A change

[Benjamin Zimmer]

On Thu, 24 Feb 2005 22:52:52 -0500, Wilson Gray <wilson.gray at RCN.COM> wrote:

> From time to time, I hear a line of the type, "Can, will, etc. you do
>me _a_ solid?" on various TV shows. Back in the day of the hepcat, we
>used to say, "Can, will, etc. you do me _some_ solid?" I haven't heard
>the new version used in the negative, but the old bersion's negative
>was, "No, I can't, won't, etc. do you no solid." There was also the hep
>expression, "Solid, Jackson!" or just "Solid!" used as a strong
>affirmative.

>From the _Seinfeld_ episode "The Jacket" (aired Feb. 6, 1991):

-----
http://www.seinfeldscripts.com/TheJacket.htm
KRAMER: Hey. Hey, would you do me a solid?
JERRY: Well, what kind of solid?
KRAMER: I need you to sit in the car for two minutes while it's
double-parked. I gotta pick up some birds.
JERRY: Birds?
KRAMER: Yeah. A friend of mine, he's a magician. He's going away on
vacation. He asked me to take care of his doves.
JERRY: So take a cab.
KRAMER: They won't take a cage full of birds.
JERRY: I can't. I'm on my way out. There's no way I can do it.
KRAMER: George, do me a solid? Two minutes.
GEORGE: Well, I'm going with him. I'd like to, I've never done a solid
before.
KRAMER: Alright.. yeah.. alright, have a good one.
-----

(Kramer was occasionally referred to as a "hipster doofus".)


--Ben Zimmer