Useless info.
Theogenes fought and killed 1,425 opponents
In ancient days, the rulers of Greece and Rome would amuse
themselves and their subjects through gladiatorial combats
in which men fought to the death for the amusement of the
spectators. History records that the greatest of these
gladiators was a Greek called Theogenes, a native of Thasos.
Theogenes served a cruel prince named Thesus, who reigned
about 900 B.C. Thesus delighted in sadistic spectacles and
ordained a combat that was especially vicious. The two
contestants-if they can be called such-were
placed facing each other, almost nose to nose, each on a
flat stone. Both men were strapped into place. Their fists
were encased in leather thongs which were studded with
small, sharp metal spikes. At a given signal, they would
strike at each other, and the combat would continue,
without rest, until one of the contestants had been beaten
to death.
During a long career, Theogenes-strong, skillful and savage-
faced 1,425 men and killed every one of them.
SON OF A GUN
Meaning: An epithet.
Origin: In the 1800s, British sailors took women along on
extended voyages. When babies were born at sea, the mothers
delivered them in a partitioned section of the gundeck.
Because no one could be sure who the true fathers were,
each of these "gunnery" babies was jokingly called a "son
of a gun."
PUT UP YOUR DUKES
Meaning: Raise your fists and get ready to fight.
Origin: In the early 1800s, the Duke of York, Frederick
Augustus, shocked English society by taking up boxing. He
gained such admiration from boxers that many started
referring to their fists as the "Dukes of York," and
later, "dukes."
HAVE AN AXE TO GRIND
Meaning: Have a hidden agenda.
Origin: The expression comes from a story told by Benjamin
Franklin. A man once praised Franklin's father's grindstone
and asked young Benjamin to demonstrate how the grindstone
worked. As Franklin complied, the stranger placed his own
axe upon the grindstone, praising the young boy for his
cleverness and vigor. When the axe was sharpened, the man
laughed at Franklin and walked away, giving the boy a
valuable lesson about people with "an axe to grind."
UPPER CRUST
Meaning: Elite.
Origin: In the Middle Ages, the highest-level nobility and
royalty were served the choice part of a loaf of bread,
the "upper crust," before it was offered to other diners.
MEET A DEADLINE
Meaning: Finish a project by an appointed me.
Origin: The phrase was born in prisoner-of-war camps during
the Civil War. Because resources were scarce, the prison
camps were sometimes nothing more than a plot of land
surrounded by a marked line. If a prisoner tried to cross
the line, he would be shot. So it became known as
the "deadline."
TOE THE LINE
Meaning: Behave or act in accordance with the rules.
Origin: In the early days of the British Parliament,
members wore swords in the House of Commons. To keep the
members from fighting during heated debates, the Speaker of
the House of Commons forced the Government and Opposition
parties to sit on opposite sides of the chamber. Lines, two
sword-lengths plus one foot apart, were drawn in the
carpet. Members were required to stand behind the lines
when the House was in session. To this day, when a member
steps over the line during a debate, the speaker
yells: "Toe the line!"
SECOND STRING
Meaning: Replacement or backup.
Origin: You might have caught William Tell without an
apple, but not without a second string. In medieval times,
an archer always carried a second string in case the one on
his bow broke.
IN THE LIMELIGHT
Meaning: At the center of attention.
Origin: In 1826, Thomas Drummond invented the limelight, an
amazingly bright white light, by running an intense oxygen-
hydrogen flame through a lime cylinder. At first, the
bright light was used in lighthouses to direct ships.
Later, theaters began using the limelight like a spotlight -
- to direct the audience's attention to a certain actor. If
an actor was to be the focal point of a particular scene,
he was thrust "into the limelight."
FLASH IN THE PAN
Meaning: Short-lived success.
Origin: In the 1700s, the pan of a flintlock musket was the
part that held the gunpowder. If all went well, sparks
from the flint would ignite the charge, which would then
propel the bullet out of the barrel. However, sometimes the
gun powder would burn without igniting a main charge. The
flash would burn brightly but only briefly, with no lasting
effect. |
