Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Antique humor

While browsing through a book that compiled the anecdotes of Americana from 1939 until 1965, I was struck by the cliches on how woman were treated, and the gulf that exists today in what people consider funny.

I'd like to share a few:

" I often think you can tell people's character by their gardens."
"I do, too. There's Miss Richlove, who is as mercenary as she can be, and the prominent plants in her gardens are moneywort and marigold.


"You say you saw a lot of her this summer?
"Yes, I met her a number of times down at the bathing beach"

Bride --"What do you give your husband when the dinner does not suit him?"
Mrs. Oldwed--" His coat and hat."

Man --"The husband ought to have a voice in the furnishing of the home,' says a woman writer.'"
Brother -- "Oh, but he does -- the invoice."

"Does the baby look like his father?"
"Oh, no. My husband would be furious!"

"How many times must I tell you, Willie, that one must keep his eyes closed during prayer."
"Yes Momma. How do you know I don't ?"

Professor of Political Economy --"Who's the Speaker of the House?"

Student-- "Mother."

Definition of a Diet:

The best way to lose weight is to develop an orthodox belief in some religion that doesn't allow any fun. --Gregory Nunn

Courtship:

The days just prior to marriage are like a snappy introduction to a tedious book. --Wilson Mizner

Democracy:

Democracy becomes a government of bullies tempered by editors. --Emmerson

Fame:

If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing. --Franklin

Fashion:

Fashion is the most powerful force in creation. It rules the women, who rule the men, who rule the world. ---19th century Americana.

Sex:

The thing that takes up the least amount of time and causes the most amount of trouble is sex. ---John Barrymore.

And with that last blurb , I'll end this thought provoking post with:

Looks like it's not only us that has trouble caused by sex....*giggle*

Truthfully, anyone in 1939 through 1965 could not possibly have imagined that airports would be fodder for future risque humor.

My, how times have changed.

I hope your day provides you reasons to smile ....even better, a laugh or two.

Bye!

9 comments:

Brandy said...

Love these. I like subtle humor, that makes you think.
Not commenting on the horse. Heh-heh.

Kelli McBride said...

Too Funny!!!

BTW, thanks for telling Gena to make me the heroine for that hotty. She sent me your email with a smile. ;-)

Michele said...

Haha, Brandy! Glad you like the post.

Kelli! Happy to share a smile with you.
And, You're very welcome. I'm pleased that Gena sent you the comment. I didn't think she even saw it because there was no reference to it in her comments. I've always gotten the impression that once a new post goes up, she doesn't go back and touch base with the old entries. I'm glad to see I was wrong. I really wanted her to know about my vote, you know, seeing as I hold you in "high esteem" and all.... *wink*

Shesawriter said...

LOL about that horse photo. They're all the same. Humans, animals, bugs ... if they're male it doesn't matter. LOL!

Tanya

Unknown said...

LOL....LOVE the cartoon! Made me smile, which is good since I have the flu bug or something! UGH...back to bed!

_ said...

When I photographed the horse on my site there were actually four more on the same field. Somehow I didn't have the same luck as your photographer...

As for antiquated humor: Whenever I hear somebody utter something ignorant, I can't resist the urge to yell, "POPPYCOCK!"

-david

Judson Knight said...

Michele, I just spent a leisurely half-hour or so catching up on your posts, which were enormously entertaining--and some of which made me, well, go "hm." (In a good way!)

I loved the quotes from the mid-twentieth century joke book. The best way to see into another time, I think, is to view it from the standpoint of everyday life. We all know about the grand struggles taking place in the years when those jokes and sentiments were still current; what's much harder to capture--and a lot of those quotes did a good job of this--is how it actually felt to be a person of that time.

I could ramble on and on about this, but I'll save that energy to post on my own blog very, very soon. As always, thanks for your encouragement. You are DA BOMB!

Michele said...

LOL, Tanya :-) It's a guy thing, I think *snicker*

Oh Robin, ((((HUGS)))) I hope you feel better soon!


Hi Dave! Thank you for stopping by!
LOL about the horse pic. One has to ask oneself, How long did he have to "watch" until the perfect shot came up? **giggle**
Poppycock... Haven't heard that word for awhile. It's perfect !


Why Thank You, Judson
I like that, "leisurely half-hour or so ...", that's quite a compliment. As for things that "made you go 'hmmm'", gives me the impression that maybe I sparked a blog post? If so, cool. :-)

And you're welcome regarding the "encouragement" part. I'm glad that you've kept your blog. Wouldn't be the same in the blogosphere without it and you.
TTFN!!

Avindair said...

he thing that takes up the least amount of time and causes the most amount of trouble is sex. ---John Barrymore

Wow, that's a great quote. It's so true.

Well, ehem, except for me...yeah. Except for me. How 'bout them Bears, huh? Helluva game! Helluva game!

:)

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