It's Going Like Gangbusters

A co-worker used this one today and I thought - what the h*** is a Gangbuster anyway? So here you go from the archives of another website called www.EarlytoRise.com:

What, exactly, does ‘gangbusters’ mean?” asked Michael Masterson. “And where did the expression ‘going like gangbusters’ come from?”

We were in a meeting, on page three of a new promotion we were reviewing.

“I’m not sure,” admitted the copywriter. “I’d never heard it until recently.”

Gangbusters. Another one of those words in the English language that we use all the time… but have no idea where it originated.

Well, Gang Busters was a radio show in the 1930s that featured “G-men” busting criminal gangs. The violently noisy opening was full of machine gun fire, sirens, etc. Based on that, “like gangbusters” became a common expression at the time for something that was aggressive, forceful, or energetic. Its use continues today.

Speaking of the Devil

In Medieval times European Catholics were so superstitious they believed that if one "spoke of the Devil" it would cause Lucifer to appear. So the complete experession is really "Speak of the Devil (and the Devil appears)."

That was a Doozy

I found several websites all attributing this expresion to the original Dusenburg automobile form the early 1900.

A "Duesy" (aka Doozy) was an ornate, extravagent and very impressive autombile (and still would be considered so today).

Fits To a T

According the the website Phrases.org.uk

Here's what I have found out about 'Fit to a T'

If something "fits to a T" then it's perfect for its purpose. The allusion here is said to be with a T square. This piece of apparatus is so accurate that a precise right angle fits it perfectly.
However neat this suggestion is, there is another possible origin, based on the fact that the saying was in use in the 17th century, before the T square was invented. This one suggests that the T stands for "Title", a minute and precisely positioned pen stroke or printer's mark. A tiny brushstroke was all that distinguished the Hebrew letter "dalet" from "resh". "Title" was the word chosen by Wycliffe to translate references to this tiny difference in his version of the New Testament. Thus the mark was perfectly suited to its task.

We've had this discussion before, and some have expressed scepticism about the history of the T sqaure, as not being that old.

High On The Hog

This makes a lot of sense once you hear the origin explained.

According to Pride Unlimited, an ESL website:

"The best meat is on the upper portion of the pig. Rich people have always been afforded this luxury while the servants, slaves and poor have always had to eat pig's feet, chitterlings, cracklings, etc. - low on the hog."

For The Love of Pete (aka For Pete's Sake)

Olde world expression, basically a substitute for what would be a "swear."

According to Pricde Unlimited, an ESL website:

"This phrase and phrases like "for Pete's sake" are euphemisms for the phrases "for the love of God/Christ" or "for God's/Christ's sake" and hail from a time when those phases were considered blasphemous. Nowadays phrases like "for the love of God" are commonly used, but the euphemisms are still used.

Why Pete? Most likely it is a reference to the catholic Saint Peter."

Face The Music

Another military derived expression.

According to Pride Unlimited, an ESL website:

"Comes from the British military. When someone was court marshaled, there would be a military drum squad playing, hence face the music. The term "drummed out of the military" came from this practice."