Yogiisms are quotations by Yogi Berra, who, besides being a baseball player, was also famous for fracturing the English language in provocative, interesting ways. Similar phrases, spoken by other people, are also sometimes called "Yogiisms" (or 'Colemanballs' in the UK, or 'Cruijffiaans' in Holland). For the similarly named animated character see Yogi Bear. ... A view of the playing field at Busch Stadium II St. ... Colemanballs is a term used to describe a variety of types of gaffes perpetrated by media commentators. ... Johan Cruijff Johan Cruijff (born April 25, 1947 in Amsterdam) is a Dutch football trainer/coach and former star player. ...

Examples

It's not over till it's over.

This quotation is undoubtedly the best-known Yogiism. However, what he really said was You're never out of it 'til you're out of it in regard to the 1973 National League pennant race. This article refers to the American baseball league. ...

I want to thank you for making this day necessary.

This was said at Yogi Berra Day in St Louis in 1947. It is supposed to be the first Yogiism. By his account, he asked teammate Dr. Bobby Brown to write a short speech, and he misspoke, replacing the word 'possible' with 'necessary'. 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ...

It's like déjà vu all over again.

Many people think that Berra would have never said the word déjà vu, as it wasn't his kind of language. But Yogi himself insists that he said this in reference to home runs by Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle, who often hit homers. Roger Maris signs a baseball for President John F. Kennedy Roger Eugene Maris (September 10, 1934 – December 14, 1985), was a Major League Baseball player primarily remembered for breaking Babe Ruths 34-year-old single-season home run record in 1961 on the last day of the season. ... Mickey Mantle on a 1953 cover of Time Magazine Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995) was an American baseball player who was inducted into to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974. ...

When you get to a fork in the road, take it.

Berra insists that this is part of some driving directions to his house. In his hometown of Montclair, New Jersey, there is a fork in the road and either way you take, you will get to his house. Some people find this to be a very poignant quotation, thinking it means that when you find a challenge, overcome it. Map of Montclair Township in Essex County Montclair is a township located in Essex County, New Jersey. ...

I never said half the things I said.

Yogi can't even escape creating a Yogiism in his disclaimer for not creating all of the Yogiisms. He was pointing out that he didn't say everything that people think he said, which is very likely.

It's so crowded nobody goes there anymore.

This one may have been invented by someone else. Yogi said it regarding Ruggiero's, a restaurant in St. Louis where he and Joe Garagiola had worked as waiters, which had become so popular that his old friends couldn't get in anymore. Joseph Henry Garagiola, Sr. ...

Tomorrow night is another day.

Yogi said it when his team lost a night game. He knew they would play better the following day.

We have a good time together, even when we're not together.

This quote was talking about his wife Carmen. Apparently it makes perfect sense to them, and it means that he likes to spend a little time away from her, but wants to be back together after it.

Our similarities are different.

This quotation was actually said by Dale Berra, Yogi's son. It's interesting to note how similar they are in their linguistic qualities.

I thought they said steak dinner, but then I found it was a state dinner...

...It was hard to have a conversation with anyone; there were so many people talking.

This was about a fancy dinner he attended at the White House. The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States of America. ...

We make too many wrong mistakes.

This quotation was about his team, the New York Yankees, when they lost the World Series in 1960. Major league affiliations American League (1901-present) East Division (1969-present) Current uniform Ballpark Yankee Stadium (1923-present) Major league titles World Series titles (26) 2000 â€¢ 1999 â€¢ 1998 â€¢ 1996 1978 â€¢ 1977 â€¢ 1962 â€¢ 1961 1958 â€¢ 1956 â€¢ 1953 â€¢ 1952 1951 â€¢ 1950 â€¢ 1949 â€¢ 1947 1943 â€¢ 1941 â€¢ 1939 â€¢ 1938 1937 â€¢ 1936 â€¢ 1932 â€¢ 1928 1927... For other events named World Series, see World Series (disambiguation). ...

Other quotes

• "Slump? I ain't in no slump... I just ain't hitting."
• "You can observe a lot by watching."
• "It gets late early around here..."
• "A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore."
• "If I didn't wake up I'd still be sleeping."
• "I usually take a two hour nap from 1 to 4."
• "If you don't know where you're going, you'll wind up somewhere else."
• "The future ain't what it used to be."
• "If people don't want to come to the ballpark, how are you gonna stop them?"
• "Always go to your friends' funerals, otherwise they won't go to yours." (This was reportedly said by Yogi after arriving late to practice so that he could attend the funeral of a friend who had died. It is assumed that the friends Yogi really meant to refer to when he said "they" to are not the same friends that are deceased.)
• "You have to give 100 percent in the first half of the game. If that isn't enough, in the second half, you have to give what is left."
• "Never answer an anonymous letter."
• "Think?! How the hell are you gonna think and hit at the same time?"
• "Why buy good luggage? You only use it when you travel!"
• "Ninety percent of this game is mental, and the other half is physical." (A variation on this is, "Ninety percent of this game is half mental.")
• "Prediction is very hard, especially when it's about the future."
• "The first 90% of any trip takes 90% of the time, and the last 10% takes the other 90%."

In context

When asked what makes a good manager of a baseball team, he said "A good ball club".

When asked what time it is, he said "What? You mean right now?"

When he was asked if first baseman Don Mattingly had exceeded expectations, Yogi said "I'd say he's done more than that!" Donald Arthur Mattingly (nicknamed Donnie Baseball and The Hit Man) (born April 20, 1961) is a former star left-handed baseball player (first baseman) for the New York Yankees of the American League from 1982-1995. ...

