Entry in progress—B.P.
Wiktionary: nervous Nellie
Noun
nervous Nellie (plural nervous Nellies)
1. (informal) A person whose personality and behavior are characterized by worry, insecurity, and timidity.
(Oxford English Dictionary)
Nervous Nellie n. [popularized by use in U.S. politics, especially as applied to Frank B. Kellogg (1856–1937), U.S. politician.] slang (chiefly U.S.) an overly timid, cautious, or fearful person; one who fusses unnecessarily.
1925 N.Y. Herald Tribune 18 Jan. ii. 1/5 [Kellogg] was labeled ‘Nervous Nellie’ by those who were irritated at his maneuvering during the League of Nations fight.
1967 Canadian 2 Sept. 13 They’re window washers and theirs is not a job for nervous nellies.
Newspapers.com
24 December 1905, Boston (MA) Sunday Globe, “Household Department,” pg. 31, col. 2:
Nervous Nellie.
Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.
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Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps. Stolen and missing, 2021-2024.
Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.
Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.
Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.
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