No comment from the peanut gallery; mind your P’s and Q’s; and the coolest thing since sliced bread.
I hear these from time to time and yet do we really know where these phrases come from?
The Peanut Gallery dates back to Vaudeville for the cheapest and rowdiest seats in the theater.
Mind your P’s and Q’s has to go with the early printing press and hwo the lowercase p’s and q’s were easy to switch when setting the type.
and
Sliced Bread is simply a comparison to the American invention of the sliced bread machine in 1928.
It is amazing to think how these outdated facts have become a staple in everyday language. But think next time you babble out a phrase and seek out the hidden history behind them.
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