# yadda yadda origin **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [June 18, 2010, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690 "2010-06-18T17:32:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![phillip\_leslie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@phillip\_leslie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phillip_leslie)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/1 "2010-06-18T17:32:14Z")
yes lenny bruce did use yadda yadda in his act to describe the act of copulation not as a subsitute for etc. etc. or blah blah blah . I first heard it as a sound effect in a cartoon in the late 50’s when a dog named george got hit over the head. flash foward to 1971 to the second floor of the edward derril stone dorm on the campus of windam college in putney vermont . four guys across the hall ,john geiger-david ives-tony heath and craig of cinamunson new jersey, were brainstorming someones assignment to come up with a new word or saying I joined them .they had come up with ETA to be used when someone was going on about something ETA was to be used to GET TO THE POINT . in a attempt to fit in (to this day I never did fit in) I suggested YADDA YADDA as a subsitute for etc. etc. or blah blah blah . they didn’t like it , but I did .flash foward to the early 80’s in nyc I worked with and for DON IMUS at WNBC radio. I used it around he and CHARLES McCORD and told them of its origin.(I’m sure don doesn’t remember as it was’nt about him , but CHARLES might ) foward to spring of 1986 I was a stage manager at MTV . A guy who I worked with, JOE DAVOLA , brought by JERRY SEINFELD for a tour of the studio .while talking with jerry I used YADDA YADDA and he stoped me and I explained to him what I meant and its origin . I didn’t know until a few days ago while watching CASH CAB (witch I rode in once and didn’t want to play ben bailey) that it was in a dictionary .I’ve heard it said on TV buffy angel and other places but in a dictionary,thats pretty cool . I also made up the saying BUTT BOY . thats all I have to say about that. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/2 "2010-06-18T18:14:35Z")
Um… congratulations, I guess? Or else, get back on your meds. [Link to the column.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2067/whats-the-origin-of-yadda-yadda) ---
**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:** [June 18, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/3 "2010-06-18T21:07:43Z")
> [@phillip\_leslie](#): > > yes lenny bruce did use yadda yadda in his act to describe the act of copulation not as a subsitute for etc. etc. or blah blah blah . Not true. [Bruce used it in his “Father Flotski’s Triumph” routine](http://www.reference.com/browse/yadda-yadda-yadda): > [@](#): > > The phrase “yaddee yaddee, yadda” which was mispronounced and immortalized in an episode of the TV show Seinfeld, had its origin in a Lenny Bruce routine, [Father Flotski’s Triumph](http://www.amazon.com/Father-Flotskis-Triumph/dp/B000U8RIPC), in which Dutch, the leader of a prison riot, replies “yaddee yaddee, yadda warden” to all statements addressed to him. Sounds much like “blah blah blah” to me. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/4 "2010-06-18T22:18:12Z")
A search of Usenet postings at Google groups shows that the “yadda” version started showing up in large numbers in 1992, 5 years before the “Seinfeld” episode. I think they were just helping to popularize an already common saying. But the question is: What sparked the 1992 surge? ---
**Author:** ![phillip\_leslie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@phillip\_leslie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phillip_leslie)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/5 "2010-06-18T22:24:39Z")
I didn’t know about the lenny bruce connection until early 80’s when talking with richard cory the son of pfoffesor irwin cory and he told me of lenny bruces use of the word. I phillip leslie tomalin jr. am the orginator of yadda yadda as its current use . many have used it and i’m glad that I brought them joy and wheelz isn’t the first that I should be on meds. had I been on meds the world wouldn’t have YADDA YADDA ---
**Author:** ![phillip\_leslie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@phillip\_leslie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phillip_leslie)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/6 "2010-06-18T22:29:23Z")
THE 1992 surge look to DON IMUS as he does have a sizeable audiance ---
**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:** [June 19, 2010, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/7 "2010-06-19T00:17:03Z")
> [@phillip\_leslie](#): > > I didn’t know about the lenny bruce connection until early 80’s when talking with richard cory the son of pfoffesor irwin cory and he told me of lenny bruces use of the word… …which is synonynous with “blah, blah, blah”. I’m not buying your claim of origination. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/8 "2010-06-19T02:46:28Z")
> [@phillip\_leslie](#): > > yes lenny bruce did use yadda yadda in his act to describe the act of copulation not as a subsitute for etc. etc. or blah blah blah . \. You’ve give no confirmation that Bruce used it to mean copulation. I challenge you to do this. You’ll fail > [@phillip leslie](#): > > A guy who I worked with, JOE DAVOLA , brought by JERRY SEINFELD for a tour of the studio .while talking with jerry I used YADDA YADDA and he stoped me and I explained to him what I meant and its origin . . Jerry must have been playing you. He certainly knew of the generally accepted meaning by then. > [@phillip\_leslie](#): > > I didn’t know about the lenny bruce connection until early 80’s when talking with richard cory the son of pfoffesor irwin cory and he told me of lenny bruces use of the word. I phillip leslie tomalin jr. am the orginator of yadda yadda as its current use . many have used it and i’m glad that I brought them joy and wheelz isn’t the first that I should be on meds. had I been on meds the world wouldn’t have YADDA YADDA Again, you didn’t invent the term to mean “blah, blah, blah.” Unless this guy stole it from you using a future viewing machine… 2 July 1963 _Hutchinson(KS) News_ page 9, col. 1 Column written by Jack Coffman. > [@](#): > > The subject of a drag strip for Hutchinson has been driven in the ground so far you have to go after it mumble peg style. > But we herewith dig it up again to give it some fresh approach other that the usual "Why hasn’t Hutchinson got a drag strip yadda, yadda yadda. You’re welcome. