[Ads-l] tunk/tonk [was Re: Antedating of "Strip Poker"]

Wed Oct 9 07:14:36 UTC 2019

When  was growing up in St. Louis in the '50's, there were two colored
neighborhoods, Downtown, wherein lived the poor - the (in)famous
Pruitt-Igoe housing project was located there - and the West End, wherein
lived the less-poor, among whom were this
correspondent. And yes, I grew up playing both bid whist and tonk.
By some quirk of housing patterns, Downtown and the West End were
separated from each other by St. Louis's redundantly-white theatre
district. As a consequence, Downtowners and West-Enders spoke different
dialects. For instance, the rummy game whose name was pronounced "tonk" in
the West End was known Downtown as "tunk," just as, e.g. the word
pronounced as "funk" in the West End was pronounced Downtown as "fonk."
When I was in the Army, hearts and bridge were the most popular,
non-gambling card games among us "Monterey Marys" - 100% white, with the
sole exception of this writer - from the old Army Language School. One day,
I said to the [white] guys, "Let me teach you this new game, called 'bid
whist.'" So, we started to play. Suddenly, one of the other [white] players
exclaimed, "Hey, I know this game! We [white folk] call it 'kitty whist.'"
On another occasion, I said to the guys, "Let me teach you this new game, a
form of rummy called 'tonk.'" So, we started to play. Suddenly, one of the
other [white] players exclaimed, "Hey, I know this game! We [white folk]
call it 'tunk.'"
It goes without saying that my head exploded. Until that moment, I'd been
fully persuaded, on the basis of personal experience, that "tunk" was the
pronunciation used by the black underclass in place of the "proper"
pronunciation, "tonk," used by the black bourgeoisie.
IACs, the claim that
"The popular card games of Bid Whist and Tonk are African-American versions
of the card games Bridge and Poker, respectively"
may be inexact.
WRT to the claim that tonk/tunk is a form of poker, the game that I know by
that name is unequivocally a form of rummy. I grant that there may be a
game by that name that is a form of poker, of which I am unaware.
Youneverknow.
FWIW, in the opinion of my spellcheck, the correct word is _tonk_, even
though, "according to Hoyle," to coin a phrase, the game is "tunk."

On Mon, Oct 7, 2019 at 5:37 PM Baker, John <JBAKER at stradley.com> wrote:

