Thanks Cecil...

[Bruce Dykes]

Has 'in like Flynn' been done? Here's Cecil's give
(http://www.straightdope.com/):

Does "in like Flynn" refer to Errol Flynn's success with women?
06-Sep-1996


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Dear Cecil:

What is the origin of the phrase "in like Flynn"? I have heard it alludes to
the sexual exploits of the actor Errol Flynn but have a difficult time
believing a reference so graphic could have become a common
catchphrase. --Joe Lubben, Oberlin, Ohio

Cecil replies:

Oh? Consider the common expression, "we're screwed." You think the true
meaning of this phrase is, "we're attached with rotary fasteners"?

The real question is whether people would have used phrases having a sexual
connotation in the 1940s, when "in like Flynn" became common. To determine
this we apply the MOM test. This consists of asking ourselves, "Would my mom
consciously use an expression meaning, 'In as surely as Errol Flynn gets his
Buick parked in some young innocent's garage?'"

Maybe your mom would. Mine would sooner die. For that matter, I've never
heard her say "we're screwed."

Let us review the evidence.

The earliest known use of "in like Flynn" in print is in the December 1946
issue of American Speech. Penn State prof Ed Miller reported that students
of his who had served in the army air force during World War II used the
expression to mean, "'Everything is OK.' In other words, the pilot is having
no more trouble than Errol Flynn has in his cinematic feats."

>From this we learn several things: (1) The expression was of recent origin.
Had it been widely used in the 1930s Miller would not have included it in a
list of World War II slang. (2) The term was generally understood to refer
to Errol Flynn. (3) It didn't necessarily refer to Flynn's success with
women. (4) Then again, maybe Miller's students just didn't feel like
proclaiming otherwise in the middle of class.

No question, a lot of people think the phrase means in like Flynn's you know
what, and with good reason. Flynn, a popular film star in the 1930s, became
notorious in November 1942 when he was charged with two counts of statutory
rape. Though acquitted he was the butt of jokes ever after.

One film bio none too subtly comments, "Warner Brothers . . . found
[Flynn's] popularity not only had held but had a new spurt of interest. A
new phrase was added to the English language: `In like Flynn'" (Tony Thomas
et al, The Films of Errol Flynn, 1969).

Another says the posttrial Flynn became a "wild man of the mattress. The
slogan 'In like Flynn' rose like smoke from the trial and ran laughingly
around the globe" (Earl Conrad, Errol Flynn: A Memoir, 1978).

An Australian playwright (Flynn was born in Australia) even claimed the
expression "in like Errol" was current in his country for a time (Alexander
Buzo, Rooted, 1973).

But still. These guys were writing after the sexual revolution of the 1960s.
In like Flynn's schwanz? In the 1940s?

An alternative interpretation comes from A Dictionary of Catch Phrases (Eric
Partridge, 1986). Edward J. Flynn (1892-1953) was a New York City political
boss who became a campaign manager for the Democratic party during FDR's
presidency. Boss Flynn's "Democratic Party machine exercised absolute
political control over the Bronx.... The candidates he backed were almost
automatically 'in,' and he himself permanently so," Partridge comments.

Now we have the beginnings of a theory. "In like Flynn" starts as rhyming
slang in New York, helped along by the prominence of Boss Flynn. NYC
draftees spread it among the troops nationwide with the start of World War
II. The phrase gets a boost when the well-publicized travails of Errol Flynn
in 1942 give it a double meaning. But its innocent origin allows Cecil's mom
to use it without being scandalized.

Just one thing. We have no evidence that "in like Flynn" was used anywhere
prior to November 1942.

So I appeal to the Teeming Millions. OK, so you pretty much made hash out of
"the whole nine yards." Here's a chance to redeem yourselves. I know of the
Straight Dope's abiding popularity among septuagenarians. If you have
personal knowledge of "in like Flynn" having been used prior to 1942, or
even better if you have written proof, send it in.

Not saying this ranks with the search for the quark. But human knowledge is
human knowledge, and we all have to do our part.

IN LIKE FLYNN: THE SINFUL TRUTH

Dear Cecil:

At the end of your column about the "Flynn flap" you invited us
seventysomethings to offer what we could to the pool of human knowledge.
Born in the Bronx in 1926, I lived there until age 16, which coincides with
your critical year, 1942 [when Flynn was tried for statutory rape]. I never
heard, or at least I don't remember, Boss Flynn's name coming up. But I and
all my friends freely bandied about "in like Flynn." There is no doubt in my
mind that it referred to his success with women. --Murray Lefkowitz, Merion
Station, Pennsylvania

Dear Cecil:

I [was] 70 in October, so I hope my recollections will carry some weight. .
. .  It was the double entendre involved that accounted for the phrase's
popularity. Young males could smirkingly use it in front of females, who
then started applying it to other situations without necessarily knowing its
original meaning. As I recall, my brothers and I even got our mother to use
it, which was especially amusing since she hated Errol Flynn with a passion.
I was in the army air corps in World War II, and we all knew the phrase had
nothing to do with Flynn's cinematic feats. --G. R. Niles, Honolulu, Hawaii

Cecil replies:

Jeez, when even Grandpa is arguing for the risque interpretation, it's time
to throw in the towel. Apparently "in like Flynn" really does refer to
Errol's success in the sack.

--CECIL ADAMS