In 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, i.e., a “Rat Pack Lexicon.”
It was a mixture of slang and cool terms that helped make them indisputably 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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