[Ads-l] Not So Shaggy, 1919

Mon Aug 10 20:26:06 UTC 2015

In 1906 "The Denver Post" published an article about P. J. Faulkner
who told his friends "the story of the shaggy dog". Faulkner insisted
that the story was very funny, but his listeners were left glum.

A person named "James Fernorten wanted a shaggy dog". A candidate dog
was obtained; however, the dog was rejected because it was
insufficiently shaggy, i.e., "though shaggy some, was not so shaggy!"
Faulkner thought this punchline was hilarious, but his compatriots
disagreed, and found the tale humorless.

Faulkner's listener's retaliated by placing an advertisement in
Faulkner's name for a "shaggy dog; must be either black or brown, but
not too shaggy; will pay good price." Faulkner was driven from his
house by the large number of dogs offered in response to the ad.

The tale is told non-chronologically in the newspaper article

Date: January 08, 1906
Newspaper: The Denver Post
Newspaper Location: Denver, Colorado
Article: Victim of Dog Trick
Quote Page 4, Column 3
Database: GenealogyBank

[Begin excerpt]
VICTIM OF DOG TRICK.
(Cincinnati Post.)

 Also confound it and by Jehosaphat, a
few of these !!!?*-----! !*X*!---------!!
and then some more!

 P. J. Faulkner, 3229 Fredonia avenue,
Avondale, who is with the O'Dell Stock
and Grain company, thought all of them
and a few others.

 Cause why?

 Dogs big, dogs small, dogs mangy, dogs
shaggy, dogs hairless, sightless and lame;
dogs white, dogs black, dogs brown and
dogs spotted, dingy and faded; dogs fat,
dogs lean, doga barking and dogs with
tin cans tied to tails--dogs, dogs DOGS.
They came to his house all day.

 Cause why?

 Recently an ad had appeared in a
morning paper. This is a facsimile of the
cause:

                   WANTED.
Dog--Shaggy dog; must be either black
or brown, but not too shaggy; will pay
good price. P. J. Faulkner, 3229 Fre-
donia avenue, Avondale.

 This wise, it happened:

 Faulkner was in a downtown cafe with
some friends. He told them a story.
 "Did you ever hear the story of the
shaggy dog?" he inquired.
 "No!"  they came back.
 "No?" said he.
 "No-o," said they.

"Well, James Fernorten wanted a shag-
gy dog, and-Oh! but it's funny!" (Much
laughter by Faulkner. Friends glum.)
 "So he went to his friend Mike, who
he had heard, had one.
 "Gee! It's funny! More laughter from
Faulkner. Friends  glummer.)
 "But Mike's dog, though shaggy some,
was not so shaggy!" (Ha-ha-ha-he-he-
ho-ho.)
 "Ain't it funny?" he asked.
 "We don't see it," said the friends in-
nocently.
 "Well, listen;" Faulkner went on. "You
see James Fernorten wanted a shaggy
dog, and--Oh, but it's funny!" (Much
laughter by Faulkner. Friends still
glum.)

 And so it went like the story of An-
tonio and his trusty lieutenant.
 The ad. was a retaliatory measure.
 Dogs were offered by phone and in
every other way until Faulkner had to
flee his home. It was his only chance.
[End excerpt]

Garson

On Mon, Aug 10, 2015 at 11:15 AM, 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: Not So Shaggy, 1919
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> The unfunny shaggy dog joke with the punchline "not so shaggy" was
> circulating by 1906, I think. "The Denver Post" of Denver, Colorado
> has an article that appears to be a meta-joke about the shaggy dog
> joke back on January 8, 1906.
>
> I will post the article after I extract the text.
>
> Garson
>
>
> On Mon, Aug 10, 2015 at 6:57 AM, Stephen Goranson <goranson at duke.edu> wrote:
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Stephen Goranson <goranson at DUKE.EDU>
>> Subject:      Re: Not So Shaggy, 1919
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> OED under shaggy adj. cites a May, 1937 Esquire article, "Don't Laugh Now" =
>> by J. C. Furnas   "56/1   One of the more sporting ways of finding out whic=
>> h ones are not [sane] is to try shaggy-dog stories on them." The article co=
>> ntinues on pages 236 and 237. It suggests that dogs may not be the original=
>>  animal in this story genre. It does give a story of a New Yorker who takes=
>>  a ship to England in response to a lost dog notice, ending: "Oh," says the=
>>  Englishman coldly, "not so damn shaggy" and slams the door in the American=
>> 's face.
>> The 1919 headline "NOT SO SHAGGY" may be related.
>>
>> Stephen
>>
>> ________________________________________
>> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Stephe=
>> n Goranson <goranson at DUKE.EDU>
>> Sent: Friday, August 7, 2015 10:26 AM
>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>> Subject: [ADS-L] Not So Shaggy, 1919
>>
>> Maybe related to shaggy dog stories (OED has 1937 for such stories/yarns)--=
>> or not. "Bear yarn*"? Or if not, maybe so.
>>
>>
>> "NOT SO SHAGGY" is the section headline--of the final section--under "SPORT=
>> OGRAPHS by Frank H. Frawley."
>>
>> [The entire section text:]
>>
>> Denver has it that C. C. will try to get Ogden Verner and Garside in footba=
>> ll togs because of the fact that Chuck Schneider of the Mines was reinstate=
>> d. "Stub" Davis, a Denver paper said, would also get into the harness. This=
>>  is all a good pipe dream, but the Tigers haven't thought anything about it=
>> . Davis is married and is a commissioned officer in the regular army. Verne=
>> r and Garside are engaged in other occupations and could not be here. But, =
>> then, a bear yarn is a bear yarn. Those yarns emanating from Denver seem to=
>>  be extra sensational.
>>
>>
>> Colorado Springs Gazette. Oct. 22, 1919, p. 8, col. 1.
>>
>>
>> Stephen Goranson
>>
>> http://people.duke.edu/~goranson/
>>
>> <http://people.duke.edu/~goranson/>
>>
>> * Exempli gratia:
>>
>> Field and Stream, April 1, 1911, p.499, col. 2 [GB]
>>
>> "He had made the camp tired with his bear yarns,..."
>>
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>
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