I kid you not

Humorous expression used to affirm the truth of some odd or amusing fact.  Examples:

1. He poured vinegar over the cake (I kid you not), and offered me a slice.

2. Believing that he was possessed by demons, the president called in an exorcist - I kid you not.

3. The current Lord Chief Justice of England, whose name is Judge (I kid you not), was appointed in 2008.

(The last sentence is actually true, by the way.)

should it be open and close parethesis? is it an idiomatic expression too or just some colloquial expression? negative or positive?

You can either open and close parentheses or separate it with dashes.  I would call it a colloquial idiom.

Negative or positive?  Neither, really.  It just indicates mild amusement.

The former Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Philippines was Cardinal Sin - I kid you not.

His title and surname as Cardinal Sin was the source of many jokes in the Philippines, such as “The greatest sin of all…Cardinal Sin”, and his own pun: “Welcome to the house of Sin” referring to his home.

Or, as Adidas would say, I Ked you not.

Which is more famous, Adidas or Keds? Never heard KEDS here in our place.

vine - 28 June 2009 07:46 PM

Which is more famous, Adidas or Keds? Never heard KEDS here in our place.

keds are another brand, which was popular many years ago, before there were adidas.  all children “needed” to have keds.  not so popular now.  you know how it is, fifteen minutes of fame…

if you ever have a chance, look up jack paar.  he said “I kid you not…”  a lot.