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Usenet Posted 21 years ago
Usage

[ OT] Do a Brody

Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit suicide by jumping? I've just read across it, have never heard it.

According to: http://www.linkingpage.com/spenser/hush.html

Steve Brodie was "a New Yorker who claimed in 1886 that he had survived a jump from the Brooklyn Bridge. Since the feat was not verified,his celebrity was tainted with incredulity. 'To do a Brodie' came to mean (1) to fail extravagantly, (2) to perform a dangerous stunt, and (3) to commit suicide by jumping."
  

Top answer

[nq:1]Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit suicide by jumping? I've just read across it, have never ... "[/nq] I've heard/seen it used.

  • [nq:1]Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit suicide by jumping?
  • I've just read across it, have never ...
  • "[/nq] I've heard/seen it used.
  • The only usages I've seen/heard have been about the jumping part, though.
  • I can't say it's common, but I've seen/heard it enough to immediately catch the reference.
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7 Answers
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[nq:1]Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit suicide by jumping? I've just read across it, have never ... came to mean (1) to fail extravagantly, (2) to perform a dangerous stunt, and (3) to commit suicide by jumping."[/nq]
I've heard/seen it used. The only usages I've seen/heard have been about the jumping part, though. I can't say it's common, but I've seen/heard it enough to i
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[nq:2]Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit ... a dangerous stunt, and (3) to commit suicide by jumping."[/nq]
[nq:1]I've heard/seen it used. The only usages I've seen/heard have been about the jumping part, though. I can't say it's common, but I've seen/heard it enough to immediately catch the reference. It's not all that often I see/hear references to suicide by jumping off th
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[nq:2]I've heard/seen it used. The only usages I've seen/heard have ... often I see/hear references to suicide by jumping off things.[/nq]
[nq:1]Was that "Diamond Jim" Brody? I have a vague recollection of a movie biography of him in the 1940s.[/nq]
"Diamond Jim" was a Brady.
(1856-1917). A hotel bellboy and a messenger for a railroad company as a young man, Diamond Jim Brady built a f
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[nq:2]Have you ever heard "did a Brody", meaning to commit ... a dangerous stunt, and (3) to commit suicide by jumping."[/nq]
[nq:1]I've heard/seen it used. The only usages I've seen/heard have been about the jumping part, though. I can't say it's common, but I've seen/heard it enough to immediately catch the reference. It's not all that often I see/hear references to suicide by jumping off th
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[nq:2]Was that "Diamond Jim" Brody? I have a vague recollection of a movie biography of him in the 1940s.[/nq]
[nq:1]"Diamond Jim" was a Brady.[/nq]
Right. Miss Jean was a Brody.

dg (domain=ccwebster)
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[nq:2]"Diamond Jim" was a Brady.[/nq]
[nq:1]Right. Miss Jean was a Brody.[/nq]
No, she was a Brodie.

John Varela
(Trade "OLD" lamps for "NEW" for email.)
I apologize for munging the address but the spam was too much.
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In article , John Varela (Email Removed) hath writ:
[nq:1]No, she was a Brodie.[/nq]
Right.

dg (domain=ccwebster)

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