The story behind “Comin’ in on a wing and a prayer”

The idiom “on a wing and a prayer” is a now general way to describe making an effort to succeed in the face of difficult, or dangerous, circumstances — and hoping that luck, or God, will be on your side.

During World War II, when the phrase first became part of the English language, it was meant in a very literal way.

It referred to Allied airmen flying back to their base in damaged planes, hoping and praying that they’d make it.

In his book Dictionary of Catch Phrases: British and American (first published in 1977), the late, great phrase maven Eric Partridge speculated that “a wing and a prayer” was originally associated with the British Royal Air Force. He thought it might have been used by RAF pilots as early as 1940.

That’s possible. But there are no newspapers or other sources I could find online that used the phrase prior to 1943, which is when it was made famous by an American song said to be inspired by news stories about an American bomber crew.

On February 26, 1943, a B-17 “Flying Fortress” bomber piloted by Hugh G. Ashcraft, Jr. of Charlotte, North Carolina was limping back from a bombing mission in Germany to an American base in England. The plane, dubbed The Southern Comfort by its crew, was riddled with flak and had one engine missing.

As they approached the shores of Britain, Ashcraft reportedly told his crew: “Those who want to, please pray.”

The Southern Comfort made it to the base, generating news in Ashcraft’s home state of North Carolina and elsewhere about the crew that “prayed” their plane back. Ashcraft became something of a celebrity. And, after the war, he became the first president of the Harris Teeter chain of supermarkets.

According to company lore, the story of Ashcroft’s cool-headed bravery and faith inspired the songwriting team of Harold Adamson and Jimmy McHugh to write a patriotic song.

Adamson, the lyricist, came up with words “Comin’ in on a Wing and a Prayer.” The phrase was used as the title of the song and in the chorus, which goes like this:

“Comin’ in on a wing and a prayer.
Comin’ in on a wing and a prayer.
Though there’s one motor gone, we can still carry on,
Comin’ in on a wing and a prayer.”

The first well-known version of the song, recorded by The Song Spinners, was released in June of 1943.

It quickly became a hit and the song was then covered by a long list of other singers, groups and bands.

One of the hippest versions was by a black vocal group from Missouri called The Four Vagabonds, which you can listen to on YouTube. (I also love the version by Ry Cooder, on his album Boomer's Story.)

It was the fame of this song that embedded “a wing and a prayer” in our language. And, it’s a phrase that’s still familiar to most people even if they have never heard the song or the story behind it.

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Further reading about phrases and slang from World War II…

“Man is descended from a hairy, tailed quadruped.”

The publication of Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species in 1859 helped launch the modern science of evolution.

It also created a firestorm of controversy, by suggesting that all species — including homo sapiens — evolved from “lower” life forms.

However, Darwin did not explicitly state that humans evolved from ape and monkey-like precursors in On the Origin of Species.

He saved that bombshell for his next major work, The Descent of Man, which was first published in London on February 24, 1871.

The final chapter of that book, Chapter XXI, contains Darwin’s famous (and infamous) statement:

“We thus learn that man is descended from a hairy, tailed quadruped, probably arboreal in its habits, and an inhabitant of the Old World.”

Of course, there are some people who are unwilling to accept the theory of evolution because it conflicts with their religious beliefs.

However, from a scientific perspective, Darwin’s basic conclusions have withstood the test of time.

That’s not to say he got everything right.

Over the past 140 years, other scientists have determined that some things Darwin postulated were wrong. Thus, like every science, the science of evolution has evolved.

Darwin himself predicted this would happen.

In the preface to the Second Edition of The Descent of Man, published in 1874, he noted: “it is probable, or almost certain, that several of my conclusions will hereafter be found erroneous; this can hardly fail to be the case in the first treatment of a subject.”

One of Darwin’s conclusions that’s still accepted as a basic fact by scientists is that “man is descended from a hairy, tailed quadruped.”

That’s also one of the things that is most vehemently rejected by Darwin’s religious critics. They believe God created humans and everything else and that “Darwinism is atheism.”

As explained on the excellent AboutDarwin.com website, Darwin called himself an agnostic, not an atheist. He felt that God’s existence was outside the realm of scientific research.

Near the end of his life, Darwin put it this way: “I cannot pretend to throw the least light on such abstruse problems. The mystery of the beginning of all things is insoluble to us.”

And, that may be one statement by Darwin that most people can agree on.

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Further reading: books by and about Charles Darwin...

“Any man who hates dogs and babies can’t be all bad.”

To paraphrase Firesign Theatre, everything most people know about certain famous quotations is wrong.

A notable example is the famous line “Any man who hates dogs and babies can’t be all bad.”

Most people think that’s a quote by W.C. Fields.

However, Fields didn’t say it. (Nor did he say any of the common variations of the line, such as those using “kids” or “children” in place of the word babies.)

