"What's tough?" "Life." "What's life?" "A magazine." (1945)

[Jonathan Lighter]

Something comparable from the film, _The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer_ (1947):

"You remind me of a man."
"What man?"
"The man with the Power!"
"What power?"
"Hoodoo."
"Hoodoo?"
"You do!"
"Do what?"
"Remind me of a man."
"What man?"

Repeat till dead.

JL

Bapopik at AOL.COM wrote:
---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: Bapopik at AOL.COM
Subject: "What's tough?" "Life." "What's life?" "A magazine." (1945)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hoosier Folklore Bulletin, Bloomington, Indiana, edited by Ernest Baughman, vol. IV, no. 2, June 1945, pg. 37:

_AN ENDLESS TALE_

I heard my sister, May Lou Baughman, age 17, of Kouts, Indiana, going through this the other day. I asked where she had heard it. "From Lina (Martin)." "Where'd she hear it?" "From Wesley Birkey." "Where'd he get it?" "Hard telling." Anyway here it is, from the younger generations.

"That's tough!"
"What's tough?"
"Life."
"What's life?"
"A magazine."
"Where d'you get it?"
"Drugstore."
"What's it cost?"
"A dime."
"shucks, I only got a nickel."
"That's tough.
"What's tough?" (etc.)

Indiana University Ernest Baughman


(GOOGLE)
DO YOU KNOW LYRICS
... 23 Sep 2003 - (1) 50s or 60s oldie. "OH what's tough? Life. Oh what's life?
A magazine. Well how much does it cost? It costs 20 cents. ...
www.commsoft.lk/doyouknowlyrics03.html - 91k - Cached - Similar pages

Washingtonpost.com: Live Online
... Alexandria, VA: What's tough? Life. What's Life? A Magazine. How much does it
cost? A Dime. Only have a Nickel. That's tough! What's tough? ...
discuss.washingtonpost.com/ zforum/99/auto_rate991229.htm - Supplemental Result - Similar pages

Cauldron
... Person two: What's tough? Person one: Life Person two: What's life Person one: A
magazine Person two: Where'd you get it Person one: News Stand Person two: How ...
epic-mag.com/cauldron3/post.asp?method=ReplyQuote& REPLY_ID=2301&TOPIC_ID=189&FORUM_ID=3 - 72k - Supplemental Result - Cached - Similar pages

yourDictionary.com • Agora Discussion Board
... I remember a song called That's tough. It goes; What's tough: Life, What's
Life: a magazine, how much does it cost? it costs 20 ...
www.yourdictionary.com/cgi-bin/agora/ agora.cgi?board=idiom;action=display;num=1044550287 - 78k - Supplemental Result - Cached - Similar pages


(GOOGLE)
http://www.jerryosborne.com/5-26-03.htm
FOR THE WEEK OF MAY 26, 2003
DEAR JERRY: Here's a question I've asked everyone and no one has yet come up with an answer.

It's about a song I heard on American Bandstand in the late '50s or early '60s. I need to know the exact title as well as who recorded it.

In this tune the backup singers say What's tough,?then the lead singer asks What's tough??

The chorus responds with Life,?and he asks What's life??They answer A magazine.?

Someone suggested it is So Tough,?by the Cufflinks, but I can find nothing at all on this song or artist. Can you help?
—Barry W. Scholles, Dover, Ohio

DEAR BARRY: What's really tough? Apparently it has been getting the information you seek about What's Life (That's Tough),?a 1962 hit for Gabriel and the Angels (Swan 4118).

Finding an original 45 is one way to add What's Life (That's Tough)?to your collection, though it also exists on at least one various artists CD: Golden Age of American Rock and Roll, Vol. 2?(Ace CDCHD 445).

Ace is a British reissue company, so this import may be difficult to find in the US shops. Shopping for it online is probably your best bet.

Most of the 30 tracks on Golden Age of American Rock and Roll, Vol. 2?are of the Gabriel and the Angels variety — popular and memorable songs by artists with one or maybe two hits.


(NEWSPAPERARCHIVE)
Zanesville Signal Sunday, January 20, 1957 Zanesville, Ohio
...of; many nastv breaks. VCnat's LIFE? LIFE is a MAGAZINE. Where do get it" At.....AND Coach Wayne Ashbaugh. THAT'S TOUGH, but LIFE is full..


(PROQUEST HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS)
Where the Sidewalk Begins
Michael Dirda. The Washington Post (1974-Current file). Washington, D.C.: Nov 6, 1988. p. BO16 (1 page):
"That's tough! What's tough? Life. What's life? A magazine. Where did you get it? Newsstand. How much? Fifteen cents. I've only a dime. THat's tough! What's tough? Life...."

'The Cover of Life': A Family in Wartime; A story 'too good to be true' and a magazine correspondent's discoveries.
By ALVIN KLEINTEANECK. New York Times (1857-Current file). New York, N.Y.: Dec 13, 1992. p. NJ19 (1 page):
In the end, the incessancy of a theme, a relentless play on the title--the inside scoop on life's necessary covers, or cover-ups--brings to mind an endless riddle that went round long ago. It went like this: That's tough. WHat's tough? Life. What's life? A magazine. How much? Fifty cents. (Remember, we're talking long ago.) I only have a nickel. That's tough. Etc.


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