seven 1966 "the whole nine yards" in Wings of the Tiger

Stephen Goranson goranson at DUKE.EDU
Tue Nov 6 12:21:22 UTC 2007


I now have an original "First Printing September 1966" copy of this novel by
Carl Krueger (1908-1978). It was originally drafted as a screen play. For
information on some the films Kruger wrote or produced see imdb.com. The book
supports the war. Acknowlegements include to the USAF and to five named defense
contractors.

1966  Wings of the Tiger: A Novel (New York: Frederick Fell, 1966) by Carl
Krueger.

Here I pass along information: seven uses of "the whole nine yards" with
chapter and page numbers.

ch. 3, p. 39
Kelley's voice had that usual flat calm....It always presaged the last few
seconds before they went into action.
"Okay, Tiger," it said. "Give 'em the whole nine yards. Now!"
Chuck sighted through the frosted sights ground into his canopy. The hairlines
crossed. He hit the toggle switch that controlled the pods. There was the
sudden WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH as one hundred and fourteen rockets ejected from the
pods and hurtled ahead of the jets: deadly, unerring, flying annihilation. They
streaked down smoking on the warehouse at blinding speed.

ch. 4, p. 55
"Never thought I'd see myself wanting to go the whole nine yards with any
girl. Not after all these years."
"Years?"
Kelly cut in with a broad grin. "I count your mileage in blondes, brunettes and
redheads." Chuck ignored this. He was doing some intimate appraising in his own
retrospect.

ch. 4, p. 57
"Tomorrow's Frag Order."...."It's just coming over---"
"We'll go over it after-de-briefing. Get me a list of all pilots and planes
available. Everything. The whole nine yards."

ch. 16, p. 143
"Rog, leader. Let's give them the whole nine yards!"

ch. 22,  p. 190
Chuck Warren bent over documents with Grady and Sutton, making a computation
with a slide rule. He jotted figures on an air map, then relaxed with an
audible sigh.
"Finished?" Grady said, eyeing him.
"The whole nine yards. Everything except tomorrow's weather map"
Sutton looked several ways.
"Where is that weather man?" he asked. "With the Navy," Grady returned, with a
grin.

ch. 26, p.223
"Don't forget--give 'em the whole nine yards!"
They drove off. A weight seemed to drop from Chuck's shoulders. His mind was
more at ease. There would always be that ache in the void Janet had made within
him but he knew now a single-mindedness of purpose that had deserted him
temporarily.

ch. 30, p.279
"Anyone can get killed in a war," he said, "The trick is to stay alive.... I
personally recommended you for these decorations. I know you rate them. I don't
do these things lightly. You went the whole nine yards. I say without men like
you the whole country would go to pot."
Chuck shifted his embarrassed glance to Clancy.

Stephen Goranson
http://www.duke.edu/~goranson

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



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