An older coworker was asking me what “hooptie” meant, and I explained what it was but was unable to come up with the derivation. UrbanDictionary.com says that it goes back to the fifties and came from “Coupe De,” as in Coupe De Ville, as a sort of generic older, beat-up car.
That seems apocryphal at best, esp. as it didn’t really spring into wide usage until the mid-to-late eighties. What’s up?
“Hoopie” was definitely in use in the 60s, and that’s so close I gotta believe they’re related. Answers.com says:
WAG: I’ve heard the word “hoop” used as slang for “anus”. What comes out of an anus? A piece of shit. If a Coupe de Ville is a fancy car, then a Hoop de Ville is the opposite. Thus, “Hoop de Ville” = “hooptie” = POS car.
It was in use, probably in California, in the 1960’s. But I’d love for “answers.com” to provide a cite from the “1930’s-1940’s” as to the terms “hoopy” and “hoopie.”
How many people drove beat up Coupe de Villes? This sounds like a stretch to me.
I heard it in rural PA during the 60s.
“That Ford Prefect is one hoopy frood.”
Earliest cite in the OED is this one from 1968:
My dad used the term “hoopie” (without the T) in the 1940’s to endearingly designate a subprime car. He’s the only person I ever heard use the word, so he must have brought it from Missouri in the 1920’s, when he had worked around car repair shops and acquired the commensurate slang.
Samclem, I strongly suspect there might be a connection there, as my dad was from Hannibal, and so was the original Sam Clem.
Awwww, and I thought TLDR… was back and we were gonna have some more amusement.
Jtur88. don’t know how you found this thread, but take a look at the date of the last response – 2007. You have made it what we call a “zombie thread” – risen from the dead. It’s not against the rules, it’s just unlikely to draw much interest or replies from the original participants, like the OP, who’s been banned since then.
I found it by googling /hooptie/ to try to find the meaning of the word. I was informed that I had to register in order to add a comment. Which I did. There are thousands of sites that turn up when you google a question, and you have to register to access.
Welcome! Unfortunately, the poster who asked the original question has long since been banned, and is unlikely to see your reply.
You’re welcome to hand out and browse our currently active thread, and see if you like the joint.