
Rat Pack Lexicon
— 9 September 2013In the 1960s, the legendary Rat Pack—the most “hip” and famous members being Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop—created their own language.
It was a mixture of slang and cool terms that helped make them undisputably the ‘kings of cool’ in this the heyday of Vegas.
For a huge dose of their lexicon in action, don’t miss the next broadcast of their most famous release, Ocean’s 11, a 1960 heist film centered in and around Las Vegas.
Click here to pickup a copy of Ocean’s 11 or click here for a copy of the 2001 remake (Ocean’s Eleven) starring Bernie Mac, Don Cheadle, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy García, Julia Roberts, and others.
bag a person’s particular interest; as in “singing’s my bag”
barn burner a very stylish, classy woman
beard a male friend who acts as a “cover”; usually for extramarital affairs
beetle a girl who dresses in flashy clothes
big-leaguer a resourceful man who can handle any situation
big casino death
bird the male or female genitalia; standard greeting: “How’s your bird”?
bombsville any kind of failure in life; see ville
broad affectionate term for a girl or woman with sex appeal
bum a person who is despised, most frequently linked to people in the media
bunter a man who fails in almost everything he does; the opposite of gasser
charley what the rat-packers called one another
charlies admiring word for a woman’s breasts
chick a young and invariably pretty girl
clyde a word used to cover a multitude of personal observations; e.g., “I don’t like her clyde” means “I don’t like her voice”, etc.
coo-coo! see crazy
crazy a term of admiration for a personal, place, or thing; similar to cool.
creep a man who is disliked for any reason
crumb a person it is impossible to respect
dame a generally derogatory term for a probably unattractive woman
dig a term of appreciation; e.g., “I dig that broad.”
duke tip
dying an exaggerated term to mean slightly upset; e.g. “I’m dying”
end a word to signify that someone or something is the very best; “the living end”
endsville total failure; similar to bombsville; see ville
fink a person who cannot be relied upon or trusted, especially someone in the media; a crumb
fracture to make laugh; as in “that fractures me”
gas a great situation; as in “that set was a gas”
gasoline alcohol
gasser a highly admired person; the end!
gofer someone who performs menial jobs and tasks; “go for drinks”
good night all a term of invective used to change the subject of conversation
groove a term of admiration or approval; as in “in the groove”
harvey a person who acts in a stupid or naive fashion; sometimes shortened to “Harv”
hacked angry; as in “he’s hacked off”
hello! a cry of surprise to no one in particular when a beautiful woman is seen
hunker a jack-of-all-trades; see gofer
jokes an actor’s lines in a screenplay
let’s lose charley a term used among intimates who want to get rid of a bore in their company
little hey-hey romance; a little action with a broad
locked-up as in “all locked-up,” a term for a forthcoming date or engagement, private or public
loser anyone who has made a mess of their life, drinks too much, makes the wrong enemies, etc.
mish-mash similar to loser, but refers specifically to a woman who is messed up
mothery terrific; wild and wicked
mouse usually a small, very feminine girl who invites being cuddled
nowhere a term of failure as in “he’s nowhere.”
odds used in connection with important decisions, as in “the odds aren’t right,” meaning it’s a no go
original loser a person without talent; sometimes more fully expressed as “He is the original Major Bowes Amateur Hour loser
pallie dean’s nickname for everyone, whether a lifelong friend or a bellhop
player a man who is a gambler by nature, makes friends easily, and never gives up trying
punks any undesirables, in particular criminals, gangsters, or mobsters
quin derisive term for a woman who is an easy pick-up
rain as in “I think it’s going to rain” indicating that it is time to leave a dull gathering or party
ring-a-ding a term of approval, as in “What a ring-a-ding broad!”
sam used in the same way as Charley for a person whose name has been forgotten, most often applied to females
scramsville to run off
sharp a person who dresses well and with style
ta-ta goodbye
twirl a girl who loves dancing
ville a suffix used to indicate changes in any given situation; examples: endsville, splitsville, etc.
Click here to read more about the Legendary Rat Pack.
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