In fact, I soon took up a more formal approach to western cussing, adopting such stock terms as crimany, jiminy, pshal, and I vum. It turns out that the pedigree of swearing in the West—and such swearing was once referred to with the beautiful phrase airin’ the lungs —is in fact quite distinguished. most baby lips, while our vision is assailed by sights of the most lamentable character. And finally, for all you who think the potty mouths on "Deadwood" are innaccurate, there's this: Once and for all, did the miners and gamblers in Deadwood talk as profanely as David Milch has portrayed them in his fictional HBO series, "Deadwood"? "Abortion": An odd, Rube Goldberg-like piece of machinery. A few days ago I was in conversation with a friend when, as is my habit, I casually described a prominent local politician as chickenshit, while also characterizing this representative’s self-important, disingenuous prattle as horseshit. I personally don't buy the "gol-darn-it" school of thought regarding "Deadwood." 15 Old West Oregon curse words for the 'Deadwood' movie (photos) Updated Jan 09, 2019; Posted Jan 10, 2016 'Deadwood,' Oregon and the language of the Old West. Much of it is embarrassing, but all of it is painfully true. The word - which rhymes with duck -- was a four-letter reminder, accented by an unforgettable mandolin-and-fiddle score, of how the very essence of the Western frontier was a revolt against Victorian culture. He has teeth so crooked he could eat corn on the cob through a picket... CRAZY. For example, I seem routinely to disremember my children’s elementary school talent shows—where, if I were so unfortunate as to remember them, I would be subjected to an interminable lineup of kids breathlessly shrieking out Taylor Swift songs in voices that could worm a sheep. I think it's safe to say, this has been going on for about three to ten thousand years, and as long as there are grandparents, kids will grow up believing that swearing is a flippin' new thing. As I began to lamp that if I didn’t mend my ways and hobble my latchpan I was going to be in for it, I fetched up on the idea of just blathering western all the time. After all, it ought to be immediately apparent that horseshit is bullshit, while chickenshit, a different matter entirely, is moral cowardice. It soon became clear that the contents of the swear jar were on pace to eclipse the girls’ college savings, and that was without a single contribution from anyone else in the family. Interesting. "Allow me a moment's silence, Mr. Hearst, sir," E.B. Sheepherders helped us see what it means to be on the fence or dyed in the wool; they also made stories into yarns, which they spun, sometimes in order to fleece the listener. By the end of the first year of the town's existence, in 1877, the historical record shows that the town was experiencing, on average, a murder every day. When I was finally through, Dondo just handed me a cup of black coffee—and his hoothouse blackwater, by the way, could float a pony—and then he phoned Eryn to ask her to come pick me up. It overturned the cart and galloped away, destroying the farmer's produce. The transcript of their testimony contains practically every swear word ever used in "Deadwood." And here I pause to editorialize that lickfinger is the greatest euphemism for obsequiousness ever invented.) Why then would anyone possibly think the people in the past would use modern verbiage?It is extremely doubtful that the f-bomb was used but words that at the era meant the same were certainly being used as was the case with "Flapdoodle". If we can’t communicate through the use of profanity, I wondered, what the hell is left? Yet the very first law the town passed, the first in its entire existence, was a law against profanity -- because THAT had gotten out of hand. "Dirty blue dick": An expression used instead of swearing. He was thrilled. m_gallery_creation_date = "Saturday, January 09, 2016, 2:52 PM"; 1860's ~ 1880's. “Bill,” says I, “you’re a no count flannel mouth chiseling chuckleheaded gadabout coffee boiler (no good, smooth-talking, dishonest, ignorant, jawflapping, lazy ass), and if you reckon you can fob me out of my oof with your rumbumptious monkey shines, then you’ve got the wrong pig by the tail. Profanity, slang, vernacular, and hyperbole were once woven deeply into the fabric of western life and manners. While we may have seen depictions of the Old West in movies and TV, we can’t help but wonder what the lawless frontier was actually like. It appears to me that historians who claim "Deadwood's" profanity is too modern or too frequent haven't read history's documents closely enough. . And, by one estimate, the local museum in Deadwood touts, the men to women ratio in Deadwood at that time was 100 to one. But then again, I KNOW my mom did not engage in carnality, so where did I and my brothers and sisters come from? I don't think those were used, for the most part (although the "f" word was). Is the cursing in Deadwood overdone--of course it is. The first time I saw "Mad Dog Morgan" with Dennis Hopper (I didn't see the movie with Dennis, he was the star of the film. As a writer and a certified curmudgeon, I especially appreciate that early printers expressed the feeling of being out of sorts—a term that refers to the grouchy mood brought on when a printer runs out of letters while setting type. “I’m a writer, honey. That way I could say exactly what I wanted to, do it forcefully and colorfully, and not have to arrange for direct deposit of my paycheck to the damned swear jar. “Dondo,” says I, bustin’ through the swinging doors of the Risky Biscuit Saloon, “you know plain right that I’m a dabster lapper (know very well that I’m an expert drinker), and that I’m here to get corned (tipsy), fuddled (slightly drunk), slewed (moderately drunk), whittled (quite drunk) and, directly, full as a tick (very drunk). After a decade in the