mole; dressage

Mon Apr 16 14:36:04 UTC 2012

I was going to say that--when I was in 6th grade or so (1961-62), everyone was calling everyone a "rat fink"--and it wasn't just Allan Sherman (the song-a parody of "Ragmop"- came out after the expression was well-established in my crowd).  As I remember, Steve Allen was using it too, along with his "schmockingbird" shtick, which also went viral among my friends.  Brings back memories of late childhood.

Paul Johnston

On Apr 16, 2012, at 10:15 AM, Victor Steinbok wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Victor Steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: mole; dressage
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> How quickly they forget! (Come on! It's only been what, 50 years?)
>
> http://goo.gl/Fg8ZK
> Billboard Sep 18, 1965
> Astros Aim Rat Fing Hex At the Phillies. p. 59/5
>> As reported in the Aug. 10 Houston Chronicle:
>> "Tonight was Rat Fink night at the Houston Astros' Domed Stadium. All
>> fans attending the game between the Phillies and Houston were given a
>> Rat Fink in an effort to break the hex that the Phillies have had over
>> the Astros, who have lost 49 times in 66 tries over
>
> http://goo.gl/SGdTq
> Boys' Life. Volume 54(10). Revell News. Volume 2(1). June 1964
> Oh-h Brother! (Ad) p. 51/1
>> (Brother Rat Fink that is!)
>> Ed "Big Daddy" Roth is at it again ...he's created a sequel to Rat
>> Fink even more hideously handsome than the original. It's Brother Rat
>> Fink (on a bicycle yet with his own little friend, a sanitary Rat
>> Fink)! No home is complete without this lovable pet which comes
>> complete with wild painting instructions and an informative history of
>> where the Rat Fink name came from. (Anyone really interested?) Brother
>> Rat Fink...$1.00.
>
> http://goo.gl/eekYp
> Boys' Life. Volume 54(6). Revell News. Volume 1(7). October 1964
> It's Election Time! (Ad) p. 11/1
>> Cast Your VOTE NOW For Your FAVORITE MONSTER!
>> Mr. Basser
>> ...
>> Rat Fink
>> Despite name (obtained, no doubt, in mud-slinging campaign), presents
>> outstanding choice in field rated fr snaggle-toothed creeps driving
>> outlandish automotive devices. Also costs less to maintain in office.
>> See below.
>> Mother's Worry
>> ...
>> Drag Nut
>> Backed solidly by Political Boss Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, who is reputed
>> to have something to do with some of the other candidates too. Carries
>> small-size Rat Fink as ward heeler to try and win votes away from
>> large-size Rat Fink.
>> Brother Rat Fink
>> Looks like the political barrel is stuffed with many different members
>> of the Fink family. Not so! Each monster runs his own race...no matter
>> how gruesome a candidate he presents! ...
>
> There are also quite a number of references (from Jet and Billboard,
> among others) to "Kannon's [East Side Manhattan] Rat Fink Room" and a
> few literary mentions, including in Barefoot in the Park (First
> performance: Oct. 23, 1963 at the Biltmore)
>
> http://goo.gl/Z3GXw
> Journal of Law and Criminology. 1938[?]
> [looks like a glossary] p. 276
>> Stool-pigeon ... The term for stool-pigeons in polite literature is
>> /Government informer/. Addicts refer to him as /rat, long-tailed rat,
>> fink, louse, mouse, stool,/ etc.
>
> Very nearly the same:
>
> http://goo.gl/AhdAe
> American Speech. 1938 [?]
> p. 191/2
>> STOOL-PIGEON. A government informer. Also /long-tailed rat, fink, rat,
>> mouse/, and several other terms which are unprintable.
>
> For some reason, 1938 is a popular tag for descriptive terminology that
> involves both "rat" and "fink".
>
> http://goo.gl/lYNjU
> The story of the CIO. By Benjamin Stolberg. New York: 1938
> p. 144
>> The favorite terms are moral degenerate, rat, fink, stool-pigeon,
>> "Trotskyist" spy, fascist agent. It calls Norman Thomas an ally of
>> fascism, Max Eastman a British agent, Homer Martin a Japanese stooge,
>> the present writer a stool-pigeon and fascist.
>
> None of the three have been verified, although the cover image for the
> latter does clearly display "1938".
>
> There is not a whole lot surprise that when two words appear in sequence
> so frequently, someone would decide to combine them with the same
> purpose ;-)
>
> The only other snippet that falls between 1938 and 1963 and looks
> authentic is the one for Bill Davidson, quoted by Jon (below).
>
> http://goo.gl/17tpR
>
> The rest, although tempting, failed the spurious-tag test--all appear to
> be at least from the mid-1960s, some even later (like the Canadian
> reference to "1-800-rat-fink" line, which is from the 1970s, but tagged
> as 1964). Davidson's usage clearly was not original, but a quick check
> that I ran did not revel anything of use prior to that date.
>
> In any case, the plastic "monsters" explain why it was "popular in '63-'67".
>
>     VS-)
>
>
> On 4/16/2012 8:41 AM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>>> From the files:
>>
>> 1961 Bill Davidson _The Real and the Unreal_ (N.Y.: Harper) 181: In certain
>> segments of Hollywood society, I have been called such choice names as an
>> invader of privacy, a dirty *rat fink*, and an evil, whisky-drinking,
>> poker-playing middle-aged man.
>>
>> The compound was a big deal from about '63-'67, IIRC.
>>
>> JL
>
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