Message-ID: <4361580.1075858927724.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2001 06:40:00 -0700 (PDT) From: wsmith@wordsmith.org To: linguaphile@wordsmith.org Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Annie Oakley Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-From: Wordsmith X-To: linguaphile X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \SSCOTT5 (Non-Privileged)\Scott, Susan M.\Wordsmith X-Origin: Scott-S X-FileName: SSCOTT5 (Non-Privileged).pst Annie Oakley (AN-ee OK-lee) noun A complimentary ticket; pass. [After Annie Oakley (1860-1926), U.S. markswoman, renowned for her skill at shooting, from the association of the punched ticket with one of her bullet-riddled targets.] "If you're lucky, you've got an Annie Oakley." Tom Rouillard, Big Top Goes Up Today, The Herald (Rock Hill, S.C.), May 1, 1996. This is going to be an eponym week, where we'll see words derived from people's names. In our quest for eponyms, we are going to visit, among other places, 18th century England, World War II era, and the American Wild West. Phoebe Ann Moses, better known as Annie Oakley, showed sharpshooting skills at an early age and earned the moniker "Little Sure Shot." Later this shooting star and her husband appeared in the touring Wild West Show, delighting audiences the world over. Annie was known for amazing feats such as shooting a coin tossed in the air, and knocking the ashes off a cigarette held between her husband's lips. I think it would have been more spectacular if she had knocked bff the whole cigarette, not just the ashes, but I digress. In another stunt, she would shoot at a playing card thrown into the air, and before it touched the ground, riddle it with holes. I wonder if chad came out. Someone figured this matched the punched free ticket to an event, and soon all passes became known as Annie Oakleys. -Anu ............................................................................ You can't wake a person who is pretending to be asleep. -Navajo Proverb What to give to those who have everything? Give the gift of words. Here is a gift that keeps on giving. To enter a gift subscription of A.Word.A.Day, please visit http://wordsmith.org/awad/gift.html or ask them to subscribe themselves at http://wordsmith.org/awad/subscribe.html Pronunciation: http://wordsmith.org/words/daltonism.wav http://wordsmith.org/words/daltonism.ram