It’s actually a famous misquote based on something that was said about Fields in 1939 by Leo Rosten, a witty professor who later became a successful scriptwriter and author.

On February 16, 1939, a dinner was held in honor of W.C. Fields at the Masquers Club in Hollywood, the night before the premiere of his latest movie You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man.

Rosten was in Hollywood at the time doing some research on the movie industry and was invited to attend.

After dinner, Rosten was asked to say something about Fields. He ad-libbed:

“The only thing I can say about Mr. W. C. Fields, whom I have admired since the day he advanced upon Baby LeRoy with an icepick, is this: Any man who hates babies and dogs can’t be all bad.”

Rosten’s quip brought down the house and was mentioned in an article in the February 27, 1939 issue of Time magazine.

Although the line was credited to Rosten by Time, he was little-known in 1939. His career and eventual fame as a screenwriter and author began in the 1940s.

Thus, like many other famous misquotes, Rosten’s quip was soon attributed to a more famous person — in this case, to Fields himself. Eventually even Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations attributed it to Fields.

That annoyed Rosten and he worked to correct the misattribution. Today, although the attribution to Fields persists, many books and online sources give Rosten credit for his quip.

However, quotation mavens William Safire and Ralph Keyes have also pointed out that the essence of Rosten’s line was not original.

As Keyes explained in his excellent book Nice Guys Finish Seventh:

In November, 1937 — nearly two years before the Masquers banquet — Harper’s Monthly ran a column by Cedric Worth about a New York cocktail party which took place in 1930. This party was dominated by a man who had a case against dogs. After leaving, Worth found himself in an elevator with a New York Times reporter. As the elevator made its way to the ground the reporter observed, “No man who hates dogs and children can be all bad.”

To be accurate, therefore, reference books should attribute “No man who hates dogs and children can be all bad,” to the Times reporter. His name was Byron Darnton. Byron who? That’s just the point. Who’s heard of Byron Darnton? Yet most of us know the name W.C. Fields. This is why Fields routinely gets credit for someone else’s words. He probably always will.

I searched several online databases of newspapers and books and couldn’t find any uses of Darnton’s line (or anything similar) prior to 1937. My guess is that Darnton probably does deserve credit for the first version of the saying about a man who hates dogs and children.

And, although most people have not heard of him, there is now an entry about Byron Darnton on Wikipedia.

He’s also mentioned in a book and website by Doral Chenoweth about war correspondents who were killed in action during World War II.

So, Byron Darnton is not forgotten. But I suspect that most people will continue to “know” that W.C. Fields said “Any man who hates dogs and babies can’t be all bad.” 

RELATED POST: “It ain’t a fit night out for man or beast!”

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Further reading: books by Leo Rosten…

 

On this date, Joe McCarthy warned of a Red threat – and Jerry Falwell warned of a purple one…

Two notorious warnings about threats to the American way of life are linked to the date February 9th.

In both cases, the quotes involved generated national attention when they were reported in the press. But the results were considerably different.

On February 9, 1950, Republican Senator Senator Joseph McCarthy made an ominous announcement in a speech to the Ohio Country Women’s Republican Club of Wheeling, West Virginia.

In the speech, McCarthy famously claimed:

“I have here in my hand a list of 205 that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist party, and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy in the State Department.”

This quote was essentially the public launch of what evolved into an anti-Communist panic and witch hunt that lasted for years.

It was soon dubbed “McCarthyism.” (That term was originally coined in a March 29, 1950 political cartoon by the great political cartoonist Herbert Block, who signed his cartoons as “HERBLOCK.”)

Exactly forty-nine years after McCarthy made his announcement about a Red threat, we heard about a purple one from another controversial public figure.

On February 9, 1999, an Associated Press story by journalist David Reed revealed that televangelist Rev. Jerry Falwell had claimed the children’s TV show Teletubbies was secretly trying to turn kids into homosexuals.

The comments by Falwell that were quoted in the article generated national news.

However, they created more eye-rolling and snickers than alarm. And, no official Telletubby witch hunt followed.

The AP article that broke the story said:

The Rev. Jerry Falwell is trying to out Tinky Winky, suggesting that the purple, purse-toting character on television’s popular “Teletubbies” children’s show is gay.

The February edition of the National Liberty Journal, edited and published by Falwell, contains an article warning parents that the rotund Teletubby with the triangular antenna may be a gay role model.

To support its claim, the publication says Tinky Winky has the voice of a boy but carries a purse.

“He is purple – the gay-pride color; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle – the gay-pride symbol.”

Falwell contends the “subtle depictions”' are intentional and issued a statement Tuesday that said, “As a Christian I feel that role modeling the gay lifestyle is damaging to the moral lives of children.”

Of course, the fact that these famous/infamous warnings by McCarthy and Falwell are both associated with the date February 9th is just a coincidence — OR IS IT!?!

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