"Snow Job" and others

[Barry A. Popik]

     ARMY TIMES had to be brought up from the NYPL Annex (three days).  I
noticed a nice three-part list of army slang in October 1943.  The newspaper
was fragile, so it had to go to Copying Services (another three days).  I'll
probably post it Monday.

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SNOW JOB

     OED has "snow job" from November 1943.
     This was in ARMY TIMES, 11 September 1943, pg. 3, col. 4:

_Snowjobbing_
     FORT DEVENS, MASS.--"Snow-jobbing" is the newest strictly GI term, to go
with "dogface," "goldbrick" and others.  "Snow jobbing" is getting off a
smooth line, like talking yourself out of a hole, or managing to pull five
bucks from a buddy, or talking the sergeant out of a term of KP duty.  If
you've made the five buck loan, after being told what a great guy you are,
then you've been "snow jobbed."

     This correction was in the ARMY TIMES, 9 October 1943, pg. 4, col. 4:

_Our Mistake_
Gentlemen:
     Where has your slang expert been all this while?  In a recent Air Forces
edition of your paper, I noticed an item describing the term "snow jobbing"
as new in the army.  You are quite mistaken.  I first heard the phrase in
Hawaii over two years ago, and apparently it had been long in use by the
"dog-faces" even at that time.
Pfc. Ralph L. Miller, Keesler Field, Miss.

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OUR ARMY

    I went through this publication looking for (but not finding) "army
brat."  It appears that J. Lighter also checked OUR ARMY also, but he missed
these:

CHAMPEEN
     Oct. 1930, pg. 10--Herbert C. Smith wrote a series of boxing stories
about Wes Hill, "lite-wate champeen" from South Little Rock, Arkansas.
("Champeen" is not in the RHHDAS.)

G.I. SOAPSKI
     Jan. 1931, pg. 19, col. 1--Private G. I. Soapski is mentioned.  G. I.
Joe probably appeared in OUR ARMY earlier than Oct. 1935.

B.O.
     Feb. 1931, pg. 43--"Lifebuoy defeats 'B.O.' (Body Odor) in any climate."
 (RHHDAS has Dec. 1931.)

WIPE THAT SMILE OFF YOUR FACE
     Feb. 1931, pg. 16, col. 1--"Famous sayings--Wipe that smile off your
face."  (Not in RHHDAS under "face.")

YO-YO (YA-YA)
     Feb. 1931, pg. 20--"The Magic of Tatai Kuli."  This was on page 46:
Lungran-yaya--'crazy plant'--is the visayan name for the loco weed of the
southern Philippines.
(...)
"It that lungran-yaya which make them Espaneesh go crazy, bughoos, loco!"