Knife and a Fork and a Bottle and a Cork

[howard schrager]

Thank you Doug. 1915 is as far back as I've heard.
Howard Schrager

"Douglas G. Wilson" <douglas at NB.NET> wrote:
---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: "Douglas G. Wilson"
Subject: Re: Knife and a Fork and a Bottle and a Cork
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

>I want to ask one more time if anyone knows specifics about the origins of
>the street rhymes: A Knife and a Fork and a Bottle and a Cork, that's the
>way to say New York, and Chicken in the Car and the Car Can't go, that's
>the way to say Chicago. My father learned them in the 20's on the streets
>of Philadelphia and/or New York.

I've seen several of these somewhere but I can't remember where. I surely
don't know anything about the origins.

The New York rhyme can be found from 1915 as a rebus (at N'archive). I
don't know whether that's early enough to be interesting.

-- Doug Wilson

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