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From: gam@amdahl.UUCP (gam)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: Soldier's names, origins
Message-ID: <869@amdahl.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 6-Jan-85 00:42:28 EST
Article-I.D.: amdahl.869
Posted: Sun Jan  6 00:42:28 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 8-Jan-85 03:55:56 EST
References: <120@cord.UUCP> <235@mtxinu.UUCP>
Organization: Blue Mouse Trailer Resort, Hellmouth, CA
Lines: 28

> > GI Joe is from an American comic strip.
> 
> Yes, but before WWII, US soldiers weren't called GIs
> (at least if I understand this right!).  That term
> comes from Government Issue - the label that some
> newspeaker added to the catalog of items that the
> soldiers were issued.
> 
> Ed Gould
> {ucbvax,decvax}!mtxinu!ed

Well, almost ...

"In the 1920's GI began to be used as the abbreviation for
'galvinized iron' in the army and a GI was a heavy galvinized
iron army garbage can.  By 1935, however, GI stood for General
Issue (some say Government Issue), the initials stamped or
stenciled on everything issued to soldiers from underwear to
trucks.... 'GI' and 'Joe' were combined and first appeared as
'GI Joe' on June 17, 1942, in Lieutenant Dave Berger's comic strip
for 'Yank', the army weekly."

	-- Stewart Berg Flexner, "I Hear America Talking"
-- 
Gordon A. Moffett		...!{ihnp4,hplabs,sun}!amdahl!gam

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