This Ain't Your Granddaddy's Lipstick on a Pig

Contrary to Obama aide, phrase is new twist on prettying porky

By Dave Arnold, Newser User

Posted Sep 11, 2008 2:26 PM CDT

(Newser) – Whether Barack Obama was taking a rouge-colored swipe at Sarah Palin is debatable, but a staffer’s claim that "lipstick on a pig" is a phrase “older than my grandfather’s grandfather” should raise eyebrows, Ben Zimmer explains on Slate. The phrase has probably only been around since the 1980s (about a century less than lipstick itself), but the general sentiment is quite a bit older.

There are many older variations, with the classic “You can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear” dating to the 16th century. "A hog in armour is still but a hog" was recorded in 1732; "A hog in a silk waistcoat is still a hog," in 1887. The version Obama used didn’t appear until 1985. The saying was popularized by former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, and was even used recently by John McCain when he attacked Hillary Clinton’s health care plan. But, Zimmer says, “it's not quite the vintage of anyone's grandfather's grandfather.”

[Images (4)]

[Quotes (1)]

In this Feb. 26, 2008 file photo, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speaks on behalf of victims of the Exxon Valdez oil spill and their supporters at a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington.... (AP Photo)

Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute dinner in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Lipstick has been around since the 1880s, but the phrase 'lipstick on a pig' might not have made its first appearance until nearly a century later. (AP Photo)

Former Texas governor Ann Richards was among the first politicians to use "lipstick on a pig," applying the phrase to early-1990s budget wrangling. (Getty Images)

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In 1985, the Washington Post quoted a San Francisco radio host on plans for renovating Candlestick Park (instead of building a new downtown stadium for the Giants): "That would be like putting lipstick on a pig." - Ben Zimmer, on Slate

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This Ain't Your Granddaddy's Lipstick on a Pig