Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon

[Jonathan Lighter]

In my day, it was recommended that compounds used attributively be
hyphenated for quicker comprehension.

Just where I read this escapes me, and I may be the only one who still does
it. Or ever did it.

JL

On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 6:28 PM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com> wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he
> didn't exist."
>
> Why the hyphen in "Keyser-Soeze"? It is a first and last name. Roger Ebert
> supposedly used the term "Keyser Soeze syndrome" to refer to "...a lot of
> recent films [that] seem unsatisfied unless they can add final scenes that
> redefine the reality of everything that has gone before."
>
> DanG
>
> On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 5:09 PM, 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:      Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon
> >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > A former prosecutor on Tru TV describes tot-mom Casey Anthony as
> exhibiting
> > "what I call the Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon."
> >
> > KS is a central but off-screen character in _The Usual Suspects_ (1995).
> > IIRC, everybody describes him inconsistently.
> > What's Keyser really like? Who knows! All we know is that it's vitally
> > important.
> >
> > The allusion is to CA's seemingly preternatural ability to change her
> story
> > about what happened to her daughter at the drop of a hat and without a
> > blink, while incorporating any details that the detectives happened to
> > present her with.  The impression is that almost everything she says is a
> > lie, but she really really expects you to believe it.
> >
> > JL
> >
> > --
> > "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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> 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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