# crazy like a fox...what's the origin?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-like-a-fox-whats-the-origin/231558
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [February 28, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-like-a-fox-whats-the-origin/231558 "2004-02-28T01:00:20Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![cygnusl00p](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc29f/32.png) [@cygnusl00p](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cygnusl00p)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-like-a-fox-whats-the-origin/231558/1 "2004-02-28T01:00:20Z")

</div>

I’ve heard people use the phrase “crazy like a fox”, and it has an established meaning, but I don’t know where it originated. Can anyone help me?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)
#### Post date: [February 28, 2004, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crazy-like-a-fox-whats-the-origin/231558/2 "2004-02-28T03:53:59Z")

</div>

[From Word Wizard.](http://www.wordwizard.com/clubhouse/founddiscuss1.asp?Num=1688)  
Humourist S.J Perelman used it as a title of his book in the 1940s. The phrase seems to date from the 1900s.