Pompatus
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The word "pompatus" is used in the lyrics of Steve Miller's 1973 pop-music song "The Joker":
- Some people call me the space cowboy.
- Yeah! Some call me the gangster of love.
- Some people call me Maurice,
- Cause I speak of the Pompatus of love.
"The Joker" is not the first time Miller spoke of the Pompatus. The published lyrics to the song "Enter Maurice," which Miller recorded the previous year, show:
- My dearest darling, come closer to Maurice
- so I can whisper sweet words of epismetology
- in your ear and speak to you of the pompatus of love.
Although Miller claims he invented the word, all of his song-writing shows strong rhythm and blues influences, and a 1954 song called "The Letter" by the Medallions had the lines:
- Oh my darling, let me whisper
- sweet words of pizmotality
- and discuss the puppetutes of love.
The song was composed by Vernon Green as a description of his dream woman. "Pizmotality described words of such secrecy that they could only be spoken to the one you loved," Green explained. He coined the term puppetutes "to mean a secret paper-doll fantasy figure who would be my everything and bear my children."
Pompatus in Pop Culture
Because of its peculiarity and seemingly-nonsensical usage, the word "pompatus" has managed to become something of a minor pop-trivia icon. Humor columnist Dave Barry frequently references the song line as a source of comedic value, particularly in his 1997 book, Dave Barry's Book of Bad Songs. A 1996 movie entitled The Pompatus of Love starring Jon Cryer featured four guys discussing a number of assorted topics, including attempting to determine the meaning of the titular phrase. The line has also been mentioned in various television show gags, including The Simpsons and South Park.
External links
- The Straight Dope: In Steve Miller's "The Joker," what is "the pompatus of love"? (http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4_065.html)
- IMDB: The Pompatus of Love (http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0117357/)