Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases. Over 41,000 entries.
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the successor to World War II’s Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Some critics claim that the CIA mainly protects business interests. American…
The National Security Agency was formed in 1962 to improve foreign intelligence within the United States government. The NSA's intelligence gathering is limited to foreign communications, but…
"GOTV" is a political abbreviation for “get out the vote.” “GOTV” has been cited in print from at least 1981. "GOTV" has been given the backronym (back acronym) of…
Entry in progress -- B.P. 30 September 1978, The Centre Daily Times (State College, PA), pg. 4, col. 2:Subtle DifferenceSomeone who makes you laugh is a comedian, George Burns said. Someone who…
There are many ways to say that a person is big. A man can be "tall as a building" or "have his own zip code." New York-born comedian and actor Billy Crystal said that, as a…
Comedian and social satirist Mort Sahl said in 1958 that a conservative Republican is one "who doesn't believe anything should be tried for the first time," and a liberal Republican…
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Mort SahlMorton Lyon "Mort" Sahl (born May 11, 1927) is a Canadian-born American comedian and social satirist, considered to be the first modern…
Entry in progress -- B.P. Google BooksBulletinVolume 8, Issues 11-181926Pg. 266: "A conservative is a man who worships a dead radical." — John Simpson, president of the Farmers'…
Conservative columnist William F. Buckley, Jr. (1925-2008) said in August 1965 about President Lyndon B. Johnson: "He is a man of his most recent word." A "man of his word" is…
Entry in progress -- B.P. Google BooksThe Blue And Silver Shark: A Biker's Story: (Book 5 in the Series)By Edward Winterhalder and Marc TeatuJenison, MI: Blockhead City Inc.2015Pg. ?:He had…
"Buy cheap, sell dear" is a popular proverb from the 16h century. Through jocular malapropism, this saying becomes "buy sheep, sell deer." The following joke was cited in print…
Lord Ismay (1887-1965), who was the first Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) from 1952 to 1957. supposedly said that NATO's purpose was to "keep the…
"Distrust every enterprise that requires new clothes" is a paraphrase of what American author Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) wrote in Walden: or Life in the Woods (1854): "I say,…
"Airpocalypse" (air + apocalypse) is a term that was coined in January 2013 to describe China's air pollution problem. The "airpocalypse" term has been used in India and in…
Entry in progress -- B.P. Google BooksReport of the Council of Hygiene and Public Health of the Citizens Association of Nrw York Upon the Sanitary Condition of the CityNew York, NY: D, Appleton and…
"Muspandering" (Muslim + pandering) was coined in December 2015 by Mark Robinson MP, LNP State Member for Cleveland, Queensland (Australia). The politically charged term has had limited…
The American adult animated sitcom South Park aired a program about guns on December 9, 2015, titled "PC Principal: Final Justice." Jim-Bob, a gun salesman, told customers in his gun…
Comedian Jackie Mason (who grew up in New York City) said about growing older and staying healthy: "It's no longer a question of staying healthy. It's a question of finding a…
Cable News Network (CNN) began in 1980 as the first all-news television channel. Some critics of CNN have claimed that the network is biased and favors the politicians Bill Clinton and Hillary…
The Ramada Plaza JFK Hotel (at JFK Airport) was called "Heartbreak Hotel" (also the title of a 1956 Elvis Presley song) in July 1996, when it housed grieving family members of those who…