MUSIC HALL CATCH-WORDS.

Putaruru Press, Volume VII, Issue 320, 24 December 1929, Page 5

MUSIC HALL CATCH-WORDS.

The death of J. W. Rickably, the music-hall comedian, reminds one that the habit of passing round catchwords, often from a music-hall song, seems to have perished since the war, though hardly on account of it (writes Robert W. Risk in the Edinburgh “ Weekly Scotsman). The war produced two at least. One was about the “Better ’ole” and another was “ Where did that one go ?” Apart from these, I do not remember any of recent years which had currency in London, except, " Yes, we have no bananas.”

One of Rickahy’s songs was “ What Ho ! She Bumps,” and that took the fancy of the town, and became part of the daily chaff of the streets, like “ Get your hair cut ” and the much earlier “ Does you mother know you’re out ?” and the more generally useful, “ Now we shan’t be long.” The origin of the “ bananas” catchword puzzled a great many people wh'o used it. It was said to have originated in an American film studio, where a film magnate, looking at a banquet set for the show asked fiercely, “Have you no bananas?" and received the much-quoted reply from what America calls a “ Yesman.” A Yesman is a subordinate who always agrees with his superiors whatever they may say or-do.