To Take a Nutty

[Wilson Gray]

On Fri, Sep 6, 2013 at 8:54 PM, Baker, John <JBAKER at stradley.com> wrote:

> It means to go nuts, in the sense of experiencing an uncontrollable fit of
> emotion
>

When I was a kid in Saint Louis, "to nut up" meant to go nuts, in the
sense of experiencing an uncontrollable fit of laughter,  involving
thigh-slapping, turning in a circle, another exaggerated expressions of
delight, a la Sammy Davis, Jr.

I have reason to suspect that the term originated as "knot up," respecting
the typical  contorting of the body, e.g. "doubling over with laughter,"
and was then reanalyzed= or, maybe, just misheard.

Youneverknow.
--
-Wilson
-----
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die!"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-Mark Twain

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