Road to Morocco (1942)

[MichaelBA]

Title: Road to Morocco

Tagline: You'll Shriek At These Shieks! . . . trying the double - Oh! on Sheikess Dorothy Lamour!

Genre: Comedy, Music, Adventure

Director: David Butler

Cast: Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour, Anthony Quinn, Dona Drake, Vladimir Sokoloff, Mikhail Rasumny, George Givot, Robert Barron, Leon Belasco, Sara Berner, Clara Blandick, Monte Blue, Dick Botiller, Rita Christiani, Harry Cording, Vivian Dandridge, Yvonne De Carlo, Theo De Voe, James Dime, Devi Dja, Edward Emerson, Brooke Evans, Karen X. Gaylord, John George, Vic Groves, Jamiel Hasson, Brandon Hurst, Joe Jewett, Pete G. Katchenaro, Cy Kendall, Louise La Planche, Richard Loo, Patsy Mace, Michael Mark, Kermit Maynard, Leo Mostovoy, Sylvia Opert, Nestor Paiva, Stanley Price, Suzanne Ridgway, Kent Rogers, Cy Schindell, Harry Semels, Dan Seymour, Nick Shaid, Sammy Stein, Andrew Tombes, Blanca Vischer, Blue Washington, Poppy Wilde, George Lloyd

Release: 1942-11-10

Runtime: 82

Plot: Two carefree castaways on a desert shore find an Arabian Nights city, where they compete for the luscious Princess Shalmar.

In ROAD TO MOROCCO, at the beginning, when Hope and Crosby are stranded on the raft, Bing flips a coin to see who would eat each other. Hope's character doesn't get that that's what they flipped for. And Crosby's character begins to clue him in with this expression: "Well, junior, I've got a T.L. for ya."

What does "T.L." mean?

 

[MichaelBA]

After some research through the New York Public Library, I have answered my own question.

"T.L." stands for "trade last."

According to the Oxford English Dictionary:
>>trade-last, 'U.S.', a compliment offered in exchange for one that is directed towards the speaker; also, in weakened sense, a compliment, whether reciprocal or not.>trade-last: n. 'Informal Older Use'. a compliment that one has heard and that one offers to tell the person so complimented under the condition that that person will first report a compliment made about oneself.
Abbr.: T.L. [1890-95, 'Amer'.]

 

[Glenn Overholt]

But Bing & Bob never compliment each other!

I don't know the answer, but I don't think tht is it. I'd rather think that it was just some informal slang, like using "B.S." How many years was that in use before it made it to a dictionary? How many slang terms never did?

Its got me thinking,though.

Glenn

 

[MichaelBA]

As I say, it seems like it's an ironic usage of "T.L" from Bing to Hope, since Bing is about to explain that Hope will make up a tasty meal, if need be.

 

[george kaplan]

I would have guessed "tough luck"