She sells seashells by the seashore. Who is the she in this tongue twister? Some claim it’s the young Mary Anning, who went on to become a famous 19th-century British paleontologist. Dubious perhaps, but the story of her rise from seaside...
Tim in Unadilla, New York, says his grandmother used to say It’s a great life if you don’t weaken. For some reason, in 1914 this catchphrase exploded on both sides of the Atlantic. Other versions: It’s a gay life if you don’t...
Unwrap the name of a candy bar, and you just might find a story inside. For instance, one chewy treat found in many a checkout lane is named after a family’s beloved horse. And: 50 years ago in the United States, some Latino elementary...
Marie-Claire from Montreal, Canada, wonders why we say that someone living in carefree luxury is living the life of Riley. No one’s sure this expression’s origin, although it may be associated with a 19th-century vaudeville song about an...
A 1909 newspaper article from the Paterson, New Jersey, Morning Call recounts the story of a runaway teen who was living the life of Riley — if only briefly. This is part of a complete episode.
While reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Sidney from Indianapolis, Indiana, stumbled across the use of the term stereotyped notice to denote a printed announcement of a meeting. It’s an example of this word’s earliest...