Date:  Wed, 24 Jan 1996 18:53:18 -0500

From:  Ronald Butters <amspeech[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]ACPUB.DUKE.EDU>

Subject: "I was all, '...'"



On Wed, 24 Jan 1996, Jesse T Sheidlower wrote:



>

> > BTW -- if anyone is interested, I have writings and data (a little) on

> > the still-new quotative "I'm all, '...'" as quoting gestures, tone of

> > voice, etc. as well as just words, going back to the early '80s when I

> > began tracking it.

>

> I'd appreciate a few cites over the years, if they're handy. I

> already had the ones you posted a while back. Do you have any

> early examples of "like" as a quotative? Anyone else?



We published a note several years ago in AMERICAN SPEECH on quotative

"I'm all . . ." (maybe y'all already know about this?)