The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #64019 Message #3623495
Posted By: Lighter
01-May-14 - 06:16 PM
Thread Name: Origins: The Hole in the Elephant's Bottom
Subject: RE: Origins: The Hole in the Elephant's Bottom
Steve, the only obviously "datable" text is the one that includes Charlie's topical stanza about the Japanese making an attack. That must dates to before 1945. (Logue/ Vicarion seems to have learned much of his material in the Army in the late '40s.)
The primitive nature of the suggested skit seems consistent with a pre-1918 origin - though maybe not terrifically so.
Douglas Fairbanks, in BanjoRay's version, was probably Hollywood's biggest star by 1918, but his fame continued into the early '30s.
It's not directly related, but I'm reminded of the mostly American concept of the "ham actor," a term that dates back to before 1890.
The song's dry humor, apparent in every version, would be quite consistent with an Oxbridge origin, though that's merely an opinion.