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gilpin

A gilpin is a term for "sucker" or "chump" that dates from as early as the 1910s but rarely appears in the modern century. Consider this line from

1) James Cagney's taxi driver friend in THE ROARING TWENTIES (1939): "To Long Island it's fifteen dollars for the wise guys, 30 dollars for the gilpins."
2) Cagney, upon realizing he was naive, says, "I was a such a gilpin."

by MTyeW23 February 9, 2017

39👍 8👎


grifter

1)A confidence man/woman. The term was used by professional con artists in the 19th and 20th centuries to describe people in their profession. The Grifters, a 1963 noir fiction novel by Jim Thompson, portrayed a family of grifters who are all emotionally managed. . The characters describe being "on the grift" the way someone else might describe drinking and drugs. "I can stop any time I want," says Roy to his mother. .
2) (modern) A sell out in the political opinion world. This noun is increasingly used by progressives (and some conservatives) to describe people such as Candace Owens and other opinion makers whose conservatism is seen as facile and inorganic, born mostly out of of a need for corporate funding than actual convictions.

1.) “As for working with a partner, he didn’t like that either. It cut the score right down the middle. It put an apple on your head, and handed the other guy a shotgun. Because grifters, it seemed, suffered an irresistible urge to beat their colleagues. There was little glory in whipping a fool—hell, fools were made to be whipped. But to take a professional, even if it cost you in the long run, ah, that was something to polish your pride.”
― Jim Thompson, The Grifters, 1963

2) "He used to be an original voice, but after meeting the Koch Brothers, the radio host underwent a personality change. Instead of nuanced analysis, he repeated well-worn right-wing talking points, causing his colleagues to suspect he had been corrupted into being a grifter.

by MTyeW23 September 10, 2021

15👍 2👎


bray

To crush into powder; pulverize

"Though thou should bray a fool with a pestle in a mortar like oatmeal, yet will not his foolishness go from him." --Proverbs xxvii. 22

by MTyeW23 May 30, 2018


token-sucking

An unappetizing ploy used by the desperate to retrieve subway tokens that had already been inserted into the turn stile token slot. Practitioners jammed the inside of several coin slots with gum beforehand, and then waited for riders to insert tokens which--now jammed -- failed to grant them passage.. Customers would sometimes put in several tokens before giving up. Once alone, the token sucker put her mouth over the slot and sucked the coin(s) out. The tokens were then used to ride the subway or, more often, sold at cost to strangers or fencers for slightly less than their value. The practice, which drew attention (and disgust) in the New York City subway, ended with the discontinuation of tokens in 2003.

Wilkins had the most lucrative day of token-sucking in the history of 42nd street; over ten hours, using 40 strips of well-chewed gum, he sucked out more than 100 tokens, enough to get everyone living under the bridge high for the whole weekend.

by MTyeW23 May 30, 2018


We'd

This conjunction of two words ("we would" or "we should") is also a homonym of weed, the common slang term for cannabis. Therefore, "We'd!" is an expression of agreement used by pot lovers to anyone suggesting cannabis use.

Herb Stoner: "Any of you eighth graders here want to join me behind the gym to smoke a number?
Stoner Bud 1: "Yes, we'd!"
Stoner Bud 2: "We'd indeed!"
Herb Stoner: "Great, first pay me 20 bucks. And come with some girls, or don't come at all."

by MTyeW23 May 30, 2018

5👍 3👎


à gogo

French slang for "galore." As in English, this adjective goes after the noun.

Jim Morrison and The Doors played some of their first shows at the Whiskey à gogo, a famous night club in L.A.

by MTyeW23 May 30, 2018

5👍 1👎


to handle

One of many verbs that is a handy euphemism for "to murder"-- used only by those used to ordering killings.

"Joey's been getting high, flashing money and mouthing off about the Brink's Job! Tell his brother to handle him, or someone will handle both of them."

by MTyeW23 July 16, 2021