A clock riddle is:
Q: When do clocks die?
A: When their time is up.
The joke has been cited in print since at least 1976.
Google Books
Biggest Riddle Book in the World
By Joseph Rosenbloom
Illustrations by Joyce Behr
New York, NY: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.
1976
Pg. 184:
When do clocks die?
When their time is up.
21 January 1977, Casa Grande (AZ) Dispatch, “KidStuff,” pg. 6, col. 1:
When do clocks die?
When their time is up.
19 January 1978, The Daily Tribune (Wisconsin Rapids, WI), “KidStuff,” pg. 12, col. 2:
When do clocks die?
When their time is up.
18 March 1980, Philadelphia (PA) Tribune, “Riddles,” pg. A9, col. 1:
When do clocks die?
When their time is up.
Google Books
1001 more cool jokes with Glen Singleton
By Glen Singleton
Victoria, Australia: Hinkler Book Distributors
2002
Pg. 141:
When do clocks die?
When their time’s up.
Google Books
Sensible Nonsense.. Frank’s Comic Pack:
Humour Pack Series
By Frank Paul
BookBaby
2014
Pg. ?:
When do clocks die?When their time is up.
Twitter
Lucky Score
@LuckyScoreNet
When do clocks die?
When their time is up.
#Joke from #TimeJokes in #Jokes, #Humor and #Satire
9:42 PM - 21 Aug 2017
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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