Ivan Glidewell just returned from Florida, where he had gone to see the rain and enjoy some bracing atmosphere. – From the National Road Traveler (Cambridge City, Indiana, USA) of Thursday 25 th March 1954: Reader of Cincinnati says he saw a notice in a filling station washroom: “ We aim to please. James, published in The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio, USA) of Wednesday 21 st November 1951:Ī. – From the column Innocent Bystander, by Ollie M. You aim, too, please.”Ģ) In (originally implicit) reference to urinals early occurrences: – From the column So They Say – – –, published in the Marshall County News (Marysville, Kansas, USA) of Thursday 29 th October 1942:Īccording to the Gove County Gazette, a custodian arranged cuspidors conveniently in the court room, then hung up this sign: “ We aim to please. Take a lonely desk sergeant on a quiet night, supply him with a pen and paper and he’ll come up with one of those bizarre signs that appear in the police department occasionally.įor instance, the one that somebody dreamed up to encourage accuracy in would-be users of the spittoons: “ We aim to please you aim, too, please!” – From the column Around Our Town, published in the East Liverpool Review (East Liverpool, Ohio, USA) of Friday 14 th November 1941: The extended phrase has often been used in reference 1) to spittoons and 2) to urinals:ġ) In reference to spittoons early occurrences: ![]() Will you aim, too, please?”Īmong the numerous contexts in which the extended phrase has been used, the following is interesting: we aim to please you aim too, please occurs-apparently as a request for carefulness-in this detail from an advertisement for Osgood’s, a hardware shop, published in the Nashua Telegraph (Nashua, New Hampshire, USA) of Wednesday 8 th October 1947: There was the soldier in the pit on the rifle range, who stuck up this sign: “ We aim to please. ![]() Martin, published in the Santa Maria Daily Times (Santa Maria, California, USA) of Monday 3 rd November 1941: The second-earliest occurrence that I have found of this extended phrase is from Comments and Cacophony, by G. It read: “ We aim to please-you aim, too, please.” ![]() Next morning a sign appeared on the same pup tent. The water had landed squarely in the open rear of a pup tent, and the soldier inside was shouting very, very uncomplimentary words to the offending K. Immediately an indignant howl split the air. took a bucket of water and tossed the contents into the darkness at the side of a truck. is the abbreviation of kitchen police(man):īivouaced in a woods during a blackout, one unnamed kitchen crew of Ohio’s 37th Division, was preparing breakfast for the next morning. The earliest occurrence that I have found of this extended phrase is from 37th Division Notes, published in the Alexandria Daily Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana, USA) of Saturday 20 th September 1941- K. The phrase we aim to please has been jocularly extended to we aim to please you aim too, please, used in a variety of contexts. 9 Hanover street, a few doors above his former stand, where he humbly solicits them to call, and hopes by strict attention to business, to merit a share of patronage. Oliver Nash, Barber, respectfully informs his friends and the public, that he has removed to No. The second-earliest occurrence that I have found of the phrase-this time used as a commercial slogan-is from the American Traveller (Boston, Massachusetts, USA) of Tuesday 20 th August 1833: the Comedy of “Folly as it Flies” and the Farce of the “Blue Devils,” were acted-both of these pieces went off uncommonly well,-and it would be illiberal to remark, on the inexpertness of any Character, as every person endeavoured to support, (which they did successfully) the Motto of the House ![]() perform the several Characters allotted to them, must be a satisfaction to the Promoter, and Manager of this rational Entertainment:-That it is a source of amusement to the Society, is evinced, by the plaudits of the unexceptionable attendances, whenever any performance is announced. The adroitness with which, the Thespian Cohort, selected from the Privates of H. We have much pleasure in noticing the continuance of Plays, at the neat little Theatre of Trichinopoly. I have found an isolated early occurrence of the phrase-used, not as a commercial slogan, but as the motto of an amateur-dramatic group-in the Madras Courier (Madras, Tamil Nadu, India) of Tuesday 22 nd July 1817: This phrase has come to be also used jocularly by individuals-in which case the we is ‘royal’ (the term royal we denotes we (the first-person plural pronoun) used in place of I (the first-person singular pronoun) by a monarch or other person in power, or, humorously, by any individual). The phrase we aim to please was originally chiefly used as a commercial slogan meaning our customers’ satisfaction is our goal.
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