Tiger Beat, first in print and now online, was/is a magazine all about things that interest tween girls - fashion, cute boys, lip gloss, etc.
What do tigers have to do with tween girls?
I thought it was pretty clear that Tiger is being used as a euphemism for a young, attractive male.
Using animals as euphemisms for types of people is not exactly uncommon. Quite the reverse. Just looking around today, hairy men are often called bears. Chicks to describe women. People who are dishonest are called jackals. Whales for large people. Etc.
When did this change from apes?
Green’s dictionary of slang has an entry from an article in 1958:
(US teen) an attractive girl or boy.
1958 Times(Bibliography: Times — Green’s Dictionary of Slang) (Munster, IN) 19 Jan. 56/1: Slang keeps changing to keep up […] ‘Tiger or Tigress’ — Good-looking boy or girl.
Famous period example:
I believe the word ape is still used, often with negative connotation.
The word bear often or typically describes a large, hairy gay or bisexual man or sometimes one who would be considered attractive to gay or bisexual people, so it’s a bit more modern.
I have heard of the term she’s a tiger before.
I’m not going to ask what “beat” is a euphemism for…
Though, since this is FQ and in case somebody doesn’t know, a ‘beat’ in reporting generally refers to a specialized topic or area a reporter might cover.
I think Charlie Pierce is the one who coined “Tiger Beat on the Potomac” for Politico.
But agreed, somewhat dated slang that you might hear sometimes even now.
Some things we have to learn the hard way. Bears4Bears AOL Chat Room was not at all what I expected.
Like beat cop.
Cougar Beat magazine seems like a market opportunity.
Well Beaver Magazine is a big disappointment. SFW.
I get the impression that due to the internet people experience no difficulty finding material on Cougars and perhaps aren’t so interested in reading the articles.
On Long Island it was more common to hear a good looking guy OR girl a fox or foxy. I reckon tiger is more about their aggressive demeanor yet I can’t see Scott Baio or Andy Giibb being that way.
There is of course Jimi’s “Foxy Lady” though Duran Duran were hungry like the wolf.
With the FQ out of the way …
Tiger doesn’t mean anything to me without some context or a modifier. Paper tiger, tiger mom, a nonverbal waggling of the eyebrows, an unchanging stripes reference. “Jeremy had a reputation as a tiger,” doesn’t mean anything, unlike if Jeremy was a fox or a dog or a mule or a whale. Even being a turd says more than being a tiger!
You beat cop, get big trouble.
Yep, concur.