They Say Em' From the Golden Era - Slang & Memorable Phrases

[Chamorro]

1920's to 30's Slang Glossary

All in: Physically exhausted

All wet: Foolish or gravely mistaken

Alley apple: Half a paving brick. Carried in the coat pocket as a weapon. Came into use during the big union strikes during the 30's.

Altar: Toilet, toilet bowl

Artist: A skilled criminal

Baby/Baby Vamp: A popular and/or attractive girl

Baked Wind: Idle talk

Balloon: bedding, especially if carried in a roll; applied to transients

Ballon Juice: Idle or exaggerated talk

Bat: Prostitute

Bell Polisher: A boy who lingers in the lobby after dropping off a date

Bent: Criminal

Berries: Anything very good

Big Guy: God or an important official or criminal

Big Man: The Pinkerton Detective Agency or one of its men

Bird: An aviator or a popular girl

Biscuit: A flapper willing to engage in "petting"

Black Bottle: Poison

Blow Out: A big meal

Blurb: The advertising matter on a book jacket

Board Stiff: A sandwich board man

Bonehead: A fool

Boob: An Idiot

Brace (as in to brace): Ask someone for money

Break one's guts: Breaking the spirit of a prisoner by flogging

Breeze: Trivial or useless talk or information

Breezer: A convertible automobile

Broker: A drug dealer

Brush Ape: A country youth

Buck: A Catholic priest

Bull: A policeman, a cop

Bull (as in to bull): Lie or talk big

Bull Buster: One who assaults a cop

Bull Simple: Fearful of cops

Bull Wool: Cheap

Bundle (as in to Bundle): To steal

Bunk: Synthetic liquor or false goods

Bunk (as in to bunk): To conceal or fool

Burn up (as in to burn up): To defraud

Buzzer: A policeman's badge

Cackler: Perjorative name for a clerk

Cake Eater: A ladies' man

Candy Leg: A rich and popular young man

Cannon: A gun



More to come ...

 

[Chamorro]

1920's to 30's Slang Glossary Part:2

Can Opener A cheap car

Carry a flag: To travel incognito, under an assumed name

Carry the banner: To wander the streets all night

Cellar smeller: A a person who enjoys drink, a drunkard

Charge: A narcotic injection

Chair warmer: A wallflower or a man who does not pay his own way

Cheaters: Spectacles, eyeglasses

Cheese it!: Look out! Run!

Chew the fat: To talk

Choice bit of Calico: A lovely or popular girl

Choker: Cheese

Chopper: A machine gun or the shooter of

Chronic (as in to chronic): To investigate

Cinder Bull: A railroad detective

Circus Bees: Body lice

Claw (as in to claw): To arrest

Clean (as in to clean): To rob

Clem: A fight or a riot

Clothesline: A person who collects and spreads gossip about his or her neighbors or the gossip itself

Clown: A country man

Copacetic: Good or pleasant, trouble free

Crack down: Work hard

Crap: Anything foolish or worthless

Crasher: One who attends parties uninvited

Crawler: A legless beggar

Crumb: An unpopular girl

Crush (as in to crush): To escape from prison

Curtains: Death

Curve: A beautiful woman

Cushions: Luxury

Dame: A woman

Damp bourbon poultice: A drink

Damsel: A girl

Dewdropper: A malingerer

Dim Box: A taxicab

Dirt: Money or gossip

Doll: A girl

Drive: A drug induced thrill

Dude: An undergraduate

Dummy Up: To become silent

Dyna: Liquor

Earwigging: Eavesdropping

Eats: Food



Even MORE to come ...

 

[Michaelson]

Let me stick one in while you're close to the 'A's.

Alley apple: half a paving brick. Carried in the coat pocket as a weapon. Came into use during the big union strikes during the 30's.

 

[Chamorro]

Good one! we shall add it to the lexicon.

