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Wowser
"Wowser" is an Australian and New Zealand term that refers to a person who seeks to deprive others of behaviour deemed to be immoral or sinful. History The term originated in Australia, at first carrying a similar meaning to "lout" (an annoying or disruptive person, or even a prostitute). Around 1900 it shifted to its present meaning: one whose sense of morality drives them to deprive others of their sinful pleasures, especially liquor. The term was particularly applied to members of temperance groups such as the antipodean branches of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. John Norton, editor of the Australian scandal newspaper, ''Truth'', claimed he first used the word in 1899, a claim supported by the OED. However some authors claim that the present meaning originated from an Australian temperance slogan, "We Only Want Social Evils Remedied." This apparent backronym is considered a "less credible provenance" by the ANU. The Australian writer C. J. Dennis defined it thus: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Norton (journalist)
John Norton (25 January 1857 – 9 April 1916) was an English-born Australian journalist, editor and member of the New South Wales Parliament. He was a writer and newspaper proprietor best known for his Sydney newspaper ''Truth''. Norton was arguably one of Australia's most controversial public figures ever. Life, career and controversy John Norton claimed to have been born in Brighton, Sussex, England, but may have been born in London. He was the only son of John Norton, stonemason, who died before he was born. His mother, Mary Davis, in 1860 married Benjamin Timothy Herring, a silk-weaver, who allegedly mistreated his stepson. Norton apparently spent some time in Paris, where he learned to speak French. He claimed to have walked to Constantinople in 1880, where he became a journalist. Norton emigrated to Australia in 1884 and soon became chief reporter on the '' Evening News'', which supported free trade. In 1885 he edited the official report of the Third Intercolonial Trad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Larrikinism
Larrikin is an Australian English term meaning "a mischievous young person, an uncultivated, rowdy but good hearted person", or "a person who acts with apparent disregard for social or political conventions". In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the term generally meant "a lout, a hoodlum" or "a young urban rough, a hooligan", meanings which became obsolete. Etymology The word ''larrikin'' was a dialect term meaning "mischievous or frolicsome youth" originating from the West Midlands region of England (particularly the counties of Worcestershire and Warwickshire). It was also related to the verb ''to larrack'' in the Yorkshire dialect, meaning 'to lark about'. While ''larrikin'' eventually fell into disuse in its place of origin, the word started to become widely used in the streets of Melbourne from the late 1860s. The term ''larrikin'' was reported in an English dialect dictionary in 1905, referring to 'a mischievous or frolicsome youth'. The word ''lupikin'', from S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norman Lindsay
Norman Alfred William Lindsay (22 February 1879 – 21 November 1969) was an Australian artist, etcher, sculptor, writer, art critic, novelist, cartoonist and amateur boxing, boxer. One of the most prolific and popular Australian artists of his generation, Lindsay attracted both acclaim and controversy for his works, many of which infused the Australian landscape with erotic paganism, pagan elements and were deemed by his critics to be "anti-Christian, anti-social and degenerate". A vocal Australian nationalism, nationalist, he became a regular artist for ''The Bulletin (Australian periodical), The Bulletin'' at the height of its cultural influence, and advanced staunchly anti-modern art, modernist views as a leading writer on Australian art. When friend and literary critic Bertram Stevens (critic), Bertram Stevens argued that children like to read about fairies rather than food, Lindsay wrote and illustrated ''The Magic Pudding'' (1918), now considered a classic work of Australi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Encyclopedia Of New Zealand
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Mercury
''The American Mercury'' was an American magazine published from 1924Staff (Dec. 31, 1923)"Bichloride of Mercury."''Time''. to 1981. It was founded as the brainchild of H. L. Mencken and drama critic George Jean Nathan. The magazine featured writing by some of the most important writers in the United States through the 1920s and 1930s. After a change in ownership in the 1940s, the magazine attracted conservative writers, including William F. Buckley. A second change in ownership in the 1950s turned the magazine into a far-right and virulently anti-Semitic publication. It was published monthly in New York City. The magazine went out of business in 1981, having spent the last 25 years of its existence in decline and controversy. History H. L. Mencken and George Jean Nathan had previously edited ''The Smart Set'' literary magazine, when not producing their own books and, in Mencken's case, regular journalism for ''The Baltimore Sun''. With their mutual book publisher Alfred A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Political Terminology In Australia
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies politics and government is referred to as political science. It may be used positively in the context of a "political solution" which is compromising and nonviolent, or descriptively as "the art or science of government", but also often carries a negative connotation.. The concept has been defined in various ways, and different approaches have fundamentally differing views on whether it should be used extensively or limitedly, empirically or normatively, and on whether conflict or co-operation is more essential to it. A variety of methods are deployed in politics, which include promoting one's own political views among people, negotiation with other political subjects, making laws, and exercising internal and external force, including war ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pejorative Terms For People