> While I don’t have the full text of the cited “tunk” reference (Critical
> Race Theory:  The Cutting Edge), the article quoted was also published as
> Alex M. Johnson, Jr., Bid Whist, Tonk, and United States v. Fordice:  Why
> Integrationism Fails African-Americans Again, 81 Calif. L. Rev. 1401, 1446
> – 47 (1993).  (If anyone is sufficiently interested, let me know and I can
> email you a PDF of the article.)  The missing footnote reads:
>
> “One of the nation's leading Bridge players is Second Circuit Court of
> Appeals Judge Amalya Kearse, an African-American. This fact was relayed to
> me by my former colleague Lynn Baker, a former Kearse clerk.”
>
>
> John Baker
>
>
>
> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> On Behalf Of Andy
> Bach
> Sent: Monday, October 7, 2019 2:44 PM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Re: tunk/tonk [was Re: Antedating of "Strip Poker"]
>
> ####
> I allude to poker, both straight, draw and tunk, keno, faro, croquet, polo,
> tennis, charades and base ball.
> ####
> > It’s not clear to me whether “tunk” is considered here to be a form of
> poker or not.
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)>
>
> *Tonk*, or *tunk*,[1]
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)#cite_note-1<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)#cite_note-1>> is a matching
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_game#matching_card_games<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_game#matching_card_games>> card game
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_game<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_game>>, which combines features of
> knock
> rummy <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rummy<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rummy>> and conquian
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conquian<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conquian>>.[2]
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)#cite_note-2<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)#cite_note-2>> Tonk is a
> relatively fast-paced game that can be played by 2-4 players. It was first
> known to be played by blues and jazz musicians in southern Louisiana while
> they would take their breaks in the back rooms of bars and saloons. In many
> other places it has become a popular pastime for workers while on their
> lunch breaks.
>
> The "tunk" reference
>
> https://books.google.com/books?id=Hd1MpNYWAaoC&pg=PA407&dq=tonk+card+game&lr=&hl=cs#v=onepage&q=tonk%20card%20game&f=false
> <
> https://books.google.com/books?id=Hd1MpNYWAaoC&pg=PA407&dq=tonk+card+game&lr=&hl=cs#v=onepage&q=tonk%20card%20game&f=false
> >
>
> says:
> The popular card games of Bid Whist and Tonk are African-American versions
> of the card games Bridge and Poker, respectively. Indeed, some will no
> doubt argue that Tonk and Bid Whist are mere derivations of Bridge and
> Poker, perhaps the two most preeminent card games in America. What is
> revealing is that African-Americans continue to play card games (Tonk and
> Bid Whist) that are strikingly similar to Bridge an Poker in most respects,
> but remarkably different in others, while continuing to play Bridge and
> Poker
>
> Alas that is footnoted to page 413, which is not in the google book scan.
>
>
>
> On Mon, Oct 7, 2019 at 9:39 AM Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com
> <mailto:mail.barretts at gmail.com>>
> wrote:
>
> > Nice find.
> >
> > Tunk/tonk
> > https://bicyclecards.com/how-to-play/tunk/<
> https://bicyclecards.com/how-to-play/tunk/> <
> > https://bicyclecards.com/how-to-play/tunk/<
> https://bicyclecards.com/how-to-play/tunk/>>
> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)> <
> > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)<
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonk_(card_game)>>
> >
> > Merriam-Webster has “tunk” (alt. spelling “tonk”) as a variation of rummy
> > but the OED has “tunk” only as a form of rent or payment in Wales. MW
> does
> > not date it. Here are two citations:
> >
> > 1. Forest and Stream, Volume 20, p. 486
> > 19 Jul 1883
> > https://tinyurl.com/y6ff7syt<https://tinyurl.com/y6ff7syt> <
> https://tinyurl.com/y6ff7syt<https://tinyurl.com/y6ff7syt>>
> >
> > ####
> > I allude to poker, both straight, draw and tunk, keno, faro, croquet,
> > polo, tennis, charades and base ball.
> > ####
> > ####
> >
> > It’s not clear to me whether “tunk” is considered here to be a form of
> > poker or not.
> >
> > 2. The Omega, p. 33
> > Senior Class of the Ann Arbor High School
> > 19 Jun 1884
> > https://tinyurl.com/yxebd8h6<https://tinyurl.com/yxebd8h6> <
> https://tinyurl.com/yxebd8h6<https://tinyurl.com/yxebd8h6>>
> >
> > ####
> > Our enjoyments have been as innocents as the frolics of a lamb…. Old
> Maid,
> > Cross-eyed Crabs, Pig Euchre and Tunk each have a preference of one.
> > ####
> > ####
> >
> > The preference of one meaning that each game is preferred by one person.
> >
> > Benjamin Barrett (he/his/him)
> > Formerly of Seattle, WA
> >
> > > On 6 Oct 2019, at 19:27, ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM
> <mailto:adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > Excellent find, Fred. Here is a citation from a couple years earlier
> > > in 1904 that describes "strip tunk" which appears to be a precursor or
> > > variant of "strip poker". The link goes to a clipping of the article.
> > >
> > > Date: May 2, 1904
> > > Newspaper: Waterloo Daily Courier
> > > Newspaper Location:
> > > Article: Co-eds Have a New Game: It Is Called "Strip Tunk" and Have
> > > Some Features That Are Decidedly Unique
> > > Quote Page 2, Column 3
> > > Database: Newspapers.com
> > > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36836122/striptunk/<
> https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36836122/striptunk/>
> > >
> > > [Begin excerpt - may contain OCR errors]
> > > Kalamazoo co-eds are devoting their spare moments to “strip tunk" — a
> > > game similar to poker, with the main feature a gradual taking off of
> > > clothing by the loser of each hand. The game is also played in local
> > > high school circles, and has reached such prevalence that school
> > > authorities are planning a campaign against it. The hands are filled
> > > by drawing in turn from cards on the table, filling one's hand by
> > > exchange.
> > >
> > > In “srip tunk" the loser of each hand divests herself of one article
> > > of clothing. After several hours the party usually resembles a garden
> > > of Eden social event.
> > > [End excerpt]
> > >
> > > The misspelling "srip tunk" in the second paragraph above is in the
> > > original text.
> > >
> > > Below is another citation for "strip tunk".
> > >
> > > Date: May 19, 1904
> > > Newspaper: Catholic Union and Times
> > > Newspaper Location: Buffalo, New York
> > > Article: "Edjucation."
> > > Quote Page 1, Column 7
> > > Database: Newspapers.com
> > > https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36837169/striptunk02/<
> https://www.newspapers.com/clip/36837169/striptunk02/>
> > >
> > > [Begin excerpt - may contain OCR errors]
> > > "The authorities of the local high school are much worked up over the
> > > discovery of a game known as 'strip tunk' among the larger boys of the
> > > school. It appears that the game has been going on for several weeks
> > > and that it now amounts to almost a mania, the boys putting in most of
> > > their spare time at it.
> > >
> > > "The new game resembles poker, the loser taking off one article of
> > > clothing for each point lost until stripped"
> > >
> > > It is not known how the boys got their peculiar idea of forfeits, but
> > > it is supposed that it originated in a boyish desire for novelty. The
> > > school authorities are making strenuous efforts to break up the
> > > game.--Kalamazoo Augustinian
> > > [End excerpt]
> > >
> > > Garson
> > >
> > > On Sun, Oct 6, 2019 at 9:08 PM Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu
> <mailto:fred.shapiro at yale.edu>>
> > wrote:
> > >>
> > >> strip poker (OED 1929)
> > >>
> > >> 1906 _L.A. Daily Times_ 16 Feb. 1 (Newspapers.com) The chorus girls of
> > one of the last comic-opera companies which visited Los Angeles
> introduced
> > the young bloods to a new fascinating game called "strip poker." ... The
> > cards are held by the young men. The girls sit by to watch. At the end of
> > every hand, all the girls whose young men have lost, proceed to remove
> one
> > article of wearing apparel. The game continues until -- well, for a long
> > time.
> > >>
> > >> Fred Shapiro
> > >>
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org<
> http://www.americandialect.org>
> >
>
>
> --
>
> a
>
> Andy Bach,
> afbach at gmail.com<mailto:afbach at gmail.com>
> 608 658-1890 cell
> 608 261-5738 wk
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