phrases, sayings, idioms and expressions at

... no waiting

Posted by Smokey Stover on November 11, 2009 at 15:00

In Reply to: ... no waiting posted by Bill on November 11, 2009 at 08:25:

: I'm interested in the origin of the typical phrase, "(Something Something) No Waiting" Usually the first word is a number like Three, for example, if we were viewing a photo of three U.S. Presidents, then a clever title for the photo might be "Three Presidents, No Waiting"

: That's the best way I can describe it. Hope someone knows from where the no waiting part came. Thanks

Here's a guess. Years ago (but not too many) it was common to see a barber shop with a sign in the window, or an ad in the local paper, saying something like, "Three chairs, no waiting." And it was true. Many shops had two or three chairs, lessening the likelihood that one would have to sit and wait.

I say "not too many years ago," but it was long enough ago for the barbers all to have been male. Nowadays your barber is as likely as not to be female. Or mine is.

I'm talking about the U.S. I have no idea what signs might appear in the windows of barber shops in the U.K., or whether females have gotten a foothold in the industry there.
SS

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