more on early "jeeps"

[Jonathan Lighter]

'Social misfit; "drip," "jerk," etc.' One of the early obsolete
senses, probably inspired by the odd appearance of Segar's "Jeep."
Cf. the contemporaneous application to military recruits:

1941 C. G. Sampas in _Lowell [Mass.] Sun_ (Jan. 30) 12 [NewspArch]:
It'd make a man out of him, not a sartorialistic automaton, a jeep, a
wise-guy.

As a nonce nickname, alluding to Eugene the Jeep:

1938 _Uniontown [Pa.] Morning Herald_ (May 13) 15: Lee (Jeep) Handley
is a pepper box at the hot corner. [Handley came to the National
League in 1936, the year of the Jeep's appearance in Thimble Theatre.
-JL]

1941 _Chillicothe Constitution-Tribune_ (Feb. 8) 5: FRANK McHUGH
christened Ann Sheridan "The Jeep" during production on "City for
Conquest." Reason, explained Frank, is because she brings good luck to
every picture she works in.

1941 _San Antonio Light_ (Feb. 9) VI 3: By E. C. "Jeep" Oates.

1941 _Clovis [N.M.] News-Journal_ (Feb. 13) 4: Little "Jeep" Daniels,
Institute forward and captain, turned in an outstanding game.

Vehicles:

1941 _Emporia Gazette_ (Feb. 17) 3: Camp Robinson, Ark...Company B
[137th Inf.] will have two trucks. One will be a 1-1/2 ton truck and a
lighter truck called "jeeps" [sic] by the drivers. The trucks [sic]
will be used for the movement of the kitchen and other field equipment
on maneuvers. The "jeep" will transport the mortars for the company.

1941 _Helena Independent_ (Feb. 17) 3: NEW PLANE FOR ARMY IS ABLE TO
LAND AT VERY LOW SPEED RATE  Ft. Benning, Ga., Feb. 16. - AP - Army
pilots are testing a Ryan observation plane, nicknamed the "jeep"
because of its peculiar wing construction, which is designed to land
at 25 miles an per hour and take off from small fields.

1941 _Chester [Pa.] Times_ (Feb. 18)  10: Camp Shelby, Miss. - Feb. 17
. . . Also ready for delivery is the famous "Jeep," a five-passenger
car with a removable top, for use of the officers.  ["Famous" is
presumably a facetious ref. to the cartoon character.]

1941 _Santa Fe New Mexican_  (Feb. 19) 3: "Jeep" Driver Pvt. Oliver
Slade has been selected as the driver of one of our "Jeep" (command
reconnaissance car [sic]) for the executive officer, Capt.
McFarland....Pvt. Philip Salazar has also been made driver of a Jeep.

On Feb. 20 and succeeding days, a number of papers published the now
famous photo captioned "'Jeep' Tackles Capitol Steps."

JL

--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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