Another kind of buddy

[Benjamin Zimmer]

On 6/13/07, Douglas G. Wilson <douglas at nb.net> wrote:
>
> >I see vocative 'buddy' as a neutral term of address for a male stranger in
> >situations not requiring any term of respect.
>
> Me, too. "Pal" about the same. Both maybe somewhat old-fashioned?

Vocative "buddy" (with an exaggerated fall-rise intonation) was, for a
time in the '80s, associated with the annoying surfer-esque stylings
of the B-actor Paulie Shore. Mr. Shore may have modeled his speech
patterns on the Jeff Spicoli surfer/stoner character in "Fast Times at
Ridgemont High", but if memory serves Spicoli preferred vocative
"bud".

Ah, here we go:

http://www.netwalk.com/~truegger/ftrh/dick.html
"Hey bud, what's your problem?"

http://www.netwalk.com/~truegger/ftrh/bathroom.html
"I said, 'Hey bud.  Two can play this game.'"


--Ben Zimmer

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org