Cool Fifties Slang Edd Brynes as Gerald Lloyd "Kookie" Kookson III on 77 Sunset Strip just personified cool. He had a lingo all of his own and because his character was so popular, we hung on his every word. And imitated him. Below are some classic expressions from Kookie Talk.

scroll down for 50s slang.

Antsville

A place full of people Chick in skins Woman in a fur coat Front burner Current crisis Germsville An illness - Buzzed by germsville means put in the hospital Ginchiest Coolest Heels on fire In a hurry International intrigue dodge Private eye business Lighting up the tilt sign Lying Long green Money Mushroom people People who come out at night to play Smog in the noggin' Memory loss Stable the horses Park the cars Washington A dollar

More Cool Fifties Slang Agitate the Gravel - To leave (hot-rodders)

Ankle-biter - A child

Ape Used with go - to explode or be really mad

Are you writing a book? - You're asking too many questions





Baby - Cute girl, term of address for either sex

Back seat bingo - Necking in a car

Bad news - Depressing person

Bash - Great party

Bent eight - a V-8 engine (hot-rodders)

Big Daddy - An older person

Big tickle - Really funny

Bit - An act

Blast - A good time

Blow off - To defeat in a race (hot-rodders)

Bobbed - Shortened

Boss - Great

Bread - Money

Bug "You bug me" - to bother

Burn rubber - To accelerate hard and fast (hot-rodders) top Cast an eyeball - To look

Cat - A hip person (Beats)

Chariot - Car (Beats)

Cherry - Originally, an unaltered car. Later, anything attractive (hot-rodders, originally)

Chrome-plated - Dressed up (hot-rodders, originally)

Circled - Married

Classy chassis - Great body

Cloud 9 - Really happy

Clutched - Rejected

Clyde - Term of address, usually for a normal person (Beats)

Cook, cookin' - Doing it well

Cool - Indefinable quality that makes something or someone extraordinary

Cool it - Relax, settle down

Cooties - Imaginary infestations of the truly un-cool

Cranked - Excited (Beats)

Crazy "Like crazy,man" - Implies an especially good thing

Cream - Originally, to dent a car. Later, to badly damage (hot-rodders, originally)

Cruisin' for a bruisin' - Looking for trouble

Cube - A normal person

Cut the gas - Be quiet!

Cut out - Leave



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Daddy-O - Term of address (Beats)

D.D.T. (Drop Dead Twice) - Response: What, and look like you?

Deuce - A 1932 Ford (hot-rodders)

Dibs - A claim - as in "got dibs" on that seat

Dig - To understand; to approve

Dolly - Cute girl

Don't have a cow - Don't get so excited

Drag - (hot-rodders) A short car race; (Beats) A bore

Duck Butt or D.A. - Hairstyle of greasers where hair in back is combed to the middle, then with end of comb, make a middle part.



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Earthbound - Reliable

Epistle - Letter

Eyeball - Look around top



Fake Out - A bad date

Fast - Someone who was sexually active

Fat City - A great thing or place; Happy

Fire Up - Start your engine (hot-rodders)

Flat out - Fast as you can

Flat-top - Men's hairstyle. A crewcut which is flat across the top

Flick - A movie

Flip - To get very excited

Flip-top - A convertible car

Floor it - Push the accelerator to the floor (hot-rodders)

Fracture - To amuse

Fream - Someone who doesn't fit in

Frosted - Angry



top Get Bent! - Disparaging remark as in "drop dead"

Get with it - Understand

Gig - Work, job (Beats)

Go ape - Get very excited

Go for pinks - A drag race where the stakes are the car's pink slip (hot-rodders)

Goof - Someone who makes mistakes

Goopy - Messy

Goose it - Accelerate the car fully (hot-rodders)

Greaser - A guy with tons of grease in his hair, which later came to describe an entire group of people. Yes, John Travolta in Grease.

Grody - Sloppy, messy or dirty



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Hang - As in "hang out" which means to do very little

Haul ass - Drive very fast (hot-rodders)

Heat - Police (Beats)

Hep - With it, cool. Someone who knows the situation.

Hip - Someone who is cool, in the know. Very good.

