Do you know who was born on this day in 1795? You don’t? Seriously? Gordon Bennett!!!
The elder, that is, not the younger – yes, that’s right, not only was Gordon Bennett a real person, there were two of them, father and son. (Although strictly speaking they were both James Gordon Bennett.)
Gordon Bennett Snr was born in Scotland, and emigrated first to Canada in 1819, and later to the USA, where he worked in various jobs as a schoolteacher, proof-reader, bookseller, freelance writer, journalist and ultimately in 1835 founded a newspaper, The New York Herald, (which is where the literary connection comes in, and hence the excuse for this post).
But according to Wikipedia, ‘The phrase “Gordon Bennett” which denotes exasperation or shock’ derives from James Gordon Bennett Jnr, who was not born on 1st September, but did take over the running of the New York Herald from his father, and lived in Paris for a time, where he started the Paris Herald (which went on to become the well-known International Herald Tribune) and had an Avenue named after his father.
From the descriptions of him online, Gordon Bennett Jnr sounds like a bit of a character, scandalising society and spending his wealth on funding sporting events (numerous Gordon Bennett cups in various accomplishments), sailing, hot air ballooning and exploration (including H Morton Stanley’s quest to find Dr David Livingstone) and marrying for the first time at the age of 73 – having wrecked a previous chance at matrimony by getting outrageously drunk at the engagement party and urinating in the fireplace (or possibly a grand piano) in the home of his prospective in-laws.
Wikipedia goes on to suggest that ‘Bennett’s controversial reputation is thought to have inspired, in Britain, the phrase “Gordon Bennett” as an expression of incredulity.’ Wordsmith.org, describes it as ‘an interjection: Expressing surprise, puzzlement, incredulity, annoyance, etc’ and suggests that it: ‘alludes to his wild ways, and perhaps originated as a euphemism for gorblimey‘.
As someone who uses this expression quite frequently, I’d say it’s not so much a euphemism as a blasphemy disguised by distorted (allegedly Cockney) pronunciation, in the same category as ‘oh my gawd’, and its variants ‘oh my gaudy (or giddy) aunt’. But hey, what do I know?
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