wilderness, I don't know what I'm more excited about: Seeing Mr. Wu's pigs once again dispose of the Old West's detritus or hearing the curlicue 1870s language that made the TV series so brilliant. Crate up the sheepherder’s delight and tarantula juice (put away the cheap whiskey) and bust out some dynamite (whiskey) and neck oil (whiskey). m_gallery_title = "\'Deadwood,\' Oregon and the language of the Old West"; Rants from the Hill: After many years of essay writing, a wave goodbye, Rants from the Hill: A romance in Reno, land of the second chance, Wolverines denied endangered species protections, The Alaska Native village of Kake defends their right to hunt, Inhospitable, remote and compelling: The island swallowed by nowhere, Today’s wildfire modeling ‘just sucks’ for flames fueled by climate change, Between California and Colombia, the internet becomes home, The Alaska Native village of Kake defends their right to hunt, We need to ‘see’ buffalo before we can restore them. I don't think any self-respecting miner, gambler or gunfighter in the Old West ever walked into a saloon and said, "What in tarnation is goin' on in here?". Just because damn and hell became d--- and h--- in the newspaper doesn't mean people didn't SAY the words, they were quotes after all. m_gallery_json = "https://blog.oregonlive.com/photogallery/4450/19520175.json"; Now, Dondo, go at it like you’re killing rattlers (energetically)! The language in Deadwood was used for shock value because it was pay-cable TV and they wanted to see what they could get away with and distance themselves from broadcast TV. Foul language has been with us from time memorial but why we insist on injecting modern verbiage into history truly mystifies. Get True West for LIFE...Click here! Even my children agree. m_gallery_id = "19520175"; I think it is as today as it was in Deadwood days. The up side was that I was able to air my lungs without being fired, or even having to pay into the swear jar. Liquor me on sheep dip (pour me whiskey) until I’ve a brick in my hat (am unthinkably drunk) and I wake with roaring case of barrel fever (a massive hangover)! Set me up (pour me) some of that anti-fogmatic (whiskey), tanglefoot (whiskey), and snake poison (whiskey), and bust out some bumblebee (whiskey), clinch mountain (whiskey), and coffin varnish (whiskey) to boot! I read a memoir of a young, newlywed farmer's wife from the late 1880s who was supposed to go to town, but the trip got cancelled and so she decided to eat her sack lunch she had prepared for the trip, out in the shade of the barn where her husband and hired hands were working. Well, I was feeling above snakes from getting the drop on my boss with my pink westernized lingo, so I trampoosed two whoops and a holler over to the watering hole to check my capital bar dog. “Rants from the Hill” are Michael Branch’s monthly musings on life in the high country of western Nevada’s Great Basin Desert. According to Historian George N. Belknap, only two copies of the original "To the World!" : AskHistorians. How about a brief history of the word "f^ck"?https://www.huffingtonpost.com/melissa-mohr/a-fcking-short-history-of_b_3352948.html. Well, Bill was not only difficulted by my sayings, but downright funkified, so I just sidled out of his office with a satisfied squinny. For those historians who say the profanity in the show was overdone or anachronistic, I submit these two remarks. I was alone at the time. —Jana Bommersbach, columnist, and contributing editor, Deadwood got it right--profanity was part and parcel of normal, everyday talk in the mining camps and frontier towns. And two, to use the term "dadgum" is just priceless, and three, our fellow Western authors can be quite staid. Did they cuss in front of women and children--never, unless they wanted to get shot by an outraged husband, brother or bystander. "Den up": To retire working for the winter or during rough weather. And I'm with Oscar Wilde: "I am not young enough to know everything.". Set up red eye (whiskey), bottled courage (whiskey), rookus juice (whiskey), and oh-be-joyful (whiskey) for every last poke down the rail (man at the bar). Because nobody can remember their grandparents swearing. And even if we’ve forgotten the difference between chickenshit and horseshit, we remember what it means to be buffaloed, to be in cahoots, or to get something done by hook or by crook. "Language - both obscene and complicated - was one of the few resources of society that was available to these people," Milch offered in his book "The New Language of the Old West." And prepare to break the bad news to that crippled sow bear that she’ll have to suck her paws this winter, because they won’t be able to buy her a dam . Times change and so does the usage of language. © 2020 Advance Local Media LLC. Are you a True West Maniac? Do we use any of these today? I like to think of myself as a New West kind of guy, but all this regulation and penalizing of what I view as an essential mode of self-expression caused me to wonder what the tradition of profanity in the Old West might have been. Please support high-quality local journalism. And even rough-hewn miners and cowboys held their tongues a tad around a lady. I have had this conversation repeatedly with several of my fellow western authors. The Jersey Lily in Ingomar, Montana. It originated with a popular Old West fable of a farmer who rushed to town when he heard the circus was coming. All rights reserved (About Us). Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. ", —Paul Hutton, A Distinguished Professor of History at The University of New Mexico. With the help of Engeman and R.G. If Less Is More, When Is Too Much Not Enough? ", Such colloquy an example of what Richard Engeman, noted Oregon historian, author and curator of the excellent Oregon Rediviva blog once described to me as "public cursing that didn't involve any curse words.".