Hipster - Same as above

Hopped up - A car modified for speed (hot-rodders)

Horn - Telephone

Hottie - A very fast car (hot-rodders)



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Illuminations - Good ideas, thoughts

In orbit - In the know

Ivy Leaguer - Pants style. Also any person who attended an Ivy League college



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Jacked Up - Car with raised rear end. (hot-rodders)

Jacketed - Going steady

Jelly Roll - Men's hair combed up and forward on both sides, brought together in the middle of the forehead.

Jets - Smarts, brains



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Kick - A fun or good thing; Also, a fad

Kill - To really impress

Knuckle sandwich - A fist in the face

Kookie - Nuts, in the nicest possible way



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Later, also later, gator - Goodbye. See ya later, alligator. Response: after while crocodile.

Lay a patch - To accelerate so rapidly that you leave a patch of rubber on the road.

Lay on - To give (Beats)

Lighter - A crew cut

Like crazy; like wow - Really good, better than cool



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Machine - A car (hot-rodders)

Made in the shade - Success guaranteed

Make out - A kissing session

Make the scene - To attend an event or activity

Meanwhile, back at the ranch - From TV Westerns. Usually used to get a storyteller back on track.

Mirror warmer - A piece of pastel fabric (often cashmere) tied around the rear view mirror. A 50s version of the Medieval wearing your lady's colors.

Most - A in "the most" - high praise usually of the opposite sex



top Nerd - Same as now. Bill Gates without the money.

Nest - A hair-do

Nod - Drift off to sleep

Nosebleed - As in hey, nosebleed - hey, stupid. Not a compliment!

No sweat - No problem

Nowhere - Opposite of cool. Nowheresville was a boring, bad place to be. (Beats)

Nuggets - Loose change



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Odd ball - Someone a bit off the norm

Off the line - Start of a drag race (hot-rodders)

On the stick - Pulled together. Bright, prepared...



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Pad - Home

Paper shaker - Cheerleader or Pom Pom girl

Party pooper - No fun at all

Passion Pit - Drive-in movie theatre

Peepers - Glasses

Pile up Z's - Get some sleep

Pooper - No fun at all

Pop the Clutch - Release the clutch pedal quickly so as to get a fast start

Pound - Beat up

Punch it - Step on the gas (hot-rodders)

Put down - To say bad things about someone



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Radioactive - Very popular

Rag Top - A convertible car

Rap - To tattle on someone (Beats)

Rattle your cage - Get upset

Raunchy - Messy or gross in some other way

Razz my berries - Excite or impress me

Real gone - Very much in love. Also unstable. Hmm, there's a difference?

Reds - The Communists

Righto - Okay

Rock - A diamond

Rocket - A car (hot-rodders)

Rod - A car (hot-rodders)

Royal shaft - Badly or unfairly treated



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Scream - Go fast

Screamer - A hot rod

Shoot low, they're riding Shetlands - Be careful

Shot down - Failed

Shuck, shuckster - A deceiver, liar or cheat

Sides - Vinyl records

Sing - To tattle or inform on someone (Beats)

Sounds - Music

Souped up - A car modified to go fast

Spaz - Someone who is uncoordinated. A clutz.

Split - Leave

Square - A regular, normal person. A conformist.

Stacked - A woman with large er, ah...you know, well endowed.

Stack up - To wreck a car (hotrodder)

Submarine races - While waiting for the submarines to race, which might take quite awhile :>) couples found creative ways of killing the time.

Subterranean - A hipster. Used by both Ginsberg and Kerouac. (Beats)



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Tank - A large sedan (usually driven by parents)

Tear ass - Drive (or go) very fast

That's close - Something wrong or not true

Think Fast - Usually said right before someone threw something at you

Threads - Clothes

Tight - Good friends

Total - To completely destroy, most often in reference to a car



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Unreal - Exceptional



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Wail - Go fast

Wazoo - Your rear end

Weed - A cigarette

Wet rag - Someone who's just no fun

Word from the bird - The truth (Beats)

What's buzzin, cuzzin - What's new?

What's you tale, nightingale - What's the story?

Wheelie - Left the car's front wheels off the ground by rapid acceleration top



