The Fickle Finger of Fate

[Jonathan Lighter]

All fell foilings the fickle finger of fate can finesse, the fickle finger
of fortune finagles as foully.

JL


On Sat, Jan 18, 2014 at 9:42 PM, ADSGarson O'Toole <
adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:

> ---------------------- 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: The Fickle Finger of Fate
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Here is the "fickle finger of fortune" in 1902. As Monty Python once
> said "Blessed are the cheesemakers".
>
> Book Title: Tenth Annual Meeting of the Wisconsin Cheesemakers Association
> Date: Meeting Held January 8 to 10, 1902
> Article: Response to Address of Welcome by John A Carswell, Lone Rock, Wis.
> Start Page: 4
> Quote Page: 5
> Printed by Democrat Printing Company, State Printer, Madison, Wisconsin
>
> http://books.google.com/books?id=C19qAAAAMAAJ&q=fickle#v=snippet&
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Do all you can do, all you can for the betterment of the cause, and if
> then, should it so happen that the fickle finger of fortune should
> point some of us by the wayside as among the "has beens," we will have
> the consolation when it comes to the grand final wind-up, we will all
> inherit our six feet two of Mother Earth, and even at the worst,
> should we have to take it in some dark corner of the potter's field,
> if we go there, boys, with a clear conscience, well and honorably
> done, we will sleep as sound, we will waken to as bright a morning as
> he who lies in a marble sarcophagus.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
>
> On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 4:58 PM, Jonathan Lighter
> <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com> wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject:      Re: The Fickle Finger of Fate
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > The mere "finger of Fate," of course, was once a literary cliche'.
> Usually
> > it "pointed" at someone rather than, um, that alliterative thing I've
> heard
> > of it doing.
> >
> > JL
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 4:50 PM, Wilson Gray <hwgray at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> -----------------------
> >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> >> Subject:      Re: The Fickle Finger of Fate
> >>
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> Just prior to being dingled by the dangling dong of destiny, I've often
> >> been fucked by that.
> >>
> >>
> >> On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 4:01 PM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com>
> >> wrote:
> >>
> >> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> > -----------------------
> >> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> > Poster:       Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
> >> > Subject:      Re: The Fickle Finger of Fate
> >> >
> >> >
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >> >
> >> > Oops, YDN archive does not present results in true date order.
> >> >
> >> > The Yale Daily News no. 7
> >> > October 5 1936:
> >> > THE WINDMILL
> >> >
> >> > "The foul finesse of the fickle finger of Fate has long been a
> subject of
> >> > hard comment."
> >> >
> >> > DanG
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 3:57 PM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com>
> >> > wrote:
> >> >
> >> > > In your time period:
> >> > >
> >> > > The Yale Daily News no. 53
> >> > >  November 27 1937: Harvard's Benchley Soaks Eli's Woolley
> >> > >
> >> > > "But for some inscrutable reason the fickle finger of Fate pointed
> out
> >> to
> >> > > him that he should raise a beard."
> >> > >
> >> > > Makes me wonder if it came from vaudeville or Hollywood...
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > > DanG
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > > On Wed, Jan 15, 2014 at 1:59 PM, Jonathan Lighter <
> >> > wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>wrote:
> >> > >
> >> > >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> > >> -----------------------
> >> > >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> > >> Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> >> > >> Subject:      The Fickle Finger of Fate
> >> > >>
> >> > >>
> >> >
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >> > >>
> >> > >> Some of us may associate this phrase with Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
> >> > (where
> >> > >> it figured in the weekly "Flying Fickle Finger of Fate Award."
> >> > >>
> >> > >> Others, more knowledgeable, believe it arose during World War II.
> >> > >>
> >> > >> Both wrong:
> >> > >>
> >> > >> 1934 _Arcadia [Calif.] Tribune_ (July 7) 7: But the fickle finger
> of
> >> > >> fate...decreed otherwise.
> >> > >>
> >> > >> 1936 _Ruston [La.] Daily Ledger_   (May 2) 4: Anyway, we hope the
> >> little
> >> > >> pup has better luck than his predecessors, whose lives were cut
> short
> >> by
> >> > >> the fickle finger of fate.
> >> > >>
> >> > >> 1937 _Times-Picayune_ (N.O.) (Aug. 8) IV 2: Kissinger is the
> >> > correspondent
> >> > >> responsible for the vivid "fickle finger of fate" account of
> McLaney's
> >> > >> injury.
> >> > >>
> >> > >> The fickle finger strikes, and, having struck, moves on....
> >> > >>
> >> > >> JL
> >> > >>
> >> > >> --
> >> > >> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
> >> > >> truth."
> >> > >>
> >> > >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> > >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >> > >>
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> >
> >> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >> >
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> --
> >> -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
> >>
> >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
> truth."
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>



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

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