20's Gangster Slang

The World of 20's Gangster Slang

Even though everybody knows that 20's mobsters often acted like monsters, there's something charming about the seedy underbelly of the jazz age. That charm resides in distance and nostalgia, and the slang of that time is infused with nostalgia, that thing that gives people the notion of a better time. When one hears the slang of times long gone, it's easy to forget that alcohol was illegal and unsafe, that corruption in government ran rampant, and that minorities and immigrants were more marginalized than ever.

The slang of the 20's, like the slang of any generation, was conceived in the hives of counter-culture. It wasn't so much a code to keep the police in the dark, as many movies and legends would have you believe, but a rite that proved you weren't a flat tire, a stool-pigeon, or a copper. The police deal with criminals every day and would understand the lingo of the underworld before any suburbanite would. If you were someone who didn't want to look like a Mrs. Grundy, though, your speech would reflect your membership to the counter-culture. When you beat your gums, you would sound a lot like a 20's gangster. In the 20's, no one was more counter-culture than gangsters. Gangsters were off-color, played by their own rules, and didn't give a hoot about what anyone thought of them, i.e., everything your parents didn't want you to be.

Jazz Age Slang Today

What seemed dirty or off-color almost a hundred years ago seems rather tame by today's standards. Using the slang of yore can add character and charm to your idiolect and make the obscene less so. Basically, using slang from a long time ago, you can get away with a whole lot more. Only ancient slang can make young ladies blush and grannies laugh. What made the gangsters of the 20's the types of guys you didn't want around your neighborhood now makes everyone want to hear you talk. You'll be the bee's knees.

Instead of talking about a woman's legs, you can talk about her gams. Instead of saying a woman is hot, you can say she's a doll or a Sheba. Also, the gangsters' girlfriends back then were called molls. A fiery woman was called a bearcat and a stupid one was called a dumb Dora.

Men are described as dapper, and if he's a lady's man, he's a cake-eater. A dewdropper is an unemployed man who spends his days sleeping. And an attractive man is called a sheik.

Throw a 20's Speakeasy Party

Here in the 21st century, it's popular to throw parties at which people speak like 20's gangsters. It's pretty easy to do.

1. Go to a vintage store and pick out the oldest things you can find. Accuracy is fun, but it isn't the most important thing when it comes to a successful speakeasy party. A good hat will go a long way, though.
2. Decorate your space with lots of tinsel and streamers. Glass trays for hors d'oeuvres are nice, and if you have glass decanters, that's nice, too.
3. If you don't have a lot of glassware, use tea cups for liquor and paper bags around your beer. It's supposed to look illegal. Part of the fun is to pretend like the cops can hammer down the doors at any moment.
4. Play old records, CD's of old jazz or stream an online foxtrot playlist.
5. Talk like a 20's gangster.

Online Reference and Inspiration

• For other types of 20's themed parties, go to dinnerandamurder.com.
• Learn how to survive a pulp movie here.
• Here's a great list of slang terms from the 20's, where you'll find translations for all the words used in this article and much more.
• This site has tons of info about 1920's fashion and music--gangsters too.
• Moxie is a drink that became synonymous with the attitude of the era. It would be perfect for the teetotalers at your party.

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