My Grandmother used the "cat's mother" phrase when I was a child - in the 1930s - and she was born right here in USA although she was of Irish descent.
We used Himself to mean my Father and Herself for my Mother, but not to his/her face!!
The Himself and Herself were later used to mean the "Top Dog" in any situation. I *once heard an employee of the company - of which my Dad was general manager - refer to my Dad as Himself.