Date: Sat, 20 Dec 1997 06:32:59 EST From: Bapopik Subject: Blind Tiger; X-Mess; The Raven This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --part0_882617580_boundary Content-ID: <0_882617580[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]inet_out.mail.aol.com.1> Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII BLIND TIGER RHHDAS has "blind tiger" meaning "illicit whiskey" to 1904, and meaning "speakeasy" to 1909. Tom Dalzell might be covering this for his SLANG OF SIN, and he should know that both of these dates are way off. The DA records "Blind Tiger, ten cents a sight" to 1857. This probably refers to the drink. For the latter, I have this from the Atlanta Journal (GA), 11 January 1886, pg. 2, col. 3: "Blind Tigers." "Blind tigers" is what they call the illicit whisky shops which dot the line between northwest Georgia and Alabama. In the same newspaper, pg. 3 col. 1, is: THOUGH HE HAD' EM/ THE VISION WHICH TERRIFIED AN "ALL NIGHT" MAN./ The Stout Man with a Fly in His Eye--The Slender Man Who Thought He Felt the "Jim-Jams"--Explained. I have a few other "jim-jams," but no antedate. RHHDAS has 1869. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------- X-MESS "X-Mess" was the title of something that ran on AOL yesterday. It sounds like a nonce word that frustrated Christmas shoppers make up on the spot, but I've tracked many online citations. I don't have Nexis handy to date it. In addition to "Sidewalk Santa," "Kriss Kringle," and "X-Mess," I could run some original papers on the disputed authorship of "An Account of a Visit >From St. Nicholas"; a popular Microsoft version of this poem; and part one of a series (why Saul changed his name) that will solve/explain the origins of Christianity. Might be a liitle far afield for ADS-L, though. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------- THE RAVEN I sent my "Raven" posting around to Poe Societies on the web. Poe's Philadelphia house responded first and provided the telephone number of the Walnut Street Theatre where THE BLACK RAVEN played in 1843, but had no other opinion of the citation. --part0_882617580_boundary Content-ID: <0_882617580[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]inet_out.mail.aol.com.2> Content-type: message/rfc822 Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Content-disposition: inline Return-Path: Received: from relay32.mail.aol.com (relay32.mail.aol.com [172.31.109.32]) by air07.mail.aol.com (v37.8) with SMTP; Fri, 19 Dec 1997 20:35:08 -0500 Received: from bigbird.itd.nps.gov (bigbird.itc.nps.gov [165.83.216.15]) by relay32.mail.aol.com (8.8.5/8.8.5/AOL-4.0.0) with SMTP id PAA27201 for ; Fri, 19 Dec 1997 15:57:12 -0500 (EST) Received: from ccmail.itd.nps.gov by bigbird.itd.nps.gov (SMI-8.6/SMI-SVR4) id PAA01248; Fri, 19 Dec 1997 15:49:07 -0500 Received: from ccMail by ccmail.itd.nps.gov (IMA Internet Exchange 2.12 Enterprise) id 000273F0; Fri, 19 Dec 1997 15:44:00 -0500 Date: Fri, 19 Dec 1997 17:35:55 -0500 Message-ID: <000273F0.1235[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]nps.gov> From: INDE_Poe_House[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]nps.gov (INDE Poe House) To: Bapopik Subject: Re: Fwd: The Raven Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit TO: Barry Popik FROM: John Stoudt SUBJECT: "Ravens" DATE: 12/19/97 Sorry, we do not have any information here that would help you in your attempt to find more information regarding the two pre-Poe "Raven" ravens. You might try either the Free Library of Philadelphia (which, I am told, has an excellent theater arts history section) at (215) 686-5427 or (215) 686-5396. The Walnut Street Theater can be called at (215) 574-3550. I called that number but got a voicemail message. Good Luck! John Stoudt Park Ranger Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site ______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________ Subject: Fwd: The Raven Author: Bapopik at NP--INTERNET Date: 12/18/97 2:08 AM Dear Poe People, Are these two