Talk:It was a dark and stormy night

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the debate was move. —Nightstallion (?) 11:07, 29 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Requested move

Proposal :	Dark and stormy night → It was a dark and stormy night
Rationale :	The article is about the phrase "it was a dark and stormy night", not the setting (i.e. a night which is dark and stormy). It was previously about the setting but this was corrected in this edit by an anon, so the article title ought to be fixed too.
Proposer :	Meandmyself 13:18, 24 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Survey and discussion

Please add * Support or * Oppose followed by a brief explanation, then sign your vote using "~~~~".

Support per nom. David Kernow 17:47, 24 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Support, though you might just go ahead and do it. Twinxor t 18:56, 24 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Abstain - I'm not sure that the proposed title is much better, as it makes it considerably longer and more complex, however I don't specifically object. DWaterson 21:18, 24 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

There was a redirect already so an admin was needed to make the move.Meandmyself 03:29, 9 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

(Origin of joke?)

Does anyone know the origin or any details about the old joke "It was a dark and stormy night and the rain fell in torrents. The captain said to the mate, "Mate tell us a story" and the mate began. "It was a dark and stormy night"

If that's a joke it's not very funny. All I recall is a juvenile rhyme along the lines of:

It was a dark and stormy night

The lavatory light was dim

I heard a scream, I heard a shout

Someone had fallen in

Sort of thing which you find immensly amusing up to the age of six or so...Colin4C 12:22, 12 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah I know that one well. It should really be in the page, I guess. It's not a 'joke' in the conventional sense but a nice example of iteration. You can usually get kids with it for three revolutions before they work out what you're doing.

"Run-on sentences" refers to what?

First paragraph of article: A run-on sentence is a sentences that mistakenly joins two (or more) independent clauses with a comma (or commas). I don't think that's what the writer meant. In the context, he or she probably meant sentences that are long and elaborate: they run on and on. The opening sentence of Paul Clifford, cited as an example, isn't a run-on.

Oh, I think I originally wrote that description. IIRC, I was referring more to the use of long sentences with numerous sub-clauses punctuated by commas, rather than the grammatical error itself. Feel free to correct. DWaterson 10:42, 7 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Another comment on that first paragraph: I hardly think the "citation needed" is needed when the sentence, by means of its entire structure, which is separated into a number of subclauses, where each one in turn provides an example of the very structure intended - and far better than I can do it... perhaps we should pull it? Number774 (talk) 21:53, 29 November 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Any chance

Is there any way shape or form we could legally get a Snoopy cartoon in here? jengod 03:09, 16 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Lightning Photograph

This article is about a phrase and a specific style of writing. I don't really see the point of the picture of the lightning bolt, as it doesn't really enhance the article. It seems to me to be equivalent to putting a picture of a live cockroach on a page about Kafka's Metamorphosis. I would think a picture of the author, or, as was already suggested, the Charlie Brown cartoon would be more appropriate. Simpsone4 18:11, 5 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Indeed. The 'lightning flashing on a stormy night' caption is particularly pathetic.-AlKing464 07:44, 31 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

(Image:Lightning NOAA.jpg) removed. Femto 15:32, 31 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

What Picard said

Upon reading the line, Captain Picard observes, "It's not a very promising start, is it?"

It was years ago that I saw the episode, but I vividly remember Picard's exact words as "Not a promising beginning." Of course, even vivid memories are not perfect. Can anybody verify what exactly he said? - furrykef (Talk at me) 00:21, 17 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It's in the episode "The Royale" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.196.160.112 (talk) 03:59, 24 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Euphemism

The term is mis-used in the 2nd sentence. Abu Amaal 18:18, 26 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I changed it to "signifier" which I think is the right word. Eleland 18:58, 26 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Funny article

That's it, really. A.Z. 22:01, 7 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

First use in Peanuts

Just added the date of the first Peanuts strip to use the phrase as cited in the External links. Can anyone confirm that this was indeed the first use? Alan R. Fisher 08:16, 11 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Comma

Is this correct? A.Z. 23:43, 29 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Another use of the line

I know that one of Spider Robinson's novels began with the line but I don't recall which one. If somebody can identify it, this should be added to the article. MK2 (talk) 07:05, 15 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Usebox for fans of this genre...

Feel free to use this userbox!

User:Xenocidic/Stormy

This user really enjoys dark and stormy nights.

use {{User:Xenocidic/Stormy}} to add this to your userpage (who's using it?)

Comments welcome! xenocidic (talk) 18:29, 14 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

French

In both the 1997 Wordsworth Classic edition and Richard Pevear's 2006 translation of Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers, chapter 65 begins with this phrase. In the original French, the opening line of the chapter is C'etait une nuit orageuse et sombre. -- Fine, as far as it goes, but can someone provide a literal translation of the French for the benefit of us non-Francophones? 91.107.164.71 (talk) 21:50, 18 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"It was a night stormy and dark." DWaterson (talk) 23:29, 18 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

But since French adjectives normally go after the noun they modify, whereas in English they go before, a literal grammatical translation would in fact read, simply, "It was a dark and stormy night" (or "It was a stormy and dark night", but I think the first is much more likely as it flows better in English). But yes, that's exactly what it says. - furrykef (Talk at me) 09:38, 29 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Who penned it?

Y'know, the book "Clan-Albin: A National Tale" by Christian Isobel Johnstone begins: "In a dark and stormy night in November, 178--, ..."

And that was published in 1815. Perhaps Mrs. Johnstone deserves some credit? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.255.107.172 (talk) 17:03, 4 March 2010 (UTC)[reply]