A pejorative or slur is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard. Sometimes, a term is regarded as pejorative in some social or ethnic groups but not in others, or may be originally pejorative but later adopt a non-pejorative sense (or vice versa) in some or all contexts. Etymology The word ''pejorative'' is derived from a Late Latin past participle stem of ''peiorare'', meaning "to make worse", from ''peior'' "worse". Pejoration and melioration In historical linguistics, the process of an inoffensive word becoming pejorative is a form of semantic drift known as pejoration. An example of pejoration is the shift in meaning of the word ''silly'' from meaning that a person was happy and fortunate to meaning that they are foolish and unsophisticated. The process of pejoration can repeat itself around a single concept, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australian Slang
Australian English is a major variety of the English language spoken throughout Australia. Most of the vocabulary of Australian English is shared with British English, though there are notable differences. The vocabulary of Australia is drawn from many sources, including various dialects of British English as well as Gaelic languages, some Indigenous Australian languages, and Polynesian languages. One of the first dictionaries of Australian slang was Karl Lentzner's ''Dictionary of the Slang-English of Australia and of Some Mixed Languages'' in 1892. The first dictionary based on historical principles that covered Australian English was E. E. Morris's ''Austral English: A Dictionary of Australasian Words, Phrases and Usages'' (1898). In 1981, the more comprehensive ''Macquarie Dictionary of Australian English'' was published. Oxford University Press published the ''Australian Oxford Dictionary'' in 1999, in concert with the Australian National University. Oxford University P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Teetotaller
Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is simply said to be teetotal. Globally, almost half of adults do not drink alcohol (excluding those who used to drink but have stopped). Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the ''tee-'' in ''teetotal'' is the letter T, so it is actually ''t-total'', though it was never spelled that way. The word is first recorded in 1832 in a general sense in an American source, and in 1833 in England in the context of abstinence. Since at first it was used in other contexts as an emphasised form of ''total'', the ''tee-'' is presumably a reduplication of the first letter of ''total'', much as contemporary idiom today might say "total with a capital T". The teetotalism movement was first started in Preston, England, in the early 19th ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North American box office, making him one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He has received various awards and nominations, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards and seven Primetime Emmy Awards. Damon began his acting career in the film ''Mystic Pizza'' (1988). He continued acting in ''Courage Under Fire'' (1996) and '' The Rainmaker'' (1997). He gained prominence in 1997 when he and Ben Affleck wrote and starred in '' Good Will Hunting'', which won them the Academy and Golden Globe awards for Best Screenplay. He established himself as a leading man by starring as Tom Ripley in '' The Talented Mr. Ripley'' (1999), Jason Bourne in the ''Bourne'' franchise ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don Cheadle
Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned nominations for an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards and 11 Primetime Emmy Awards. His Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony nominations make him one of few black individuals to be nominated for the four major American entertainment awards (EGOT). Following early roles in '' Hamburger Hill'' (1987), and as the gangster "Rocket" in the film '' Colors'' (1988), Cheadle built his career in the 1990s with roles in ''Devil in a Blue Dress'' (1995), '' Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault'' (1996), ''Rosewood'' (1997), and ''Boogie Nights'' (1997). His collaboration with director Steven Soderbergh resulted in the films ''Out of Sight'' (1998), ''Traffic'' (2000), '' The Ocean's Trilogy'' (2001–2007), and '' No Sudden Move'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ocean's Thirteen
''Ocean's Thirteen'' (stylized as ''Ocean's 13'') is a 2007 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Brian Koppelman and David Levien. It is the final installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy and the sequel to ''Ocean's Twelve'' (2004). The film features an ensemble cast including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy García, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Ellen Barkin, Al Pacino, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Shaobo Qin, Carl Reiner, and Elliott Gould. Filming began in July 2006 in Las Vegas and Los Angeles. The film was screened as an Out of Competition presentation at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival on May 24, 2007, and was released theatrically in the United States on June 8, by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $311.7 million worldwide. Plot Reuben Tishkoff builds a hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip; against advice from his friend and erstwhile criminal p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
