Meme Warfare

Catch Phrases, the Memes Before the Internet

Long before the Internet, when I was in middle-school I would come up with catchy “capsules” for ideas. A phrase that invokes many cultural references and conveys an idea potently. I was frequently the starter of memes that would go around school, and on occasion they would spread to most of the city’s youth sometimes. When I pointed out that I started some trend, no one would believe me. Rather than try to prove it and wondering if it was true that I was merely repeating a meme (which sometimes were uttered by accident and took off anyway). I began to research. Before I would spread what is now known as a meme (but mine were verbal). I would look for it in the library, microfilm archives, etc. Then I would ask people if they had heard the statement – those who are good listeners and would rarely repeat things. Sometimes years later I would look up some popular catch phrase and sometimes find that famous people had uttered it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_catchphrases

Here is an example, of some that where used on TV shows, and became famous catch phrases.