[Ads-l] "streaking" (1965)

[Ben Zimmer]

My Wall Street Journal column this week is on "streaking" in the sense of
running naked through a public space, inspired by John Cena's nude cameo at
the Oscars.

https://on.wsj.com/3x0mfze (non-paywalled link)

OED2 has cites from 1973 for "streak" (v.), "streaking" (vbl. n.) and
"streaker" (n.). Here are antedatings from 1965.

* streak, streaking
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https://www.newspapers.com/article/philadelphia-daily-news-streaking-univ-o/143238922/
Philadelphia Daily News, Apr 8, 1965, p. 7, col. 1 [UPI wire story]
The spring fad on college campuses used to be telephone booth stuffing and
panty raids. But at the University of Colorado it's called streaking, which
means running naked through a public gathering.
It was disclosed that 15 University of Colorado students streaked down the
main street of Mazatlan, Mexico, March 29, and were chased by police
gunfire.
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* streaker
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https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-berkeley-gazette-streaking-berkeley/143241156/
Berkeley Gazette, May 18, 1965, p. 11, col. 6
Jim Dempsey, "Berkeley Is My Beat": "Streakers in Berkeley?"
One of the latest sports evolved by the campus set in various parts of the
United States is "streaking." Reports of the activity have filtered in from
various parts of the country... including here.
The idea is to dart across some public place suddenly and swiftly in the
nude and startle the blazes out of people about leaving them wondering did
they see it or didn't they?
It is all supposed to have started in a Mexican village where a group of
fraternity boys were having a holiday. To keep the place buzzing they would
dart across the plaza in the nude, an activity which is supposed to have
reduced the local population to a state of nervous twitching.
Other popular places for streakers are golf courses, public parks and
secluded areas on college campuses.
In fact some people are claiming they have seen streakers darting across
the University of California’s Faculty Glade. Could a Free Streaker
Movement be a closing sequel to the FSM [Free Speech Movement]?
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--bgz

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