who-laid-the-rail
adv. phr.— «He said he was a Willkie man to who-laid-the-rail, but that unfortunately he was afflicted with asthma, which was responsible for the hissing.» —“The Brighter Side” by Damon Runyon Zanesville Signal (Ohio) Aug. 27, 1940. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Matt from Grand Rapids, Michigan, was puzzled when colleagues kept saying someone had stood up at a wedding, indicating that they’d been a member of the wedding party. The expression stood up in that sense is an Americanism going back about two...
In parts of the United States, cottage cheese is called smearcase, from German Schmierkäse, a combination of schmieren, “smear,” and Käse, “cheese.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Smearcase, Schmierkäse” You have a way with words...