Terms Which Have Disappeared

[HudsonHawk]

"Lollygag," incidentially, is a term you don't hear much anymore.

Great scene in Bull Durham:

Manager: "you lollygag the ball around the infield...you lollygag your way down to first...you lollygag in and out of the dugout. You know what that makes you? Larry..."

Coach: "Lollygaggers."

Manager (looking disgusted): "Lollygaggers."

 

[Zombie_61]

...Interestingly, according to Tom Dalzell, in the book 'Flappers to Rappers', at the turn of the last century if a bird was "dogged", she was dressed to the nines. Apparently " dog" or "dogging" meant wearing your best clothes. A cat could get all dogged, too, but I imagine if he were doing it to impress someone else's bird, he'd still end up in the doghouse.

lol

...Has the term "reform-school" itself disappeared? Now it sounds like something out of a "Bowery Boys" movie.

I don't know if it has completely fallen into disuse, but in recent years the term seems to have been replaced with the euphemisms "Juvenile Hall" and/or "Youth Correctional Facility".

Speaking of which, our own local version of such a facility is known these days as "Fred C. Nelles Youth Correctional Facility". It opened in July of 1891 under the name "Whittier State School", a reform school for both boys and girls. in 1916 girls were no longer allowed to be admitted and "Boys School" was added to the name, and in 1941 it was renamed "Fred C. Nelles School for Boys" to honor the former superintendent of the school from 1912 to 1927. The facility was closed by the state in June of 2004, and has been in near-constant use as a movie/television location ever since. Ownership of the property has been in legal debate for the last several years (which makes me wonder who those movie and television productions paid for use of the facility), but that has allegedly been settled recently and rumor has it a developer has purchased the land and has plans to convert it to some sort of retail and residential center, except for six to eight buildings on the property (depending on who you're talking to) that have been declared historical landmarks and must be preserved.

 

[dh66]

Even back in the early 80s, when I was in high school, the term "reform school" didn't seem to be much in use.
There was an "alternative school" for those ne'er do wells who managed to get themselves expelled from public school (which was in and of itself a wake up call for kids who got kicked out of any of the private schools around here) and there was "juvenile", which was the jail for underaged felons.
I knew a few kids who were sentenced to a semester or two of alternative school, but none who ever ended up in " juvy".

 

[Hercule]

Grammar school or elementary school?

 

[F. J.]

Quit lollygaggin'!

[...]
"Lollygag," incidentially, is a term you don't hear much anymore.

"Quit lollygagging," "You better get it in gear," and "You better get on the stick" are all phrases my dad uses. I heard them all the time as a kid.
He also uses words like 'caddywampus', 'bowanged', and 'igmo'. That last one is short for "ignorant moron" and he yells it quite often when he's driving in traffic full of, well, igmoes.

 

[dh66]

Grammar school or elementary school?

Elementary.

Here at work, a lot of lollygagging gets done by the "goldbrickers".

 

[tonyb]

Grammar school or elementary school?

How long has it been since "grade school" was in common usage? Older people used that phrase when I was a youngster, and "grammar school" as well, but the little-kid schools extant then (it's getting to be quite some time ago, alas) were officially "elementary" schools. At least they were in the places I lived.

How about "normal school," for a teachers' college? First I was aware of that bygone usage was upwards of 40 years ago, when I saw a sign chiseled into the stone above an old structure at what was by then called Central Washington University, in Ellensburg. The sign announces the Washington State Normal School.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I never heard "kindergarten" until the outofstaters took over. We always called it "sub-primary."

 

[Hercule]

How about "normal school," for a teachers' college? First I was aware of that bygone usage was upwards of 40 years ago, when I saw a sign chiseled into the stone above an old structure at what was by then called Central Washington University, in Ellensburg. The sign announces the Washington State Normal School.

Any idea what the etymology of that usage for "normal" was?

 

[tonyb]

Any idea what the etymology of that usage for "normal" was?

I believe it was in reference to the impartation of school-teaching norms and standards allegedly taking place at such institutions. My understanding is that many were renamed "teachers' colleges" for a spell, until the missions of the institutions expanded and they became regular-old colleges and universities.

 

[KILO NOVEMBER]

I never heard "kindergarten" until the outofstaters took over. We always called it "sub-primary."

