David Shulman obit in NY Times (and NY Sun)

[Cohen, Gerald Leonard]

    First, my deep thanks to Douglas Martin (NY Times) and Steve Miller (NY Sun) for their interest in David Shulman and their recent obituaries about him. Douglas Martin had already written two articles about Shulman (1989; 1999?), and IMHO both obituaries captured the essence of what Shulman was all about.

    As for mistakes, let him who is without sin cast the first stone. I'm not sure what it is about Barry Popik's last name, but it was misspelled not only in the two obituaries but a while back in Dear Abby (concerning "The Big Apple";  Abby wrote "Popick.") It's a minor error unless your name happens to be Popik.

    Both Steve Miller and Douglas Martin made an effort to obtain an accurate picture of Shulman's etymological work, but mistakes are an intergral part of anything to do with etymology (I speak here from experience). Steve Miller was probably misled by the 1989 NY Times article--which represented the state of the art at that time concerning "The Big Apple" but was superseded by better insight into what had happened. (The 1909 attestation of "the big apple" almost certainly meant "overweening bigshot" and only happened to refer to NYC. It was *not* NYC's nickname at that time.  Mariam Touba of The NY Historical Society had drawn the 1909 attestation to my attention, I put it in my Comments on Etymology, someone (probably Shulman himself ) drew it to the attention of Douglas Martin, and Martin then interviewed Shulman about the nickname and related matters.)

    Meanwhile, I'd like to make a few small corrections to Douglas Martin's comment on "shyster." The full quote is:
        "Mr. Cohen said that Mr. Shulman was first to challenge that "shyster" derived from a lawyer named Scheuster. Others, particularly Roger Mohovich, then traced the etymology to 1843-1844. "Shyster" turned out to
> be a Yiddish corruption of a German vulgarism meaning a crooked lawyer."
        "Shyster" has nothing to do with Yiddish. It derives from German Sheisser,
        which is indeed vulgar (from scheissen) and highly derogatory as in "ein alter
        Scheisser", cf. "alter Kacker." Scheisser entered British cant as "shiser"
        (well attested), meaning "someone totally worthless." (The original reference
        in German was to someone who couldn't control his bowels.)  The lawyer
        (albeit not bona fide) Cornelius Terhune used this term "shiser" in
        his conversation with NYC editor Mike Walsh, and in the context of the
        conversation Walsh interepreted the term to refer to the worthless, corrupt
        lawyers (not bona fide!) who were scamming the prisoners in the NYC prison
        known as The Tombs. Walsh inveighed against that practice.
        Also, "Others, particularly Roger Mohovich" is a bit vague. Roger Mohovich
        deserves sole credit for discovering the 1843-1844 _Subterranean_ material
        on "shyster."and I then developed it. Unless something is slipping my mind,
        no one else besides the two of us was involved.

            But again, my thanks to Steve Miller and Douglas Martin for their work on
        David Shulman. In both cases it is much appreciated.

        Gerald Cohen