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!["e;No soup for you!"e;]()
Say What? "No soup for you!" Say Who? The Soup Nazi, "Seinfeld." "Seinfeld" was eminently-quotable, but while junk like "yada yada yada" turns dated and stale, "no soup for you!" endures. Among the many individuals who thwarted Jerry et al during the series' nine seasons, the Soup Nazi (Larry Thomas) arbitrarily decided which customer in his establishment deserved his delicious concoction - and George was usually left out. These days, the phrase instantly connotes a martinet refusing access to something basic, which makes it universal. That the phrase comes with a corollary in amusement (soup Nazi?) makes it do double duty on the funny bone.!["e;De plane! De plane! "e;]()
Say What? "De plane! De plane!" Say Who? Tattoo, "Fantasy Island." Tattoo (Herve Villechaize) was a little person, but his words were mighty. The sidekick to the godlike, smug Mr. Roarke helped his white-suited partner welcome a new group of visitors to their Fantasy Island each week. As their seaplane approached the remote island, Tattoo would scurry up a tower and ring the bell, alerting the locals that "da plane" was approaching. Side note: The phrase also became a punchline to a now-dated joke - "What M-n-M's does Tattoo prefer?" De plane, of course.!["e;Kiss my grits!"e;]()
Say What? "Kiss my grits!" Say Who? Flo, "Alice." The seen-it-all waitress Flo on the hit ABC sitcom "Alice" had no problem telling Mel's Diner proprietor and cook, Mel, just where he could pucker up when his abrasive manner raised her ire. The catch phrase took off to such an extent that Flo got her own spin-off, which tanked after a season, and Flo was never heard from again. A case of success ruining a perfectly good thing.!["e;Oh, my God! They killed Kenny! "e;]()
Say What? "Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!" Say Who? Stan and Kyle, "South Park." So, there's this long-running animated show in which a child is brutally killed each week. And it's a joke! Okay, so put it that way and the fate of poor Kenny (who's barely a character; he can't even be understood through his tightly-pulled hoodie) makes "South Park" seem like the worst show ever. Instead, it may be the only show to birth a catch phrase from an existential inevitability: Kenny must die each week so that Stan and Kyle (and sometimes Cartman) can rage against the machine, announcing his death, then punctuating it with "you bastards!" And who hasn't wanted to say that after a long, hard week on the job?!["e;Up your nose with a rubber hose"e;]()
Say What? "Up your nose with a rubber hose" Say Who? Vinnie Barbarino, "Welcome Back, Kotter." Vinnie Barbarino: You were a poet and didn't know it. The travails of a Brooklyn schoolteacher and his underachieving students (aka "Sweathogs") may have been developed as a Gabe Kaplan vehicle, but another star stole the spotlight a young teen heartthrob named John Travolta, who played the vain Barbarino. The sitcom was riddled with possible catch phrases ("Ooh! Ooh! Mr. Kot-ter!") but over time, nothing parallels the image of inserting a hollow cylindrical device into one's nasal passage. A class act.!["e;Good night, John Boy."e;]()
Say What? "Good night, John Boy." Say Who? John Walton, Sr., "The Waltons." A large family being raised in rural Virginia during the Great Depression needs a leader - and in this case, it wasn't daddy, it was John Boy (Richard Thomas). As one of television's most wholesome family dramas, "The Waltons" featured the family doing good deeds for those less fortunate each week; then, to conclude the episode the camera focused on their darkened house (with just one window lit). Inside, the family said their "good nights," and at least one got directed at John Boy, the family's chronicler.!["e;D'oh!"e;]()
Word of Wisdom: "D'oh!" Say Who? Homer Simpson, "The Simpsons." In our speedy, multi-tasking culture, who has time for a whole catch phrase? So thank goodness for "The Simpsons," which after 20 years is still going strong - which has helped end our reliance on multiple words. How much more simple does it need to get than the frustrated yelp expressed by Homer Simpson (Dan Castellaneta), who can express everything from rage to sadness with three letters? In doing so, Homer has created not just some faddish, passing phrase. Nay, this is today's America, in which we can be let go from our jobs, lose our 401Ks or discover that trans fats are bad for us ... and all we have to say is "d'oh." The world understands. Now, that's a catch phrase.!["e;I love it when a plan comes together."e;]()
Say What? "I love it when a plan comes together." Say Who? Col. John "Hannibal" Smith, "The A-Team." Nobody led a ragtag outfit of wrongly-accused Vietnam vets better than Hannibal (George Peppard) as they came up with crazy-plans-that-just-might-work week after week. That signature sign-off line, punctuated by Hannibal chomping on a cigar projected smarts, manliness and sly wiliness that helped the gang avoid arrest week after week. True, not every plan came together - but the point was the A-Team were always on their A-game.!["e;Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Willis?"e;]()
Say What? "Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Willis?" Say Who? Arnold Drummond, "Diff'rent Strokes." Sass - particularly the flavor demonstrated by African-American actors - has largely vanished from broadcast primetime. But in the 1970s and 1980s, shows like "Good Times," "227" and "Strokes" brought it to its razziest peak. And sass offered up by a young, diminutive named Gary Coleman took it to another level - it was from a child and seemed to suggest sweet, apple-cheeked Arnold might have a hidden thug life. It also turned into a lifelong burden for Coleman, who never outgrew the role (in more ways than one) and undoubtedly has been asked to say it multiple times every day of his life since the show ended.!["e;Is that your final answer?"e;]()
Say What? "Is that your final answer?" Say Who? Regis Philbin, "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." Though it's likely that today more people have heard the accented question "who wants to be a millllllion-ayre" repeated by Anil Kapoor in "Slumdog Millionaire," Regis Philbin was the one who gave it a New York accent in the American version of the game show, which has over 100 versions around the world. Some countries have different takes on that "final answer" question (in Australia and New Zealand you're more likely to hear "lock it in?") but there's no question: This is the best-traveled TV catch phrase of all time. Money does make the world go 'round.Top 10 TV Catch Phrases
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- Top 10 TV Catch Phrases
