Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon

[Jonathan Lighter]

High-school kids.  Major-league baseball (before it was trademarked).
African-American vernacular English.

JL

On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 6:44 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
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Can you identify a common example?
> DanG
>
> On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 6:39 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:      Re: Keyser-Soeze Phenomenon
> >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > 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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> > >
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> > >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
> truth."
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
>
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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