[Ads-l] help with a literary (?) allusion

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

Peter Reitan wrote:
> The almanac must have been on sale even before January.  It was quoted in a newspaper days before 1845.
>
> The Standard (London), December 26, 1844, page 2.
>
> https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64714906/the-standard/

That makes sense. Many periodicals are available before their cover
dates. Quotations from the Reader's Digest often have been printed in
newspapers a week or more before the cover date.

I cannot tell by looking at the scans whether the Almanac was combined
with a standard issue of "Punch" or was freestanding.

Almanacs are sometimes published a few months before the beginning of
the year on the cover, I think.

Garson


> Forerunner of Henny Youngman's best known one-liner?
>
> "Take my wife .  . . Please!"
> ________________________________
> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> Sent: Saturday, December 5, 2020 10:13:21 PM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Subject: Re: help with a literary (?) allusion
>
> ---------------------- 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: help with a literary (?) allusion
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Here is a link to the pertinent 1845 issue of "Punch".
>
> Date: January 1845
> Periodical: Punch
> Volume 8
> Almanac for 1845
>
> https://books.google.com/books?id=kJNEAAAAcAAJ&q=%22marry+don%27t%22#v=snippet&
>
> [Begin excerpt]
>        WORTHY OF ATTENTION.
> ADVICE TO PERSONS ABOUT TO MARRY,--Don't.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Here is a 1900 book that claims the quip is "one which is the best known".
>
> Year: 1900
> Title: A Peep Into "Punch"
> Author: John Holt Schooling
>
> https://books.google.com/books?id=Sz5HAQAAMAAJ&q=+%22marry%2C+Don%27t%22#v=snippet&
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> By the way, speaking of Mr. Punch's jokes which have become classic,
> the one which is the best known is the following :--
>
> Worthy OF ATTENTION.
> Advice to persons about to marry--don't!
>
> This famous mot appeared in Punch's Almanac for 1845.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Sun, Dec 6, 2020 at 12:46 AM Bill Mullins <amcombill at hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > I've seen in print a couple of times, when the writer wants to tell someone "Don't!", variants of "As Punch told the young man about to marry, Don't!"
> >
> > I recently saw it suggested that "Punch" was the puppet from Punch & Judy.  Now there are likely hundreds of Punch & Judy scripts, but they are fairly well-defined characters, and this doesn't seem consistent with Punch's character as I understand it.
> >
> > I think of the phrasing as being turn of the century (19th/20th), and I've always assumed that "Punch" was the humor magazine of the era.
> >
> > Anyone have any thoughts?  Is there another "Punch" who could have said this, that I'm missing?
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org