I should be in pictures!” : Movies used to be called Moving Pictures because they began with still photography projected on a screen, images changing quickly so that it appeared those in the images moved. Eventually they did.
Rosie The Riveter : We all know the poster (see below) but what I didn’t know is that campaign poster came after the song “Rosie the Riveter” which was popular the year prior, and sang of the women working those factory jobs, riveting patches over gun shot holes.
Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, GA,was actually created for World War II by a committee of local citizens in 1940 looking to increase defense in the area, and it ended up playing a large role in the war with training pilots in that branch. At 88 miles from Albany, at no more than 35 MPH, it would take the women nearly three hours each way. It was common for housewives not working in factories to help those who did, by cooking and caring for their children, as Dottie had done.
“…was that you who made holes in the kitchen wallpaper?” : I’m not sure when it stopped being as common but wallpaper was in every household. We had it when I was a kid. Now we use paint. How ‘bout you?
“Howdie Jerald!” : Hey Jerald. How’s it goin’ Jer. ‘Sup J.
“What gives?” : What’s up? What’s wrong? WTF???
“Say, that doll Darren is jitterbugging with, her dress is in danger of a tap-out : Chaperones would tap a girl’s shoulder if her dress bounced too high, making her then leave the floor. Strict!
Smidge of makeup : Little bit. Tiny amount. Next to nothing or nothing at all.
I’m the guy who spiked her punch bowls when I was a senior, enough to get both schools blotto. :Drunk. Wasted. Praying to the porcelain god the next morning.
I’ll throw you out on your keister: Butt. Ass. (the definitions will sometimes be cuss words to be current because we sure do love to swear now, don’t we? I know I do.)
“What’s the dish on the dish?”: What’s the deal with the hottie? Tell me about this lovely lady I’m interested in. Damn, tell me about my future girlfriend because wow!
“Oh no!” Sable groans, pushing her glasses higher on her nose on account of they slid when she leaned in. : They hardly used ‘because’ — it was on account of. And I kind of love it.
…she claims he’s sweet on me: He is hot for me. He is interested in me. He wants to know more and more and more about me.
Lily rolls her eyes. “Why do you have to be such a fuddy duddy?”: Too cautious. Ruining the fun with reality. Party pooper. Lame.
What’s buzzin’ cousins?: What’s going on? What’s up? Wassup?
The legal speed limit of thirty-five miles-per-hour does not apply tonight, that’s for certain!: Crazy, right? But cars didn’t go nearly as fast as they can now. Some of the first cars went twenty, tops.
Sister Charlotte is probably dialing the operator right now. Connect me to the Kearns residence: Just like the photo where you see a line of women plugging wires into a wall, operators would connect one phone manually to another. Now we talk with no wires anywhere. How do we do that!??
“I hope my vague ‘over there’ didn’t make it seem that I’m a chucklehead.”: Airhead. Not too bright. Or just not paying attention, which is also not cool.
“That would be swell, Jerald. Thank you.”: Amazing. Awesome. Cool. Nice. All of those define ‘swell’ and yes, they used it as often as we do those.
It’s all good and well for you to act so la-di-dah when it’s not your folks…: not a care in the world, and also maybe a little snobby, depending.
“And here I thought you were necking on my porch in front of the neighbors: necking was making out. And I like it better. It’s more accurate.
They have to wear headscarves not for fashion, but so their hair doesn’t get caught in the machines:Here’s a fun video - Safety Training Film for Women Workers WWII USA Interesting fact: They really didn’t know how to handle the idea of women in factories so they often had makeup classes there, to ‘keep morale up for the men’ by keeping the women attractive.
But I saw on the news a little something about women air pilots. WASPS, I think they called them.” Check out that Wikipedia page I linked about “Women Airforce Service Pilots” - just the gal’s face alone. Love. It.
What in Sam Hill possessed you to leave the dance…” : What the hell??!! WTF. And it seems there really was a bad dude named Sam Hill, so bad he became a swear word.
Black and white static of a program schedule long gone: There used to be a very limited number of shows. Ed Sullivan didn’t start until 1948. I Googled TV shows on in 1944 on a Friday night, and there were a few, but they would have been over by the time the boys returned home. And static is such old-school fun.
Poppycock: Drivel. Crap. It’s worse than nonsense, it’s poppycock. We should bring this back, what do you think?
“I’ll give you ten dollars if you take that book on the submarine : $10 equaled about $140 in 2019 money. Ah, inflation. But that’s Hank — he doesn’t do things halfway, does he?
“Pipe down, Hank,”: Be quiet! Shut up!
And those dames weren’t the kind you’d take home…: Dames, dolls, birds, gals — all meant girls or women. None of them derogatory if your intonation didn’t hold that. Broads however, would be. Wait, I take that back. She’s a good old broad, meant she could hang with the guys. Not a bad thing after all.
I’m getting the silent treatment something awful. : Intense in a bad way. She’s really, really
