• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Language / Where does the term “gagman” come from and What does gagman mean?

Where does the term “gagman” come from and What does gagman mean?

April 2, 2020 by Karen Hill

Apparently on the theory, “If an audience will swallow this joke or yarn it won’t gag on anything,” gag developed, some hundred and fifty years ago, as an improbable story, some tale or yarn taxing the credulity of the listener, or, eventually, a joke that would bring forth hearty laughs from the hearers.

In the theatrical world the gag was likely to be a line or so of his own inserted into his part, usually to evoke a laugh.

He was the original gagman.

But, especially when radio began to make heavy demands upon the wit of professional humorists, the capacities of others were needed in the promotion of laugh-producing mirth.

Then the writers of humorous lines, rather than the speakers, became the gagmen.

Related Facts

  • Where Did the Word “Gag” For a Joke Come From and What Does it Mean?
  • Top 25 Inventions That Changed the World
  • What Are Radio Waves and What Do Radio Waves Have To Do With Radios and Astronomy?
  • Which Explorers First Explored the Continents of the World?
  • What Is a Radio Telescope and How Do Radio Telescopes Help Astronomers Detect Objects In the Universe?
  • Who Discovered Quasars and Pulsars and Where do the super dense, distant objects in space come from?

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Where does the word “Viking” come from and What does Viking mean in Old Norse and Icelandic?
Next Post: How did Allspice get its name and Where does the word Allspice come from? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy