# Big fat hairy deal **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-strips\ **Created:** [June 1, 2024, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-fat-hairy-deal/1002399 "2024-06-01T23:56:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2024, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-fat-hairy-deal/1002399/1 "2024-06-01T23:56:24Z")
Was the Garfield comic strip the first place this exact phrase was used? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2024, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-fat-hairy-deal/1002399/2 "2024-06-02T00:57:02Z")
[Google Ngram Viewer](https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=big+fat+hairy+deal&year_start=1800&year_end=2019&corpus=en-2019&smoothing=3) indicates that that phrase didn’t show up in published works until 1984. Given that _Garfield_ was first published in 1978, and really hit its stride – with both syndication levels and merchandising – in the early '80s, I suppose it’s possible. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2024, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-fat-hairy-deal/1002399/3 "2024-06-02T18:21:34Z")
We were using it as kids at least 10 years before _Garfield_ debuted. It was a variant of BFD which when asked by “sensitive” people meant “big fuzzy duck” although “big fat deal” was also sometimes used as an explanation.