[Ads-l] Thatababy's Guide to Names and Phrases that Originated in Comic Strips (Antedating of "Security Blanket")

[Shapiro, Fred]

security blanket (OED, 2., 1954 [29 Nov.])

1954 Miami Herald 2 Nov. 6-A/6 (Newspapers.com)

Permit me to express my appreciation for consistently fine entertainment in the form of the comic strip "Peanuts" by Schulz. ... After the "security blanket" episode, I could no longer contain myself.

PERSONAL NOTE: I believe the Peanuts comic strips of the early 1950s were the second-finest strip of all time, surpassed only by Krazy Kat.

Fred Shapiro

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of ADSGarson O'Toole <00001aa1be50b751-dmarc-request at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Monday, March 2, 2026 5:42 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Thatababy's Guide to Names and Phrases that Originated in Comic Strips

Thanks for pointing to an interesting comic strip, Amy.
Charles M. Schulz did popularize the notion of a security blanket, but
the OED's first citation is not from Schulz.

[Begin OED excerpt]
security blanket noun
2. Originally U.S. A small blanket or other soft fabric item held or
carried by a child to afford reassurance by its familiarity. Also in
extended use: anything that offers comfort, reassurance, or a sense of
security.

Widely popularized by the American cartoonist Charles M. Schulz
(1922–2000) in the comic strip ‘Peanuts’, featuring a boy named Linus
who carries a cot blanket for comfort.

1954 Security blanket. My younger child is one year old. When..she
finds a fuzzy blanket..or a fleecy coat she presses her cheek against
it and sucks her thumb.
Daily Review (Hayward, California) 29 November 4

[1956  This is a ‘security and happiness’ blanket...All little kids carry them.
C. M. Schulz, Good Grief, More Peanuts 25 (caption)]
[End OED excerpt]

On Sun, Mar 1, 2026 at 9:10 PM Amy West <medievalist at w-sts.com> wrote:
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