c-note (UNCLASSIFIED)

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

George Thompson wrote:
> Mind you, using roman numerals for currency has a long history, documented
> in part by HDAS; also Dictionary of American English.
>
> From my notes:
>
>      [a man visits a whore.]  In the morning finding that he was minus a
> watch and a *X*. . . .
> The Herald, April 28, 1836, p. 2, col. 2
>
> 1837:     V=92s, *X*=92s, L=92s, and C=92s of the Dry Dock Bank
> The Herald, May 9, 1837, p. 2, col. 3

Excellent! Thanks for pointing out the earlier use of roman numerals
for denominations, George.

Barry has now created an entry for C-note:
http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/c_note_100_bill/

Garson

>
> 1840:     When they can raise a cool *X*. they drive as far as Bradshaw=92s=
> ,
> and dine.  When they can only circumvent a V., they stop at the Red House,
> or at the Widow=92s.  ***  One of the Crowd will raise a XX. . . .
>
> Morning Herald, February 7, 1840, p. 2, cols. 2-3
>
>  HDAS: C=3D 1839, L=3D 1839
>
>
> On Mon, Jun 17, 2013 at 9:53 AM, Mullins, Bill CIV (US) <
> william.d.mullins18.civ at mail.mil> wrote:
>
>> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
>> Caveats: NONE
>>
>> _Springfield Republican_ 8/2/1929 p 29 col 1 (story by Damon Runyon)
>>
>> "My  operatives inform me that a commission has been receive in this
>> town from Mr. Al Well, matchmaker of the Queensboro arena, in New York,
>> who is betting $100 against
>> $266, and taking Canzoneri for his.  Moreover, Mr. Well, more familiarly
>> known as Weskit, has laid his "C" note right on the old line."
>>
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On
>> > Behalf Of ADSGarson O'Toole
>> > Sent: Friday, June 14, 2013 8:13 PM
>> > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>> > Subject: Re: c-note
>> >
>> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> ---------------
>> > --------
>> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> > Poster:       ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
>> > Subject:      Re: c-note
>> >
>> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> > --------
>> >
>> >  Benjamin Barrett wrote:
>> > >
>> > > In Wiktionary (http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/c-note) and in a
>> > citation
>> > > =3D in the OED under "benji," but no entry in the OED.=3D20
>> > >
>> > > -----
>> > > =3D
>> > > http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/javale-mcgee-100-
>> > homel
>> > > ess-=3D man-video-sleeping-street-161840470.html
>> > >
>> > > On one hand, I think it's cool that JaVale's response to coming
>> > across
>> > > =3D someone who could surely use a C-note more than he could is to
>> peel
>> > > one =3D off.
>> >
>> > JL's Historical Dictionary of American Slang has an entry for "C note"
>> > with a cite in 1930. Below is evidence for a cite in 1929. I think the
>> > OED has been incorporating some material from HDAS over time.
>> >
>> > [Begin excerpt]
>> >
>> > C-note n. [C + NOTE] Gamb. a one-hundred-dollar bill.
>> >
>> > 1930 Liberty (Oct. 11) 30: We gave him five C notes and two tens.
>> >
>> > 1954 Schulberg Waterfront 8. He was always good for fifties and
>> C-notes
>> > peeled off the fat roll.
>> >
>> > [End excerpt]
>> >
>> > I think there is an instance of "C note" in 1929 in a Damon Runyon
>> > short story. Runyon used the term repeatedly in his tales. The excerpt
>> > below is from a short story in a collection at Project Gutenberg
>> > Australia. The bibliographic data is from an entry in Oxford
>> Dictionary
>> > of Humorous Quotations This story is part of a group that inspired the
>> > Frank Loesser musical "Guys and Dolls".
>> >
>> > 1929 August, Cosmopolitan,
>> > "A Very Honorable Guy" by Damon Runyon
>> >
>> > http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks11/1100651h.html
>> >
>> > [Begin excerpt]
>> > 'There is the big trouble,' Feet says. 'I owe The Brain a C note
>> > already, and I am supposed to pay him back by four o'clock Monday
>> > morning, and where I am going to get a hundred dollars I do not know,
>> > to say nothing of the other ten I must give him for interest.'
>> > [End excerpt]
>> >
>> > Garson
>> >
>> > ------------------------------------------------------------
>> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
>> Caveats: NONE
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>
>
>
> --=20
> George A. Thompson
> Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern
> Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much since then.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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