Date: Mon, 27 Aug 1956 21:22:13 +0000

From: Tom Dalzell slangman[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]PACBELL.NET

Subject: Re: Bee's Knees



Anna:



In FLAPPERS 2 RAPPERS: 20th CENTURY AMRICAN YOUTH SLANG, at pages 20-22,

I spend a fair amount of time with the animal expressions of the Flapper

era. "Cat's pajamas" and "cat's meow" were the most popular of the

dozens of animal-based slang expressions of approval of the 1920's.

Ranking words or expressions by popularity is often an exercise in

futility, but "bee's knees" was certainly a strong contender for third

place after its cat cousins. The list was nearly endless, but by the

end of the decade the construction had largely burned itself out. One

still hears or reads an occasional "cat's meow" or "cat's pajamas",

usually in affected advertising or headlines.



Tom Dalzell