# westerns and boiling water

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [August 27, 2005, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907 "2005-08-27T21:33:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jim\_McCrudden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e47c2d/32.png) [@Jim\_McCrudden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_McCrudden)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907/1 "2005-08-27T21:33:07Z")

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On the matter of boiling water cliche in movies - I saw one in an old Arthur Askey movie from England. He was disguised as a nurse and was brought in on a situation.  
First of all lets get some boiling water he shouted in the confusion  
When that was done and they asked him what were they supposed to do with it  
he replied “Let’s have a nice cup of tea…”

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907/2 "2005-08-28T02:11:21Z")

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**Jim** Welcome to the board. I assume that the column that you are referring to is [When a woman gives birth in westerns, why do they always boil water?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_109.html) We usually like it when you post a link, as that allows everyone to have a point of reference.

Nice anecdote.

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**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\
**Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907/3 "2005-08-28T21:35:16Z")

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Welcome, Jim!

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**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/westerns-and-boiling-water/318907/4 "2005-08-29T13:48:14Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> A midwife we talked to jokingly suggested it was an excuse to get the husband out of the room.

That’s actually truer that we think. Yes, they needed the hot water. They also didn’t need hubby fainting and/or barfing at what he saw, so to allow him to help, they would send him to boil water. Very low level psychology and very effective.