Who is 'Larry' and what makes him so happy?

[Simon Pieman]

discuss

[Amir]

Leisure Suite Larry, was that what that game was called?  Remember perving over that game when I was 10 and my mate's parents let him have it

[Amir]

And who the fuck is Gordon Bennett?

[Simon Pieman]

there's a new one out, my mate has it  

who is 'as happy as larry' btw?

[Simon Pieman]

And who the fuck is Gordon Bennett?

my mum used to know someone called 'Gordon Bennett'. When she first met him he had to show her his driving licence cos she didn't believe him  

[Amir]

'The phrase seems to have originated in Australia around the end of the 19th century, and first appeared in print (as far as we know so far) in 1905. The leading theory is that "happy as Larry" originally referred to the Australian boxer Larry Foley (1847-1917), but no one seems to know if, when or why boxer Larry would have been happy enough to inspire a popular saying of such remarkable longevity.'

[Amir]

'James Gordon Bennet II, 1841 - 1918 is the man referred to, and was quite a colourful character. One of his many reported exploits was an incident where he flew an aeroplane through an open barn. The surprised onlookers were supposed to have said 'That was Gordon Bennett!', and hence onward to the current shortened phrase. Became popular again during the 1980s but is again falling out of use. '


I'm putting the World at sorts tonight.

[Simon Pieman]

almost as good as my kaiser chiefs post about "smeaton".

thanks for clearing that up, but the thread can no longer entertain me  :|

[sonicyouth]

My favourite use of the phrase 'Gordon Bennett' was in Red Dwarf.