gremlin

Use this forum to suggest Good Words for Professor Beard.
sardith
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gremlin

Postby sardith » Mon Sep 26, 2011 3:06 am

Dr. Goodword,

I was watching a show about a company, whose expertise was bridge moving. I saw as they picked up huge sections of bridge with a Chinook helicopter, but as they were going to set it down, one of their support trucks below, became stuck in the mud, making it impossible for the bridge to be lowered.

This is when I heard the Chinook pilot say, "Looks like we have a gremlin here," referring to the foulup, and the operation ground to a halt.

That was a new one to me, probably because Walt Disney and then Hollywood feature films got ahold of the essence of the gremlin by the time I came along.

I'd like to see what you would do with this word, Doc. Now that I understand the mechanical reference though, I would like to know, whose brilliant idea it was to give a vehicle this moniker? Could it, perhaps have been the same genius who named the Chevy Nova and subsequently launched a marketing campaign in Latin America? :oops: :roll:

Looking forward,
Sardith 8)
“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.”
~Mark Twain, [pen name for Samuel Clemens], American author and humorist, (1835-1910)~

Perry Lassiter
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Postby Perry Lassiter » Mon Sep 26, 2011 11:19 am

I don't know the derivation, but I remember as a kid the term was used frequently in WW II to refer to mischievous elf-like beings that sabotaged manufacturing efforts. The term quickly became more general. We still use it around our house to refer to the musterious beings who hide and replace car keys and variously create problems in washing machines, etc.
pl

LukeJavan8
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Postby LukeJavan8 » Sun Oct 02, 2011 12:42 pm

I don't know the derivation, but I remember as a kid the term was used frequently in WW II to refer to mischievous elf-like beings that sabotaged manufacturing efforts. The term quickly became more general. We still use it around our house to refer to the musterious beings who hide and replace car keys and variously create problems in washing machines, etc.

I was just going to make the same comment: elves in
the working mechanisms sabotaging the inner workings.
That is how I remember it best.
(I only met him once, so am not bragging too much,
but my cousin was the director of the movie "Gremlins")
Only saw the movie once too.
-----please, draw me a sheep-----


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