Term of the Day: to bone (someone)

to bone (someone)-- to intentionally or unintentionally screw someone over, to interfere with another person or another department's work.  "The electricians boned both the carpenters and props by having the first and second electric pipes in for the whole work call." To bone is also to have sex.

Term of the Day: feet first

(to go out) feet first-- to resist retirement, to die on the job. "I was very surprised when Bobby Bobby Bobby retired. He had no family, no friends. I was sure he was going to go out feet first." You can also say, as a cowboy parody,  "to die with his/her boots on."

Term of the Day: cold gun

cold gun-- movie term for a gun that does NOT contain live ammunition. When a gun is handed to an actor and is full of blanks, it is deemed safe and the armorer calls out "Cold gun!" to alert the cast and crew. In the tragedy where Alec Baldwin shot and killed a cinematographer on the set of "Rust" in New Mexico in October 2021, an assistant director yelled "cold gun" and handed Baldwin a gun loaded with at least one real bullet.

Term of the Day: galoot, gallof

 galoot, gallof-- oafish, awkward person, not very bright. Can be affectionate, can be a slur.  "The angry old carpenter hired a galoot as his deck carpenter on his last show." May come from 19th century Royal Navy slang

Term of the Day: to be shot out of a cannon

to be shot out of a cannon--to be thrown into a disorienting situation, like running a new track with no training.

Term of the Day: Lady MacBeth

 Lady MacBeth—backstabbing stagehand into political intrigue in the theater. “That guy? He’s a real Lady MacBeth. Be careful.” Should be used for backstabbers of both sexes.

Term of the Day: "I am not a fan"

  "I am not a fan"--the nice way to say "I hate his/her guts."

Expression of the Night: "We hate the same people"

 "We hate the same people"--when stagehands are bonded by their mutual hate of the same people. "I love eating dinner with that guy. We have great conversations. We hate the same people."

Term of the Night: working oneself into a lather

 working oneself into a lather—for bosses, to wind oneself up to get angry enough to fire someone. Or anyone who ramps up their anger with a heated monologue.

Term of the Day: a wipeout

a wipeout--when one or several rows of seats are removed from the theater orchestra during a load-in/production period for high-powered creatives, like a famous lighting designer or director. This is so they can move more freely without having to climb through the aisles.

Term of the Day: chain-gang buddy

chain-gang buddy--when you are put to work with the same stagehand for weeks on end during a load in. "For the six weeks of the load in, I was paired with the same electrician every day by the head. He became my chain-gang buddy. Every move, we did together." Sometimes complete strangers become friends, other times you can't stand each other.

term of the Day: hand grenade

hand grenade--self destructive stagehand, whose actions threaten all the people surrounding him or her. "When the deranged soundman started attacking the head that hired him, he became a hand grenade, whose actions threatened the jobs of the stagehands he was close with. Stay away from him." 

Term of the Day: ring around the Rosie

ring around the Rosie--when stagehands have to move one or more pieces of furniture over and over, from place to place, because a designer is indecisive. A reference to the children's rhyme.

Term of the Day: problem with his nose

problem with his nose--specific substance abuse issue. "The head's son had a problem with his nose, so bad that he destroyed his good looks when his nose cartilage collapsed. He had what is called "a Coke nose."

Term of the Day: to be Breakfast Clubbed

to be Breakfast Clubbed-- when a small group of stagehands is given an early call that lasts all day, with little or nothing to do. The reference is to the 1985 John Hughes movie "The Breakfast Club," where a group of high school students are held in Saturday detention. "I had a 6 am call with five other stagehands to the stage, where we had nothing to do for 12 hours...we were Breakfast Clubbed." (From Greg Leshe, Local 52)

Term of the Day: golden gut

golden gut--an instinctual ability to predict hit shows. This is a reference to the disgraced producer Scott Rudin, who was taken to task in a New York Times hatchet job on his three decades of violent and emotionally vicious behavior on Broadway. New York Times, April 25, 2021. Rudin is heavyset and has a copious gut. "That producer had a golden gut...he was able to pick and produce shows that would be big hits."

Term of the Day: the on-set

the on-set--in Local 52 and the film industry, the on-set is the prop person who is responsible for the hand props used by the actors on the days of the filming. 

Term of the Day: sugar glass

  sugar glass-- old term for breakaway glass, which originally was made with sugar. Local 52 term.

Term of the Day: to put an arm on someone

 to put an arm on someone-- to pressure someone, to strong arm another person