# Favourite fictional swearing **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 18, 2018, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084 "2018-02-18T21:38:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/61 "2018-02-19T17:10:45Z")
Has nobody mentioned “holy motherforking shirtballs?” ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/62 "2018-02-19T17:23:59Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Has nobody mentioned “holy motherforking shirtballs?” Or “Mother Pus-bucket”? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/63 "2018-02-19T17:32:32Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > Belgium! Ugh…some offenses are just too disgusting to even call out in The Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/64 "2018-02-19T17:41:47Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Has nobody mentioned “holy motherforking shirtballs?” Post #27 (except I forgot the “mother” part). ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/65 "2018-02-19T17:44:34Z")
W.C. Fields: “Godfrey Daniels!” “Mother-of-Pearl!” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/66 "2018-02-19T17:44:52Z")
Others have mentioned Yosemite Sam, but not his most famous line: “Great Horny Toads!!” Perry White (Clark Kent/Superman’s) editor was fond of “Great Caeser’s Ghost” as an epitaph back on the 1960’s TV show. While others have mentioned “Bastidges”, it’s close relative “Bastich” is the go-to swear word for the comic book character Lobo. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/67 "2018-02-19T17:50:47Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > ‘Gorram’ from _Firefly_, plus all the actual Chinese swearing, even if it’s technically not what the OP was asking for. I use “Gorram” all the time. I hadn’t thought of _Mork and Mindy_ for a while, but the term “bezurb” also means intoxicated. I will try to incorporate this into my lexicon going forward. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/68 "2018-02-19T17:58:27Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > Perry White (Clark Kent/Superman’s) editor was fond of “Great Caeser’s Ghost” as an epitaph back on the 1960’s TV show. Epithet. ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/69 "2018-02-19T18:03:25Z")
I like to use “blerg”, Tina Fey’s version of “d’oh!”, from 30 Rock ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/70 "2018-02-19T19:01:49Z")
“You Teutonic twat!” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/71 "2018-02-19T19:21:04Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Epithet. Well, since John Hamilton passed away in 1958, it could also serve as his epitaph. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/72 "2018-02-19T19:24:03Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > Others have mentioned Yosemite Sam, but not his most famous line: “Great Horny Toads!!” > > Perry White (Clark Kent/Superman’s) editor was fond of “Great Caeser’s Ghost” as an epitaph back on the 1960’s TV show. Updated to “Great Shades of Elvis!” for \*The Adventures of Lois and Clark \* ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/73 "2018-02-19T19:51:05Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > “You Teutonic twat!” The edited-for-TV version renders this as “Teutonic tramp.” Truth be told, that sounds funnier to me. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/74 "2018-02-19T19:53:57Z")
"Mother puss-bucket! " -Ghostbusters ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/75 "2018-02-19T20:06:43Z")
[Exterminators of the year 3000](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsLLTDC2E3E) - a Spanish Mad Maxesque post-apocalypse movie - the sort that are mainly filmed in a quarry - dubbed into English provided the world with ‘Alright mothergrabbers, c’mon.’ ---
**Author:** ![JohnM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/848f3c/32.png) [@JohnM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnM)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/76 "2018-02-19T20:21:54Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > That is good, but the classic bowdlerization is from _Big Lebowski_, where the nice version has Walter Sobchak yelling “_This is what happens when you find a stranger in the alps!_” Having never having been exposed to the bowdlerized version I was unaware of this until the album [Stranger in the Alps](https://www.allmusic.com/album/stranger-in-the-alps-mw0003084913) was released by Phoebe Bridgers last year. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/77 "2018-02-19T20:51:29Z")
I think some of the vulgarity on _Top Gear_ was artful. Those episodes where a car would have a name painted on the door and then when the door was opened, the profane bit of the word became evident. ---
**Author:** ![Scoobysnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Scoobysnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scoobysnax)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/78 "2018-02-19T21:42:51Z")
> [@Teuton](#): > > I’m sufficiently fond of Red Dwarf’s “Smeg” and “Smeghead” that, back in the 90s, I used to use it myself occasionally. I love the mindswap episode, it had some of the best uses of Smeg. > [@Lister in Rimmer's Body](#): > > What the smegging smeg has he smegging done? He’s smegging killed me! ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/79 "2018-02-19T22:39:49Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > ISTR Niven being fond of “tanj”, which was “there ain’t no justice”. I think it was _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ that introduced the similar TANSTAAFL, for “there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084/80 "2018-02-19T22:52:28Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > I think it was _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ that introduced the similar TANSTAAFL, for “there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch.” _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_ helped popularize TANSTAAFL when it was published in 1966, but use of the acronym dates back to the 30s and 40s. > **[No such thing as a free lunch](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_ain%27t_no_such_thing_as_a_free_lunch)** > > "No such thing as a free lunch" (alternatively, "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch", "There is no such thing as a free lunch" or other variants) is a popular adage communicating the idea that it is impossible to get something for nothing. The acronyms TANSTAAFL, TINSTAAFL, and TNSTAAFL are also used. The phrase was in use by the 1930s, but its first appearance is unknown. The "free lunch" in the saying refers to the formerly common practice in American bars of offering a "free lunch" Th... Also, I thought this thread was about swearing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favourite-fictional-swearing/809084.md?page=5)