playbill vip

OUTDATED REFERENCES IN THE MUSIC MAN

Alma Mater - A school from which one has graduated.  Anvil - A large piece of iron used by a blacksmith.  Armory - A place where arms and military equipment are stored.  Balzac - French writer and a founder of the realist school of fiction.  Bevo - A non-alcoholic drink that tasted like beer.  Big Haul - Refers to money being made by con or criminal activity.  Billiards — Similar to pool, played with three balls on a pocketless table.  Black Hole of Calcutta - A small prison in India in which more than a hundred Europeans were killed in 1756.  Bunion - A swelling of the on the joints of the toes.  Button-Hooks - A small hook for fastening a button on shoes or gloves.  Captain Billy’s Whiz Bang — For much of the 1920’s, Captain Billy’s was the most prominent comic magazine in America with its mix of racy poetry and naughty jokes and puns.  Capulet's Like You... - Reference to Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet.  Cat-Boat in a Hurricane - A small sailboat in a bad storm.  Chaucer - English poet regarded as the greatest literary figure of medieval England.  Cistern — A tank for catching and storing rainwater.  Commodity - Something useful or valued.  Conservatory - A school specializing in music or fine arts.  Corset - A woman's close-fitting boned supporting undergarment.  Cotton Goods - Bolts of fabric.  Cubebs - The dried berry of a tropical shrub that was smoked as medicine.  Dan Patch — (1897-1916) Most famous trotting horse ever, from Indiana.   Del Sarte - French teacher of acting and singing.   Fancy Goods - Fabrics of ornamental colors, patterns, nicer than those of a simple or plain color or make.  Firkins - A small wooden barrel or covered vessel - used for butter, lard, etc.  Flint and Steel - An old fashioned way to make fire by striking the flint against the steel to create a spark.  Freight - A train that carries products, rather than people.  Frittering — To squander little by little.  To waste.  The Golden Rule — Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Grecian Urn - A reference to the poem "Ode to a Grecian Urn" by John Keats.  Grip - A suitcase or valise.  Hard Goods - Products that can be used for several years. Also called durable goods.  Hifalutin' - Pretentious or pompous.  Horse Race — with a jockey on the horse’s back, much quicker than the trotting race.  Jasper — any male fellow or chum, usually a stranger.  Jews Harp - A metal musical instrument that is placed in the mouth and plucked.  Knickerbockers - Loose-fitting short pants gathered at the knee.  Line - Slang for what type work a person does, also what products the salesman sells.  Libertine - A freethinker, especially in religious matters.  Livery Stable - A stable where horses and vehicles are kept for hire.  Mackinaw - A short plaid coat made of thick woolen material.  Mandolin Pick - used to sound the strings on a Mandolin.  The Maine — U.S. battleship sunk on Feb. 15, 1898 in an incident that helped precipitate the Spanish-American War.   Masher - A man who is aggressive in the making amorous advances to women.  Minuet in G - A famous classical musical number composed by Ludwig Von Beethoven.  Notions - Small lightweight items for household use, such as needles, buttons and thread.  Noggins - A small mug or cup.  On the Que Veev - Misspelling of French phrase "on the qui vive", meaning on the alert; vigilant:  Piggins - A small wooden pail or tub with an upright stave for a handle - often used as a dipper.  Pinch-Back Suit — from pinchbeck –  an imitation or substitute.  Plymouth Rock — Plymouth Rock is on the beach where the Mayflower landed.  Pompe-eye - Mayor Shinn is sounding out the word "Pompeii".  Pool — Also known as pocket billiards, using a cue ball and 15 object balls on a table with six pockets.  Rabalais - French humanist and writer of satirical attacks on medieval scholasticism and superstition.  Rag-Time - A style of jazz characterized by syncopated rhythm.  Rig - Slang for any carriage or coach.  Road Agent - highwayman, pickpocket  Rode Out of Town on a Rail - A form of punishment in which a person was tied to a wooden rail, and rolled out of town.  Sen Sen - 19th century breath mints.  Smite - To strike sharply or heavily.  Soft Goods - Textiles, clothing, etc. Also called dry goods.  So's Your Old Man - An exclamation, used as a retort to an insult or slur.  St. Bridget - Irish abbess; a patron saint of Ireland.  Sturgeon - A large fish.  Swell - Slang meaning excellent, wonderful, delightful.  Swindler - Someone who cheats  Tailor Mades - Any cigarette made in a factory on a cigarette making machine.  Tank Town - A small town. So called because trains would stop there only to replenish water.  Tarred and Feathered - A horrible punishment in which a person was smeared with tar and then rolled in feathers.  Thimble Rigger - One who cheats by thimblerigging.  Also known as a shell game.  Tintype - A photograph reproduced on tin instead of paper.  Trotting Race — A horse trained for harness racing. Very genteel pastime.  Turtle-Wurtle - Slang for waste of time.  The Wells Fargo Wagon - 19th century UPS.  The Wells Fargo stagecoach was a symbol of reliable service.