Ending on a Sour… Er… Sober Note?” Nehemiah 13:4-31 31 August 2014
“Ending On a Sour… Er… Sober Note?” Nehemiah 13:4-31 31 August 2014 Maybe you’ve heard the expression, “Jump the shark.” It is a phrase that was originally used to denote the tipping point at which a TV series is deemed by the viewers to have passed its peak, or has introduced plot twists that are logically inconsistent in terms of everything that has preceded them. Once a show has “jumped the shark,” the viewer senses a noticeable decline in quality or feels the show has undergone too many changes to retain its original charm. The term has also evolved to describe other areas of pop culture where people, actors, authors, etc seem to lose their edge and they are on an obvious decline. Where did the phrase “jump the shark” originate? The term comes from a Happy Days episode centering around Arthur Fonzarelli, also known as Fonzie, or the Fonz. Remember Fonzie? Fonzie was the cool, womanizer who could woo all the ladies with his love and looks. Fonzie would take your girl right outta your arms just by looking at her! He was that cool! Straight out of your arms into the arms of the Fonz. Well, there is an episode of Happy Days where the Fonz is waterskiing in the ocean, with perfect hair and wearing his famous leather jacket, and he jumps over a shark in the ocean. So the Fonz is waterskiing in the ocean, he sees a shark fin, the viewer is terrified because we think the Fonz is gonna get eaten by a shark, and what does Fonzie do? He does what only the Fonz could do: he jumps over the shark! Hence, the expression, “jump the shark.” That episode was the beginning of the end for Happy Days.
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