Three of my eight great-grandparents were German immigrants. Germans were the largest ethnic group in Pittsburgh. Not only was "kindergarten" the norm, bars were always called "beer gardens" when I was a boy.

 

[2jakes]

I recall hearing pri-primer, kindergarten & first grade elementary growing up in the 50s.
I also recall moving to many different schools in several cities, depending on the job my father found at the time.


btw: I grew up with this :
"If you don't behave, I'm going to send you to the docter"

To this day, I hate hospitals & feel uncomfortable seeing the doctor ! [huh]

(explanation)
As a kid of 3 I was anemic & every thursday for one summer, I would receive injections on my legs.The
needles back then were bigger or so it seems & were painful.

 

[Smithy]

Kindergarten is the term used in Australia and NZ to refer to pre-school education as well.

 

[2jakes]

"That'll Be The Day"

I first heard this expression watching the John Wayne film, "The Searchers".
Later I would listen to Buddy Holly
when he came to the my local auditorium. Along with other singers of the day !
They were known as The Crickets back then.
Rock & Roll
Some of you will look down & not consider this music...
but for this kid it was...:eusa_clap

But I also like these guys singing in the background ...don't know who they are but it sure brings back a good feeling !


[video=youtube;GXUz-Nntyks]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=GXUz-Nntyks#t=8[/video]

 

[rjb1]

I'm pretty sure the singers are "The Sons of the Pioneers". They were in a LOT of Western movies.

(I agree that Buddy Holly, and Rock and Roll in general, was good music. I liked it then and I like it now.)

 

[Stearmen]

How long has it been since "grade school" was in common usage? Older people used that phrase when I was a youngster, and "grammar school" as well, but the little-kid schools extant then (it's getting to be quite some time ago, alas) were officially "elementary" schools. At least they were in the places I lived.

How about "normal school," for a teachers' college? First I was aware of that bygone usage was upwards of 40 years ago, when I saw a sign chiseled into the stone above an old structure at what was by then called Central Washington University, in Ellensburg. The sign announces the Washington State Normal School.

I still say Grade School!

 

[2jakes]

I'm pretty sure the singers are "The Sons of the Pioneers". They were in a LOT of Western movies.

"It's a small world after all".

Not sure if this is a term or if it has disappeared , but I found out...

L-R: Tim Spencer, Bob Nolan, and Leonard Slye *

These three friends called themselves The Pioneer Trio.
Known for their beautiful harmony, yodeling, and excellent instrumentals, they became very popular
on the radio.
Still unpaid, they sang in exchange for advertising. It was not until a local newspaper columnist named
Bernie Milligan kept mentioning them in his column that The Pioneer Trio started getting actual
paying jobs. One of their first jobs earned each member $35.00 a week. In 1934, Harry Hall, a radio
station announcer called the group, The Sons of the Pioneers instead of The Pioneer Trio. Hall
said they were too young to be pioneers. The name stuck.

*Leonard Slye became famous in the flicks & was known as:

"King of the Cowboys"

I used to own a pair of his cap pistols...& his name was not Gene Autry...!

 

[Stearmen]

I'm pretty sure the singers are "The Sons of the Pioneers". They were in a LOT of Western movies.

(I agree that Buddy Holly, and Rock and Roll in general, was good music. I liked it then and I like it now.)

Yes it was The Sons Of The Pioneers! Here is the long version. I liked them a lot when I was a kid, still do. Got to see them once. [video=youtube;20jAtWu4CxM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20jAtWu4CxM[/video]

 

[2jakes]

Yes it was The Sons Of The Pioneers! Here is the long version. I liked them a lot when I was a kid, still do. Got to see them once.

Thanks for sharing beautiful sounds. :eusa_clap

I heard Ken Curtis (festus) character from the tv western "Gunsmoke". He was singing "Tumbling Tumbleweeds"
I never knew he could sing like that. Nice !

 

[Fading Fast]

Fisticuffs isn't a word heard often anymore. Yesterday (which prompted this post), my girlfriend and I were watching customer and store clerk argue to the point that I said to her I thought it was going to come to fisticuffs. At which point she called me grandpa. All that said, the word seemed more common decades ago.