Trash Talk - Help.

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 3/4/03 4:26:28 AM Eastern Standard Time, mlee303 at YAHOO.COM
writes:

> In the African American oral tradition, the term has always been
>  talking trash, "the art of dissin one's opponent during competitive
>  play (as in basketball) ..so as to erode their confidence, get them
>  rattled, or distracted so they'll make poor plays and lose the game;
>  the art of using strong, clever talk..."  (Smitherman, _Black Talk_,
>  1994[p. 221],2000); (Major,_Juba to Jive_, 1994, p. 466).  I think
>  the media changed it to trash talk

In baseball a person who "disses one's opponent etc." is called a "bench
jockey".  I have no data on how old the term is, but I'm pretty sure it
antedates Jackie Robinson.

According to a long-forgotten book I once read, Jackie Robinson, once he was
accepted by major league ballplayers (or perhaps once the novelty had worn
off) was a notorious bench jockey.

          - Jim Landau