 

[Chamorro]

1920's to 30's Slang Glossary Part:3

Egg: A guy who lets a girl pay for his dance hall ticket

Fake Aloo: A hard luck story

Fall Guy: A scapegoat

Feds: Federal law enforcement officers

Fifty cards in the deck: Insane

Fin: A five dollar bill. A five year sentence

Finger (as in to finger): To identify to the police

Fire alarm: A divorcee

Fire Bugs: Electric lights

Fireworks: Gunplay

Flat: Broke or penniless

Flat tire: A deflated scheme

Flesh and Blood Angel: A popular girl

Flickers: Motion pictures

Flirt/Floosey: A girl

Fly Ball: A detective

Frame: To falsely accuse or concoct evidence against an innocent man

Fresh Bull: An enthusiastically honest policeman

Fresh Cat: An inexperienced transient

Fresh Cow: A person with a recently acquired venereal disease

Frisk: To touch a person

Frolic: Lawless activity or entertainment

Fuzz: A detective, the police

Gall: Courage

Gee: A glass of liquor

Gee Whiz: All purpose, meaningless interjection

George (as in to George): To be aware

Get one's hooks on: To obtain or seize

Get the Gate: To be discharged

Gigglewater: Booze

Glom: To seize or snatch

Go over big: To succeed

Gold Brick: To defraud

Gold Dust: Cocaine

Gold Mine: A young man who spends freely

Goof: A sweetheart or a boob

Gravy: Profit

Gun Mob : A gang of crooks

Habit: A drug habit

Hack: A nightwatchman or policeman

Half baked: Semi educated

Have the Impuck: To be mildly sick

Heat: Trouble



Yet even more to come ...

 

[Chamorro]

1920's to 30's Slang Glossary Part:4

Heater: A revolver or any type of gun

Heifer Den: A brothel, whorehouse

Hep: Well informed

High Hat: False air of superiority. To "give someone the high hat" was to snub them

Hobo Short Line: Suicide in front of a train

Hot: Wanted by the police

Hot Tongue: Sexually aroused woman

Hurry Buggy: A police van

Jack: Money

Jack full of money: A wealthy man who spends freely

Jake: Good, fine, as hoped for

Jazz Hound: Dance fiend

Jolt: A potent drink

Kayoe: To achieve great success

Kick it apart: To elaborate or fully explain a plan

Kick the gong around: To indulge in illegal drug use

Kiss the Eye Teeth: To hit in the mouth

Knock over: To raid or arrest

Know your onions: To be hep, wise or sophisticated. To know what's what

Leary: Damaged goods

Legger: A bootlegger

Lemon: An undesireable person

Lifeboat: Reprieve

Long Rod: A rifle

Lying dead: In hiding or retirement

Mess: A dull person

Michael: Hip flask

Moll Buzzer: A pickpocket who targets women

Mooch: A beggar

Murk: Coffee

Nines: Absolute limit

Number (as in get one's): To understand one's motives

Offay: A person who is hep, with it, in the know (from the French: "Au Fait")

Off one's trolley: Badly mistaken, crazy

Old Ned: The Devil

Old Stuff: Out of date

On: Mentally sharp

Once over: A penetrating glance

On the spot: Marked for death

Out on parole: Divorced

Parlor Leech: A young man who doesn't take his date out

Pathfinder: Police spy

Percentage Bull: A policeman who accepts bribes to look the other way



STILL more to come ...

 

[Chamorro]

FYI submissions to The Lexicon are gladly welcomed ...

 

[Chamorro]

1920's to 30's Slang Glossary Part:5

Pipe: A simple task

Pistol Route: Death by gunshot

Plute: A wealthy man

Pork: A corpse

Puff: An explosive or explosion

Pussyfoot: A Prohibitionist

Put the skids under: To get rid of

Razz, Get the: To be made fun of

Reach (as in to reach): To bribe

Reader: An arrest warrant

Ripley, That's one for: In reference to "Believe It or Not" cartoonist Robert Ripley, could be said of anything strange or bizarre

Ritzy: Stylish

Roar (as in to roar): To complain

Rubber Sock: A delicate person

Sag (as in to sag): To beat, as with a club

Scram: To run away

Scratch: Money

Shackles: Soup

Shag: An organized pursuit

Shed: An enclosed automobile

Sheet and Scratch Man: A high class forger

Shellacked: Drunk

Shroud: Suit of clothes

Siberia: A harsh prison, originally said of Clinton Prison, New York

Simp Trap: Employer-owned store

Snow: Cocaine or heroin

Soft Heel: A detective

Sour: Anything unwanted or worthless

Spear (as in to spear): To arrest

Tamp up: To assault

Tip up: To inform the police

Torpedo: A thug

Vic: A convict

Wind Tormentors: Whiskers

Wipe the clock: To stop working quickly

Wire: A pickpocket

Woody: Insane

Works, The: An unpleasantly inflicted death

Yegg: A thief




Th-th-th-that's all folks ...

 

[Brad Bowers]

Thank you, Chamorro! These are great. Where did you find such a list?

