Before knock-knock jokes swept the country in 1936, another silly parlor game called handies was all the rage. This is part of a complete episode.
In 1936, newspapers across the United States breathlessly reported on a new craze sweeping the nation: knock-knock jokes — and they were at least as corny as today’s version. This is part of a complete episode.
If you take a job at an airline, beware if your new co-workers ask you go find them a belly stretcher—they’re playing a practical joke on you. This is part of a complete episode.
For language lovers, it’s like New Year’s, Fourth of July, and the Super Bowl all rolled into one: The brand-new online edition of the Dictionary of American Regional English. Martha and Grant explain what all the fuss is about. Plus...
The Dictionary of American Regional English has many terms for practical jokes played on newbies, like sending someone out for a bucket of steam, or for pigeon milk, or for a nickel’s worth of dimes. This is part of a complete episode.
Is the term “Oriental” offensive? Where do we get the phrase “not one iota”? Why do we tell someone to “take a gander”? And who coined the word supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?