Odd expression

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 5/16/2003 5:24:23 AM Eastern Standard Time,
TheEditor at WORLDWIDEWORDS.ORG writes:

> >I have always heard my father say the phrase "boccatadi papason".
> >He says he heard it often while in the navy during the Korean
> >conflict. It has become a joke among our family, especially
> >because dad can't remember what it means.  He says it something
> >like "crazy dad".

Just a guess:

"papason" looks like a phonetic spelling of "papa-san", an expression
commonly used by Americans in the Far East, used to refer to (I think) an
Asian man of relatively advanced years.  If "boccatadi" (a word I don't
recognize) happens to be an insulting term for someone's mental state, then
"crazy dad" would be a free but probably reasonably accurate translation of
"boccatadi papa-san".

      - Jim Landau