Bach's name started with
"Johann" and they went by their second name. Thus "Sebastian Bach" for
the best-known one.

[Dr Nick]

Katy Jennison <ka...@spamtrap.kjennison.com> writes:

> My sister's nickname at school was Sprout. There was logic to it, but
> not the sort that's immediately guessable. It derived from my own
> erstwhile nickname, which in turn derived from a pronunciation of my
> initials, which were CBJ.

That's nearly as good as "Bod" for Charles A Temple. And has the
benefit of being real as well.