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/9 "2010-06-19T06:10:24Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > A search of Usenet postings at Google groups shows that the “yadda” version started showing up in large numbers in 1992, 5 years before the “Seinfeld” episode. I think they were just helping to popularize an already common saying. > > But the question is: What sparked the 1992 surge? People getting a modem sparked the surge. Your data source didn’t (appreciably) exist before that point, hence the lack of usage of the term. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/10 "2010-06-19T13:50:56Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > People getting a modem sparked the surge. Your data source didn’t (appreciably) exist before that point, hence the lack of usage of the term. Google’s Usenet archive goes back to 1981. The uptick in average people using the Internet didn’t affect Usenet since most of the newbies didn’t use Usenet. Very few of them even heard of it. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/11 "2010-06-19T18:45:24Z")
I hereby lay claim to the phrase “No shit?” I’m sure the royalties will begin pouring in shortly. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/12 "2010-06-19T19:10:36Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I hereby lay claim to the phrase “No shit?” I’m sure the royalties will begin pouring in shortly. Dibs on “Eat me!” ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2010, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/13 "2010-06-19T22:55:22Z")
Dibs on dibs! ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2010, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/14 "2010-06-20T02:02:01Z")
There is a song from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s _Allegro_ (1947) that goes: _Yatata, yatata, yatata, yatata Yatata, yatata, yatata, yatata Broccoli, Hogwash, Balderdash. Phoney, Baloney, Tripe and Trash. Yatata, yatata, yatata, yatata Yatata, yatata, yatata, yatata, Busy! Busy! I’m busy as a bee! I start the day at half-past one. When I am finished phoning It’s time to dress for tea. Nothing we have to do gets done! I keep thinking gentlemen and ladies who keep a metropolis alive drink cocktails and knock tails every afternoon at five…_ ---
**Author:** ![goodie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@goodie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goodie)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/15 "2010-06-22T01:54:28Z")
Me and some of my friends invented “The ground is lava!” game in 1st grade… Also, I invented blowjobs as a teenager… ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/16 "2010-06-22T02:14:21Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > A search of Usenet postings at Google groups shows that the “yadda” version started showing up in large numbers in 1992, 5 years before the “Seinfeld” episode. I think they were just helping to popularize an already common saying. > > But the question is: What sparked the 1992 surge? I shoulda kept reading: > [@ftg](#): > > Google’s Usenet archive goes back to 1981. The uptick in average people using the Internet didn’t affect Usenet since most of the newbies didn’t use Usenet. Very few of them even heard of it. I retract my response. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Powers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/17 "2010-06-22T12:16:53Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Google’s Usenet archive goes back to 1981. The uptick in average people using the Internet didn’t affect Usenet since most of the newbies didn’t use Usenet. Very few of them even heard of it. That’s not my understanding. See “The September that Never Ended” entry in the Jargon File ([http://catb.org/jargon/html/S/September-that-never-ended.html](http://catb.org/jargon/html/S/September-that-never-ended.html)). AOL began offering access to (a subset of) Usenet in 1993. Powers &8^] ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/18 "2010-06-22T13:50:08Z")
> [@Powers](#): > > That’s not my understanding. See “The September that Never Ended” entry in the Jargon File ([http://catb.org/jargon/html/S/September-that-never-ended.html](http://catb.org/jargon/html/S/September-that-never-ended.html)). AOL began offering access to (a subset of) Usenet in 1993. Yes, this is certainly true. I joined AOL in October 1993, and within a year I was posting to several Usenet groups. Before they went free, I remember being really pissed when AOL announced they were arbitrarily suspending access to Usenet (while continuing to charge the same monthly fee). That was the major factor that precipitated my exit from the service. ---
**Author:** ![ChickenLegs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecc23a/32.png) [@ChickenLegs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChickenLegs)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/19 "2010-06-23T03:30:17Z")
> [@goodie](#): > > Me and some of my friends invented “The ground is lava!” game in 1st grade… Thank you. I further refined the game to define the ground as “hot lava”. That was about 1971, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690/20 "2010-06-23T15:23:35Z")
> [@goodie](#): > > Also, I invented blowjobs as a teenager… How old are you? Because if you’re younger than I am, now I have an explanation for never getting any when I was a teenager. I could never think of a plausible reason before. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yadda-yadda-origin/543690.md?page=2)