Comments | semby: This feels like a really dumb question...

semby

This feels like a really dumb question...

Aug 25, 2008 19:35

So I've just rewatched the Buffy season 2 episode, "The Dark Age". In the scene where Giles tells Buffy to stay out of his business because it's "private", Buffy replies: "I don't care from private! I care from dead guys attacking us ( Read more... )

Comments 16

slaymesoftly August 26 2008, 18:19:46 UTC

ok, I give up. I've tried editing my reply comment above twice now. Grrr.
Just wanted to say that I recognized the reference immediately and it made me smile. It's quite common (or was) in some parts of the country, and, as someone pointed out, in the film industry which has a large Jewish population. Anyone who has been around people who use Yiddish expressions a lot is going to be fine with it. It's not correct English grammar, but it is both common and colloquial. It may be a bit past its prime (as are comedians who make Yiddish references) and therefore, not as recognizable to younger readers. It was just meant to be funny -and to those of us who are familiar with the phrase "I don't know from..." it was. :)

tabaqui August 26 2008, 18:28:00 UTC

Hehe. Well, it edited *once*, at least... :)

Yeah, i totally recognized it from all those years spent watching the 'old time' comedians on things like 'Rowen and Martin', the Dean Martin roasts, Johnny Carson and also listening to old radio broadcasts on the 'remember when' station my dad loved.

semby August 26 2008, 21:33:11 UTC

Hee. I got quite a series of "slaymesoftly has posted/edited a comment" emails and was confused. Figures LJ was giving you trouble!

Thanks for your input - I've definitely heard "don't know from" quite often but wouldn't have made the connection since I can't think of any other context I've heard it used with "care". I did do a bit of googling but gave up and decided to turn to trusty LJ after all that turned up was, "I don't care from where you come" type sentences, which are more dependent on the "where" than the "care". And the general consensus around here is that it comes from the Yiddish; it's helped me from going crazy wondering!

slaymesoftly August 26 2008, 21:54:15 UTC

Hee, yeah, sorry about all those notices. I'd edit my comment, tell it to post it, and what would come up was the original or maybe one change. Then I tried doing a new comment, with about the same amount of success. I had a feeling they were all going to suddenly post at the same time. lOL

deird1 August 26 2008, 20:12:44 UTC

I asked this question a while ago, and got this answer:
http://community.livejournal.com/drop_the_u/31645.html

semby August 26 2008, 21:34:22 UTC

Thanks for the link! It seems like most people there agree it's from Yiddish/NY culture mostly.

a2zmom August 27 2008, 02:59:59 UTC

yup, it's Yinglish and a NYC type of grammar.

anonymous August 27 2008, 18:31:22 UTC

This usage may not be as uncommon or dated as some posters think. In this week's "Entertainment Weekly" magazine, the number one item on the Must List includes this wording about James Franco: "To be blunt, we had no idea he knew from funny." I think a lot of Yiddishisms are used to give a slightly slangy or earthy feel to the phrasing.