Just read this in Time:
>Last week ace trend spotter Marion Salzman of the advertising agency Euro RCSG Worldwide identified
Beckham -- who likes to say how comfortable he is with his feminine side and who has been known to wear a sarong -- as the epitome of "metrosexuality," which, since you ask, is the characteristic of heterosexual men who spend time and money on their appearance and enjoy shopping."
metrosexuality, metrosexual? Is this a new across-the-pondism? I haven't heard it around here till this. Any USns familiar with this term?
From a quick google it seems quite well represented, perhaps originating Down Over?
eg,
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/03/10/1047144914842.html
Metrosexual is a word with a bit of currency down here in Aus - we like to think of Ian Thorpe (ace swimmer, in case you hadn't heard), who likes jewellery (apparently) and fashion and having his hair cut - as one... I'm not sure whether it's metro-sexual, so the man about town who looks after himself, or something else meaning in-between stereotyped homo- and hetero-sexual...
I think it's a useful term, anyway, to describe a current trend.
ah, the joys of simultaneous posting...
New to me, but perhaps it's a useful word to describe a far from new phenomenon. Thinking back (not in any particular order) to 'Teddy Boys', 'Mods', the 'Grease' years, the 'Flower Power' years, and the '70s long hair, flares and flowered shirts; the styles may have been different but the peacocks were displaying their tails.
I'm a little bit different to what most people would consider being an Australian male," Thorpe told ABC Radio. From Mav's link.
My question is word-related: Different *to? I would have said different *from. Is this Brit- or Oz-speak? Or have a missed a prior discussion of this somewhere here?
You'll also find different against if you look hard enough. Different to is not common among USns and I believe it is a minority usage even among the Commonwealthy. Someone even posted a link to a chart showing usage patterns across the Anglophonic world, if memory serves.
I asked a question on this in January this year. Called it 'What's the difference?' I think. But I believe it had come up even earlier.
Thanks for pointing me in the right direction, dxb. I thought it sounded familiar, but it was much easier to LIU with your exact thread title.
how cool are we?
http://makeashorterlink.com/?F2F531905 speeding ahead of the zeitgeist or what?
That is fantastic recall! Or was it pure, intuitive research?
AWAD continues to lead the linguaphilic pack. Quinion has a discussion of metrosexual in his newsletter this week, and it is also featured in The Economist:
http://www.economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?story_id=1900122Bingley
a so-called “back, crack and sack” waxing
LOL!
This item appeared online today on Netscape/CNN News:
>New Breed of Men: Metrosexuals
Metrosexual: (noun) Of or pertaining to a straight, urban male who is eager to embrace and even show off his feminine side, especially when it comes to expensive haircuts, designer suits, and $40 face cream.
And thanks to a certain type of male celebrity (read: David Beckham, Justin Timberlake, and Ben Affleck), it's now cool for a man to own 43 pairs of Bruno Magli shoes, wear moisturizer, and paint his nails. At least, that's what The New York Times and a handful of papers around the globe say.
The metrosexual guy is not gay. He's "just gay enough," opines the Dublin Daily. He can take real pride in his appearance. He can go shopping with his gal pals and help them mix and match their outfits and accessories. He can stop at the Clinique counter and purchase products--for himself. But unlike years past, he can do all this and still be considered manly. THAT is what the metrosexual revolution is all about.
Here's another way to look at it: When it comes to good grooming, the straight man is catching up to the gay man. Writes Dublin Daily reporter Frances Winston of metrosexuals, "They've embraced all the stereotypical qualities of homosexuality that make them a more groomed and well-rounded individual without 'changing sides.'"
The ultimate metrosexual is soccer hunk David Beckham. Here's a little known fact about this über-athlete: He paints his nails and wears sarongs. He goes to the hair salon to get perfect highlights. What's more, he doesn't care if you know that.
The Dublin Daily outs these famous metrosexuals and says why:
Justin Timberlake
He's obsessed with good grooming, especially his hair.
He loves his mom and says so.
He showed his sensitive side by admitting that Britney broke his heart.
Ben Affleck
Once committed to a wardrobe of sweatshirts and jeans, he's now one of the best-dressed men in Hollywood. (Thanks to J.Lo.)
He just landed a lucrative contract to promote L'Oreal male grooming products. When L'Oreal announced the deal, the rep said, "Ben embodies a new generation of men who show their strength in their personality, but are not afraid to care for their appearance."
Who is NOT a metrosexual?
Tommy Lee
Liam Gallagher<
This all reminds me of (and I'm not sure I've got all the specifics correct - it's been a while) a classic Jack Bailey "Queen for a Day" radio show where he crowned Milton Berle as a joke. (Of course it could have been a "walk on" to Uncle Milties show by Jack Bailey...)
I heard about that show, eta! I'm too cheap to pay for the channel it comes on, though.
However, something in the article caught my eye: "Bippity, boppity, boo, indeed". I heard a mother singing it to her child somewhere the other day, and I gritted my teeth then just as I did in reading the above. Though I may be completely off-base--I haven't looked up the words. But in the Disney cartoon movie, the words clearly have b's where these have p's. I seem to recall the spelling as bibbidi, bobbidi, boo. I realize this isn't of great import, but if somebody could either back me up or educate me, I'd appreciate it.
well, I don't even have cable, so...
and you're absolutely right about the bibbidi's!! maybe it was a joke on bippy...? as in "you bet your sweet"...
re "sweet bippy"
"Velly intelesting . . .but shtoopid"
With all the re-runs on TV why can't they bring back the good ones?
really. since "Laugh-In" and "the Muppet Show", there just hasn't been any good television...
and that's the trooththth!!
[sitting in giant rocking chair e]
As some will have seen already, this was noted in a recent Quinion newsletter:
Each year, the conference of the American Dialect Society elects those words and phrases of the preceding year that seem noteworthy. […] And now (a drum roll, maestro, please) the Word (or Phrase) of the Year. This required three rounds of voting. But the final winner was "metrosexual", a fashion-conscious heterosexual male, or, as Mark Simpson put it, a man who "has clearly taken himself as his own love object" (see http://quinion.com?XA).I liked Mark Simpson’s definition! But how we led the pack on this juan...