pre-Poe "Raven" ravens known? Are you familiar with the 1843 play THE BLACK RAVEN (Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia) and the 1839 poem "The Raven" in N. P. Willis's CORSAIR? I sent this to my list at the American Dialect Society. Sorry for the corny jokes! --Barry Popik 225 East 57th Street, Apt. 7P New York, NY 10022 (212) 308-2635 Bapopik[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]aol.com Contributor to the RANDOM HOUSE HISTORICAL DICTIONARY OF AMERICAN SLANG, AMERICA IN SO MANY WORDS, CITY IN SLANG, et al. Various postings on the American Dialect Society list (ADS-L archives) include the origin of the Big Apple, Fun City, the Windy City, Beantown, I'm from Missouri-show me, Hoosier, Canuck, the Democratic donkey, the G. O. P., Kriss Kringle, Uncle Sam, O. K., 69, Not!, hot dog, pizza, shake, ice cream sandwich, club sandwich, Tom Collins, New York's Finest/Bravest/Strongest/Boldest, New York Yankees, Bronx Bombers, baseball fan, grand slam, jazz, shindig, hobo, lollapalooza, Longfellow's "There Was a Little Girl" poem, and much more. -------------------- From: Bapopik Return-path: To: ADS-L[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]uga.cc.uga.edu Subject: The Raven Date: Tue, 16 Dec 1997 01:13:25 EST Organization: AOL (http://www.aol.com) Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" is perhaps the most celebrated American poem. It's long been known that Poe "copied" or "borrowed" from other works. I've identified two previously unknown pre-Poe "Raven" ravens. I found the second, more important one today. A different poem called "The Raven" appeared in the February 1839 (I may have the month wrong) CORSAIR. Poe probably read the CORSAIR, because the editor was his friend, N. P. Willis. Willis later edited the New York Mirror, where Poe's "The Raven" was printed on 29 January 1845. I think Poe's vasted overrated now (a "language maven" titled a book after the poem, and there's even a football team called the Baltimore Ravens!), but I've been to Poe homes in Richmond, Baltimore (where he's buried), and the Bronx. A few years ago, I sent the CORSAIR "Raven" to Bronx Community College Poe scholar Burton Pollin. He hadn't heard of the poem before, but he didn't think that the vastly different "Raven" had much influence. I was going through the Public Ledger of Philadelphia today when--just a minute, something just flew in. THE RAVEN: Nevermore! POPIK: You crap on my bust of Pallas Athena and I'll break your bones! This is from the Public Ledger, 28 February 1843, pg. 2, col. 3: _The Black Raven_, as produced now at the Walnut street Theatre, is a decided improvement upon the former performances. Russell is a very nimble fellow, a good dancer, and plays his part well. Miss Wallace, as Columbine, does excellently, and her dancing is much admired. Davenport plays the part of the Old Roue with much credit; and Barnes, the clown, grows more comical in his tricks at every performance. It draws well, and is worth seeing. THE RAVEN: Nevermore! POPIK: Don't you say anything else? THE RAVEN: Butter! POPIK: Butter? THE RAVEN: Parkay! POPIK: Parkay is margarine! THE RAVEN: Omnipoint! Omnipoint! In 1839, Poe became coeditor of Burton's Gentlemen's Magazine in Philadelphia. In 1843, his story "The Gold Bug" won a prize of $100 from the Philadelphia DOLLAR NEWSPAPER. I'm reading this from a book (which I bought in Richmond) edited by Roscoe Brown Fisher, THE JAMES CARLING ILLUSTRATIONS OF EDGAR ALLAN POE'S "THE RAVEN" (1982). Poe left Philadelphia for New York City in April 1843. Had Poe seen _The Black Raven_ at the Walnut Street Theatre? What was that production about, anyway? I'll have to do some more checking--just a minute! I hear a gentle rapping, rapping, as if some visitor was tapping, tapping at my chamber door. LENORE: Hello, my name's Lenore, and I was looking for my--there he is!! THE RAVEN: Nevermore! I gotta stick to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poems. --part0_882617580_boundary--