"Feets Don't Fail Me Now"

[Wilson Gray]

On Sep 18, 2004, at 7:08 PM, Fred Shapiro wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Fred Shapiro <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
> Subject:      "Feets Don't Fail Me Now"
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------
>
> I am trying to trace back the expression "feets, don't fail me now."
> This
> is often said to be a catchphrase of Mantan Moreland in the Charlie
> Chan
> movies, but apparently that is an urban legend.

I really wanted to contradict this. But, after reaching back into my
memories of "Birmingham Brown," Mantan Moreland's character, I could
find no real memory of ever having heard him say, "Feet(s), don't fail
me now!" in any of the movies. What I do recall quite clearly as
Moreland's Charlie Chan movie shtick is his bugging his eyes in terror,
throwing up his hands in fright, and shouting, "Missa Chan! Missa
Chan!" So, I gotta go with the "urban legend" bit.

-Wilson Gray

>   Moreland may have used it
> in his nightclub act.
>
> My home access to ProQuest Historical Newspapers is screwed up right
> now.
> Can anyone tell me the earliest occurrence of this phrase on ProQuest?
> Also, any other insights into the history of the expression would be
> welcome.
>
> Fred Shapiro
>
>
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---
> Fred R. Shapiro                             Editor
> Associate Librarian for Collections and     YALE DICTIONARY OF
> QUOTATIONS
>   Access and Lecturer in Legal Research     Yale University Press,
> Yale Law School                             forthcoming
> e-mail: fred.shapiro at yale.edu
> http://quotationdictionary.com
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---
>