Sicko, Whacko, Weirdo
The -o suffix traces back to old comic strip characters with names like Knocko and Groucho. Neato!
Listen & Subscribe
Choose your preferred player:
Apple Podcasts
Get Your Slate Plus Podcast
If you can't access your feeds, please contact customer support.
Listen on your computer:
Apple Podcasts will only work on MacOS operating systems since Catalina. We do not support Android apps on desktop at this time.
Listen on your device:RECOMMENDED
These links will only work if you're on the device you listen to podcasts on. We do not support Stitcher at this time.
Set up manually:
Episode Notes
In 1904, cartoonist Gus Mager created a newspaper comic strip about a group of simian-faced folks called the Monks (as in, you know, monkey). Knocko, Peddlo, Henpecko, and the rest became so popular that the -o suffix soon spread to words up and down the English language. Legend has it that Mager’s characters even inspired the Marx Brothers’ nicknames. Ain’t that neato!
Podcast production by Mike Vuolo.
