Spit-take
A spit-take is a
An essential part of the spit-take is
In performance, a spit-take represents a reaction of shock, while in real life it is typically one of mirth.
"Spit take" was included in the
Etymology
The spit-take, as a comedic technique, is a noun, but it shows up in media in some different forms. It can be seen used figuratively in a description of a satire work, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping: "(it) is a spit-take on the world of contemporary pop music and celebrity..."
It can also be used as a verb: "On the morning of May 12, LinkedIn ... emailed scores of my contacts and told them I'm a professional racist. It was one of those updates that LinkedIn regularly sends its users, algorithmically assembled missives about their connections' appearances in the media.... This surely caused a few of my professional acquaintances to spit-take. — Will Johnson, Slate, 24 May 2016."[2]
The conjugation of spit-take as a verb is not clearly defined. There is evidence of both "spit-taked" and "spit took." Constructions like "made me spit-take" are convenient for avoiding this issue all together. Beyond that, leaving the phrase as a noun, like "do a spit-take," continues to be the most common usage.
Origin
Originally called a spit gag, the word itself most likely dates to the early 20th century, but it mostly existed in showbiz vernacular.
Danny Thomas, commonly associated with the spit-take, is credited[by whom?] as the comedian who made it famous. It is sometimes referred to as the "Danny Thomas spit take." He perfected it during the 11 seasons of The Danny Thomas Show (1953-1964). However, Ricky Ricardo did it a year earlier in an I Love Lucy (1951-1957) episode. Also a year before Thomas, a spit-take was performed by David Bruce in a 1952 episode of Beulah (1950-1953), "The New Arrival." It has been used in several sitcoms since.
The "spit" part of the term is clear, but the "take" part is a little less obvious. In this context, the word "take" is used in the sense of a visible response or reaction (as to something unexpected). It is similar in construction to the phrase "double-take".[3]
References
- OxfordDictionaries.com. Archived from the originalon August 14, 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Johnson, Will (May 24, 2016). "LinkedIn Called Me a White Supremacist". Slate.com. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
- Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved 18 September 2019.