[Ads-l] retcon

[Jesse Sheidlower]

Cugley's 1988 use is a claim, not a citation; as Wikipedia points out, there's no solid evidence for it. In a (real) 1990 Usenet post Cugley claimed to be the originator. If anyone has the 1988 cite I'd love to see it!

Jesse Sheidlower

On Thu, May 13, 2021 at 05:09:02AM -0700, Nancy Friedman wrote:
> I wrote about an earlier citation (1988) in a 2013 blog post:
> https://nancyfriedman.typepad.com/away_with_words/2013/12/word-of-the-week-retcon.html
> 
> On Thu, May 13, 2021, 3:46 AM Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> 
> > Charlie Sykes, MSNBC:
> >
> > "They're trying to find a way to rationalize [Jan. 6]: 'Well, it wasn't so
> > bad.' This is called 'retconning' - you simply rewrite the history. You
> > pretend that what happened didn't happen, and you put your own spin on it."
> >
> > OED: (1989):
> >
> > "To revise retrospectively (an aspect of a fictional work or series),
> > typically by means of a revelation which imposes a different interpretation
> > on previously described events."
> >
> > It ain't just for fiction any more. And you don't need a "revelation."
> >
> > Just lie.
> >
> > 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

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