Cattle call

[nq:1]Will you tell me why an audition for a large number of inexperienced actors/actresses are called "cattle call"?[/nq]
Because the wannabes are treated like cattle - herded here and there, given virtually no individual attention, treated as a mob. It's probably a coincidence that 'cattle' is an old-fashioned term for a group of prostitutes, esp. 'sad cattle'.

John Dean
Oxford

J
[nq:1]Because the wannabes are treated like cattle - herded here and there, given virtually no individual attention, treated as a mob. It's probably a coincidence that 'cattle' is an old-fashioned term for a group of prostitutes, esp. 'sad cattle'.[/nq]
Thank you for your prompt reply.
What does the "call" here refer to? Does it mean that the wannabes are called? Or Is that a cry of

[nq:1]J[/nq]
[nq:2]Because the wannabes are treated like cattle - herded here ... old-fashioned term for a group of prostitutes, esp. 'sad cattle'.[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you for your prompt reply. What does the "call" here refer to? Does it mean that the wannabes are ... prompting. 8. Sports. A decision made by an umpire or referee. 9. A demand for payment, as of a debt.[/nq]
None of the ab

masahiko typed thus:
[nq:1]J[/nq]
[nq:2]Because the wannabes are treated like cattle - herded here ... old-fashioned term for a group of prostitutes, esp. 'sad cattle'.[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you for your prompt reply. What does the "call" here refer to? Does it mean that the wannabes are ... prompting. 8. Sports. A decision made by an umpire or referee. 9. A demand for payment, as of a debt

[nq:1]It's most likely to be number 6 - an invitation - by extension from "casting call".[/nq]
Or more specifically, as a pun on "casting call".

Mark Brader "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you Toronto do say can and will be misquoted and used against (Email Removed) you in a future post." Tanja Cooper, misquoted

[nq:1]masahiko typed thus:[/nq]
[nq:2]J Thank you for your prompt reply. What does the ... referee. 9. A demand for payment, as of a debt.[/nq]
[nq:1]It's most likely to be number 6 - an invitation - by extension from "casting call".[/nq]
And curtain call. It may have something to do with roll-call.

OED has a distinct entry:
h. A notification, either verbal or written, sum

[nq:2]masahiko typed thus: It's most likely to be number 6 - an invitation - by extension from "casting call".[/nq]
[nq:1]And curtain call. It may have something to do with roll-call.[/nq]
And "cattle call," I'd imagine, unless Tex Owens made that up.

SML
http://pirate-women.com

[nq:1]None of the above. Possibly 4 or 6, but it's really just a theater term for an opportunity to audition.[/nq]
Specifically an opportunity open to anybody. A good friend of mine is a casting director (though for movies and TV rather than the stage, which might well be different), and I get the impression that most auditions, even for the bit parts, are actually by invitation.

Evan

[nq:1]J[/nq]
[nq:2]Because the wannabes are treated like cattle - herded here ... old-fashioned term for a group of prostitutes, esp. 'sad cattle'.[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you for your prompt reply. What does the "call" here refer to? Does it mean that the wannabes are called? Or Is that a cry of animal?[/nq]
This one:

[nq:2]masahiko typed thus: It's most likely to be number 6 - an invitation - by extension from "casting call".[/nq]
[nq:1]And curtain call. It may have something to do with roll-call.[/nq]
And perhaps even to Alfred Hitchcock:
"I never said all actors are cattle; what I said was all actors should be treated like cattle."