a deadly game of cat and mouse

Mon Jan 25 00:28:28 UTC 2010

Interesting. Yet the established form of the cliche' is definitely "(in) a
deadly game of cat and mouse."

I've also read or heard "deadly cat-and-mouse game," but that seems nowadays
to be an elegant and economical variation.

JL

On Sun, Jan 24, 2010 at 7:16 PM, Garson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Garson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: a deadly game of cat and mouse
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Here are some more examples of the cliche that combines "deadly" with
> "cat and mouse". In the 1920 cite the phrase "cat and mouse" is put in
> quotation marks. In the 1942 cite the phrase "cat and mouse game" is
> put in quotes, and in 1945 the quotes are omitted.
>
> Citation: 1920 July 12, The Daily Mail (London), "At the Villa Rose,"
> Mr. A. E. W. Mason's Strong Drama at the Strand, Page 5, London.
> (NewspaperArchive)
>
> Always best in strongly marked character-parts, Mr. Arthur Bourchier
> played the serio-comic detective with reserved force that gave power
> to his amusing but deadly "cat and mouse" manoeuvres. His disguise as
> the hirsute villain delighted a small boy who likes to see people turn
> into other people, and who may stand for the great public.
>
>
> Citation: 1942 June 5, The Lowell Sun, Gen. Rommel Trying to Reform
> Forces, Page 37, Lowell, Massachusetts. (NewspaperArchive)
>
> The main campaign presently might he described as a deadly "cat and
> mouse game" as the British attempt to hold Rommel's forces in the
> minefield area in the hope of smashing them before they can reorganize
> for an offensive or retreat through the gaps to the west.
>
>
> Citation: 1945 February 09, Long Beach Independent, Roer River Dams
> Big Prize to Yanks by Frank Conniff, Page 20, Long Beach, California.
> (NewspaperArchive)
>
> After allied and German armies maneuvered throughout the winter in a
> deadly cat and mouse campaign to seize or protect the dams, American
> gains enabled the veil of secrecy to be withdrawn from the action.
>
> Garson
>
> On Sun, Jan 24, 2010 at 11:15 AM, Jonathan Lighter
> <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com> wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject:      Re: a deadly game of cat and mouse
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > Nice work, John. I had no idea.
> >
> > Despite the primordial treatment of mice by cats, I can't help wondering
> if
> > the social  game really is the effective (or co-effective) source of the
> > cliche'. The relatively late, sequential appearance of both might not
> have
> > been predicted.
> >
> > JL
> > On Sun, Jan 24, 2010 at 9:31 AM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
> >
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> -----------------------
> >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> >> Subject:      Re: a deadly game of cat and mouse
> >>
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> At 1/24/2010 01:29 AM, Baker, John wrote:
> >> >"Game of cat and mouse," without "deadly," is older, of course; OED
> >> >has it back to 1887 (under the entry for "cat"), and Wilkie Collins
> >> >used it in his contribution to The Haunted House (1859).
> >> >
> >> >But I never previously realized that this was a literal game.  From
> >> >the March 1878 issue of Golden Hours, via Google Books:
> >>
> >> I have an unspecific memory of playing this myself as a child!
> >>
> >> And of course it is a literal game to literal cats, who are known to
> >> bat a live literal mouse around a bit before dispatching it.
> >>
> >> Joel
> >>
> >> >
> >> >
> >> ><<The Game of Cat and Mouse.
> >> >
> >> >Al.L the players but two join hands in a ring. One is inside, and is
> >> >called the Mouse, another is outside and is called the Cat.
> >> >
> >> >The players begin the game by turning round ihe circle rapidly,
> >> >raising their arms. The Cat springs in at one side of the ring, and
> >> >the Mouse jumps out at the other. The players then suddenly lower
> >> >their arms, so as to keep Ihe Cat in. The Cat goes round and round,
> >> >trying to get out; and as the circle of players is in motion all the
> >> >lime, she is sure to find a place to break through at, if she is a
> >> >sharpsighted Cat. As soon as she gets through, she chases the Mouse,
> >> >who tries to save herself by getting inside the circle again.
> >> >
> >> >To let her in, the players raise their arms. If she gets in without
> >> >the Cat being able to get in after her, the Cat must pay a forfeit,
> >> >and try again. Then the players name the other players for the next
> >> >game,-the new ones fall into a circle, and the game goes on as before.
> >> >
> >> >The Cat should be one of the elder children of the party, and the
> >> >Mouse a younger boy or girl.>>
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >John Baker
> >>  >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >________________________________
> >> >
> >> >From: American Dialect Society on behalf of Jonathan Lighter
> >> >Sent: Sat 1/23/2010 9:04 PM
> >> >To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> >> >Subject: a deadly game of cat and mouse
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >Hearing this cliche' on TV for the nth and final time I can stand it
> just
> >> >now, I decided to look into the problem.
> >> >
> >> >The earliest I could come up with was in Michael O'Malley & Ralph
> Lane's
> >> >"Vic Flint"  strip in the _Clovis (N.M.) News-Journal_ of July 11, 1948
> >> (via
> >> >Newspaper Archive): "Inside the Crystal Lake Amusement Park a deadly
> game
> >> of
> >> >cat and mouse was in progress."
> >> >
> >> >It seems to have taken off almost instantly, though high-class
> periodicals
> >> >like the N.Y. Times were slow on the uptake.
> >> >
> >> >JL
> >> >
> >> >------------------------------------------------------------
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> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
> truth."
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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