crowbar Hilton

[Victor Steinbok]

Crowbar Hilton clearly seems to be a more sarcastic (and more recent)
variant of crowbar hotel. But, although crossbar hotel appears to be a
variant, of sorts, I would differentiate between the two. The metaphor
in the "crossbar hotel" seems rather obvious. Compare that with an
off-hand remark in Back to the Future II: "Get used to those bars."
(referring to the playpen of a future outlaw uncle.

But what can one make of "crowbar" in "crowbar hotel"? Safecracker's
paradise? There is only one exit--with a crowbar?

     VS-)

On 5/16/2013 1:48 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> Great find, Garson!  It looks like a vast antedating.  (NewspArch has exx.
> from 1885 and 1888.)
>
> "Crossbar Hotel" is a variant (1865: HDAS).  From NewspArch:
>
> 1880 _Derrick_ [Oil City, Pa.] (Sept. 21) 3: The man was taken to the
> crossbar hotel to keep him from disturbing the town a third time.
>
> "Crowbar Hilton" is unfamiliar to me.
>
> JL

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