A caller from Los Angeles, California, wonders why we say “hang a Roscoe” for “turn right” when giving directions. This phrase, as well as “hang a Louie,” meaning “turn left,” go back at least as far as the 1960’s. These expressions are much like the military practice of using proper names for directional phrases in order to maintain clarity. Some people substitute the word bang for hang, as in “bang a Uey” (or U-ee) for “make a U-turn.” This is part of a complete episode.
More from this show
When you’re talking about the location of an inanimate object, is it okay to say that it lives there, as in The peanut butter lives in that cabinet or The flashlight lives on that shelf? Strictly speaking, of course, that object isn’t...
Sean in Oneonta, New York, says that when he was growing up in New Jersey, his family would pile in the car and set off on a surprise adventure, whether a short distance or long, and the kids would be told only that they were going on Buxtehude...