A couple of variations on Cinder Bull: railroad detectives were also called Yard Bulls and Cinder Dicks.

This here Cellar smeller hasn't decided if I'm going to have a Damp bourbon poultice, a Dyna, a Gee, or Gigglewater. Heck, maybe I'll have one of each! As long as I'm not shellacked when the doll that married me gets home, or I might wind up out on parole!

Serioulsly, I'm enjoying this thread.

Brad Bowers

 

[MK]

I like the avatar Brad. What lid is that?

 

[farnham54]

I certainly know my Onions now, Chammarro!

thanks, very enjoyable.

Regards,

Craig

 

[Chamorro]

1940's Slang Glossary Part:1

Alligator: Swing fans or dancers

Cast an eyeball : Look around

Darby: Something good

Dead hoofer: A poor dancer

Dig: Like

Dillinger : Fantastic

Drag a hoof: To dance

Drape: Clothes, suit

Duchess: A girl

Fade: To leave

Fifth Avenue: High class

Frolic: Dance

Frolic pad: A night club

Gammin': Strutting, showing off

Ginned up: Dressed up

Got your boots on: To understand what's happening

Ground Grippers: Shoes

Have a ball: To have a good time

Hep Cats: Swing music lovers, dancers (male)

Hep Kittens: Swing music lovers, dancers (female)

Hincty : Snobby

Hopper: Lindy Hop dancer

Hoof: Dance

In the groove: Very good

Jump: Swing dance

Kicks: Shoes

Niftic: Good, sharp

Off-time jive: Bad manners, incorrect

Pulleys: Suspenders, braces

Rug Cutters: Dancers

Scene: Situation

Smooth: Good, agreeable

Stompers: Shoes

Striders : Trousers, pants

Threads: Clothes

Togged to the bricks: Wearing one's best clothes




Next ... some hard-boiled slang ...

 

[Chamorro]

Not much I can do to improve on this one:

Twists, Slugs and Roscoes: A Glossary of Hardboiled Slang

 

[Brad Bowers]

Thanks, MK.

That's my new Keppler Bogie. Here's a link to a better shot:
New suit and hat

And now back to Chamorro's great thread. Keep 'em coming!

Brad Bowers

 

[Pyroxene]

Neat find, Chamorro. Thanks.

 

[Michaelson]

Another one for you, Paul. (heard this one on a 1947 Bela Legosi movie last night).....'stiff wagon'. refers to a hearse. Regards. Michaelson
p.s. The movie title was 'The Corpse Vanished', a forgetable plot, but a decent period set piece, with a lot of on location shots rather than cardboard wall movie sets.

 

[Angelicious]

Doolally - meaning "crazy". My mother still uses that one...

This is apparently how it originated, in about 1944 in India:

On arrival at Deolali we were put into tents and had to sleep on the sandy floor as there were not enough beds to go round. We then had to combat sand fleas. The staff at this camp were still on peacetime basis as we had now to go through with a lot of bull, which included trying to put a polish on our boots which up to then had dubbin rubbed into them to make them supple and to a certain extent, waterproof. For guard mounting, an extra man would come out onto the parade ground to dust off your boots before inspection! At times it was maddening to the extent that the word 'Deolali' came into the language to mean 'going round the bend'.

I found it when I was hunting out info on Dubbin for MudInYerEye...

 

[macawber]

Doolally tap

Angelicious
I recognised Doolally immediately as you hear it often in prose wriiten by Rudyard Kipling. Here is another history of the word;

The Transit Camp at Deolali, commonly referred to as “Doolally� by those unable to manage the Urdu pronunciation. “Doolally Tap� was the term given lightheartedly to anyone in the British Army showing signs of mental wear and tear. This phrase had originated at Deolali in the 19th century. Soldiers who had served their time with their Regiments in India, very often after years away from home, were sent to Deolali to await the next available troopship home. The wait could be a long boring one. The Hindustani word for fever is tap, hence the phrase “Doolally Tap�. Not a lot had changed over the years.

 

[The Wolf]

Even though people didn't do drugs until the 1960s <facetious smiley face> there was a lot of slang for them in the golden age.
"kicking the gong" - doing heroin
"reefer" - a marijuana cigarette
"viper" - a reefer smoker
"dope" - drugs

Don't touch the stuff myself,
The Wolf

 

[Angelicious]

I've also heard about marijuana referred to as "jive", and of course it was called "hashish" way back.

I don't know about the US, but I hear cocaine was THE drug of choice in the UK in the 20s/30s.