[Ads-l] "Will the last person to leave XXX please turn out the lights."

[Bill Mullins]

1967 Windsor [ONT] Star 30 Jan 9/5 [proquest]

One story claims that there is a sign at Lydda airport -- 'Last one to leave, please turn out the lights.'



1967 Peace News 16 Jun v31 n1616 1/2

The Israelis, who for all their fervour never lose their sense of humour, had a new joke; there was said to be a sign at the entrance to Haifa harbour saying: “Will the last person to leave please turn out the lights.”

https://archive.org/details/peace-news_1967-06-16_1616/mode/2up?q=%22will+the+last%22+%22please+turn+out+the+lights%22



1969 H. Weiner 9-1/2 Mystics: The Kabbala Today 319

A joke circulated through the land during those months -- someone had hung up a sign at Lydda Airport: “Will the last Jew to leave the country please turn out the lights.”

https://archive.org/details/9mysticskabbalat0000unse/page/319/mode/1up?q=%22will+the+last%22+%22please+turn+out+the+lights%22
________________________________
From: Bill Mullins <amcombill at hotmail.com>
Sent: Friday, June 26, 2026 1:56 PM
To: American Dialect Society <ads-l at listserv.uga.edu>
Subject: "Will the last person to leave XXX please turn out the lights."

I've always associated sayings of the subject form with Boeing layoffs in the early 1970s:  "Will the last person to leave Seattle please turn out the lights."

1971 San Francisco Chronicle 8 Feb 23/1

Elbert Hubbard, back from Brazil, told Matt Kelly that the Rio airport has signs in several languages reading "Brazil: Love It Or Leave It."  Under the English version, some graffitist, undoubtedly from S.F., has written: Will the last one to leave please turn out the lights."

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1242420909/?match=3&terms=%22%20please%20turn%20out%20the%20lights%22%20%22will%20the%20last%22

No doubt Garson can antedate this by a decade or two.

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