Dispatch from the Land O'Darkness

This morning at Pratie Place: excerpts from Cab Calloway's Hepster's Dictionary, a 1940s guide to the language of jive.

What is most remarkable, to me anyway, is how few of the entries reproduced seem quaint and outdated; many "jive" terms are still considered more or less contemporary. You won't hear "hincty" (adj. conceited, snooty) too often anymore, but the 21st century is rife with people seeking to "hype" (v., n. build up for a loan, wooing a girl, persuasive talk, cajole) something or someone.

(This post is dedicated to Barbara Billingsley.)

Posted at 8:40 AM to Almost Yogurt