flip to
n.— «The text of the letter fits even more nicely into the sitcom format: start with a big joke. Mr. Abu Marzook claims that the recent Hamas coup “…was done as part of our effort to secure Gaza from the lawlessness of militias and violence.” In sitcom parlance, this is known as a “flip to”: ie: A character claims that he will never, under any circumstance, wear a dress. Flip to: that character wearing a dress. In our example, Hamas is saving Gaza from militias and violence. Flip to: rival Fatah members being thrown to their deaths from 15-story buildings by roving gangs of Hamas militias. It’s an easy joke form, but it always works.» —“HA mas” by Jeff Astrof Los Angeles Times July 12, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Amid a 1796 heat wave, Jane Austen wrote to her sister, “What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Jane Austen’s Continual State of Inelegance in a...
For this week’s puzzle, Quiz Guy John Chaneski has been swapping out a single letter within each of three words in a category. Suppose, for example, the category is fruit. What three fruits might you produce by changing just one letter in each of...