His wife Carmen asked where he would like to be buried, and he said "Surprise me!"

He was told by the wife of the Mayor of New York that he looked cool in his summer suit, and he said "You don't look so hot yourself."

At a dinner in an Italian restaurant, he was asked how many slices should be cut in his pizza, and he replied "You better make it six, 'cause I don't think I could eat eight." A Pizza Margherita made in Naples (Napoli), Italy A pizza (IPA pronunciation: ) or pizza pie is an oven-baked, flat, usually round bread covered with tomato sauce and cheese with optional toppings, or a savory pie with similar ingredients. ...

While he was a guest on a radio show (with fellow Hall of Fame member Tommy Lasorda), the subject of epitaphs came up. Yogi quipped that his epitaph will read "It's over" — a reference to the quip "It ain't over 'till it's over," which is often attributed to him. Thomas Charles Tommy Lasorda (born September 22, 1927 in Norristown, Pennsylvania) was a Major League baseball pitcher and manager. ...

"I don't know if it's good for baseball, but it sure beats the hell out of rooming with Phil Rizzuto!" — On hearing team-mate Joe DiMaggio was to marry Marilyn Monroe. Philip Francis Rizzuto (born as Fiero Francis Rizzuto on September 25, 1916) is a former Major League Baseball player and radio/television sports announcer, known both for his skills as a player and his popular but idiosyncratic style as an announcer. ... Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio , born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio, Jr. ... Marilyn Monroe (June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962) was an iconic actress, singer and model. ...

In 2003, while attending a Yankees game, Yogi was quoted as saying, "Boy, I hope I never see my name up there," as the names of Yankee greats who died in the previous year were flashed on the scoreboard.

In advertisements

Television commercials have taken advantage of Yogi's fame in speaking, specifically his Yogiisms, and advertisers have scripted some things for him to say that, though not true Yogiisms, are similar to his malapropisms.

In an Entenmann's commercial, Yogi said, "You can taste how good these cookies are just by eating them" and "this box is always open until it's closed." Entenmanns is a bakery brand now owned by Canadian company George Weston, Ltd. ...

In a print advertisement for the Yankees' YES Network, Yogi said, "I love the YES Network so much, I don't watch TV anymore." Primary logo for the YES Network (2002). ...

In an AFLAC commercial, Yogi is at a barber shop. Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL, TYO: 8686 ) is an American insurance company that acts as a management company; overseeing the operations of its subsidiaries by providing management services and making capital available. ...

>Yogi (to barber): Not too close. You think I got that insurance?

>Man next to Yogi: What insurance is that, Yogi?

>Aflac Duck (kicking door open): AFLAC. Aflacs new logo designed by FutureBrand showing their famous duck mascot Aflacs old logo Aflac (NYSE: AFL, TYO: 8686 ) is an American insurance company, which was founded by three brothers, John, Paul, and Bill Amos in 1955 in Columbus, Georgia. ...

>Yogi: The one you really need to have. If you don't have it, that's why you need it.

>Man: Need what?

>Aflac Duck: AFLAC.

>Yogi: Well, if you get hurt and miss work, it won't hurt to miss work.

>Aflac Duck: huh?

> Yogi: And they give you cash, which is just as good as money.

In a commercial for "J&R Music and Computer World" he says, "Their customer service is so helpful and their prices are so low, you cant afford not to go there."

Nature of Yogiisms

Yogiisms should not be confused with Farberisms [1] (popularized by Prof. David J. Farber). The former are typically either pleonastic or oxymoronic redundancies, while the latter are most often non-sequiturial mondegreens, though both usually share the goal of making a point through surreally humorous, absurdist mis-use of language, especially the alteration of clichés through malapropism and mixed metaphor. David Farber is currently a professor at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh. ... Pleonasm is the use of more words (or even word-parts) than necessary to express an idea clearly. ... Look up Oxymoron in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In language, redundancy often takes the form of phrases which repeat a concept with a different word. ... A non sequitur is a literary device; used in comedy (as opposed to its use in formal logic) it is a comment which, due to its lack of meaning relative to the comment it follows, is absurd to the point of being humorous. ... A mondegreen (also sometimes spelled mondagreen) is the mishearing (usually accidental) of a phrase, such that it acquires a new meaning. ... Surreal humour is a form of humour based on bizarre juxtapositions, absurd situations, and nonsense logic. ... Absurdism is a philosophy stating that the efforts of humanity to find meaning in the universe will ultimately fail because no such meaning exists (at least in relation to humanity). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Look up Malapropism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In language, a metaphor is a rhetorical trope where a comparison is made between two seemingly unrelated subjects. ...

See also

• Malapropism

• Colemanballs, which is how many British people would refer to 'Yogiisms'.

• Bushism

• Cruijffiaans, which is how many Dutch people would refer to 'Yogiisms'.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Yogiisms

Look up Malapropism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Colemanballs is a term used to describe a variety of types of gaffes perpetrated by media commentators. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... Johan Cruijff Johan Cruijff (born April 25, 1947 in Amsterdam) is a Dutch football trainer/coach and former star player. ... Image File history File links Wikiquote-logo-en. ... Wikiquote logo Wikiquote is a sister project of Wikipedia, using the same MediaWiki software. ...

External links

• A university study into the philosophical implications of Yogiisms