Homina homina homina!!

August 4, 2005 1:51 PM

What are the origins of "homina homina homina!!" as an expression to denote, er, lustful desires?
posted by Robot Johnny to Writing & Language (26 answers total)

It's from an Eddie Murphy skit about Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton.
posted by MrMoonPie at 1:53 PM on August 4, 2005

For reference (nsfw).
posted by MrMoonPie at 1:56 PM on August 4, 2005

Response by poster: Yeah, it's definitely been around a while. The Murphy bit is just one of the references that makes me wonder where it first came from.
posted by Robot Johnny at 2:01 PM on August 4, 2005

Response by poster: A quick Google search with 'homina' and 'Honeymooners' implies that it was a catch phrase of Gleason's (I've never watched the show more than the odd clip), but does it go back further than that?
posted by Robot Johnny at 2:05 PM on August 4, 2005

Best answer: Dunno about it being used to express lustfulness. I recall it just always being the sound Ralph Kramden made whenever he got nailed on something by Alice; it's the sound of him struggling to make up a plausible excuse for his latest harebrained scheme gone wrong.
posted by merlinmann at 2:06 PM on August 4, 2005

I always thought it came from Robin Williams Live On Broadway. That's neat that it was used so many times before.
posted by Third at 2:28 PM on August 4, 2005

merlinmann is correct. It was the sound Ralph made when he was speechless or looking for an excuse to tell Alice. That's the reason it was funny when Murphy used it.
posted by dobbs at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2005

Gleason had to do it back in the day in order for Murphy to craft his brilliant parody.

It was just part of Gleason's portrayal of Kramden. Whenever he gets freaked out, he goes into "homina" mode. My favorite instance of this is when he and Norton go on television to market the ill conceived Handy Housewife Helper gadget.

There weren't really any sexual situations on the Honeymooners (save for Alice's totally hot Halloween costume in one episode) so I don't think Gleason ever used the phrase in an overtly "lustful" way.

Which is part of the reason Murphy's use of it is so funny.

What's interesting is that some seem associate it with Murphy moreso than Gleason and Carney. People find the parody funny even though they've no knowledge of the original Honeymooners program.
posted by aladfar at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2005

Response by poster: One of the lustful instances I can recall was from a "Calvin & Hobbes" strip, which must surely not be referencing the Eddie Murphy joke... so now I'm extra curious as to how Kramden's "homina" evolved.
posted by Robot Johnny at 2:35 PM on August 4, 2005

You can hear Gleason do it here. (Click the "hamana" link.)

It's the sound he made when he was dumbfounded.
posted by pracowity at 3:03 PM on August 4, 2005

pracowity- It's Art Carney, not Gleason.

It's from an Eddie Murphy skit about Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton.

I try to digest the utterly baffling logic driving this thought, and I can think of is... hominahominahomina.

IS THERE NO RESPECT FOR THE CLASSICS?
posted by mkultra at 3:30 PM on August 4, 2005

I take it back- in my bafflement about who's imitating whom, I stuck the phrase in Ed's mouth.

hominahominahomina....
posted by mkultra at 3:32 PM on August 4, 2005

I maintain that my answer is the most accurate. Robot Johnny did not ask for the origin of the phrase; he asked for the origin of its denoting, er, lustful desires.
posted by MrMoonPie at 3:45 PM on August 4, 2005

I'm pretty sure that the phrase was being used in the original Bugs Bunny cartoons, which was long before Eddie Murphy. Of course, I haven't seen the cartoons in years, so I could be wrong.
posted by SeizeTheDay at 4:16 PM on August 4, 2005

Eddie Murphy's bit is available here. The audio is NSFW, of course.
posted by O9scar at 4:18 PM on August 4, 2005

I could be wrong, but I could swear it was used lustfully in What's Up, Tiger Lily?
posted by 4easypayments at 4:21 PM on August 4, 2005

Sorry, I should clarify. I believe that the phrase was used in the original Bugs Bunny cartoons while expressing lustful tones.
posted by SeizeTheDay at 5:04 PM on August 4, 2005

Just popping in to say thanks for such an immediate dissection of topic that wasn't even on my radar. I love AskMe.

Metafilter: It Makes Me A Little Bit Smarter Everyday.
posted by donovan at 6:21 PM on August 4, 2005

Response by poster: Thanks for the help, everyone. Not really that closer to the answer, but I'm at least pretty certain Eddie Murphy has nothing to do with it...
posted by Robot Johnny at 6:40 PM on August 4, 2005

Robot Johnny: which Calvin & Hobbes strip was that?
posted by ryanrs at 6:42 PM on August 4, 2005

Best answer: I always assumed that it was an old vaudeville thing.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:22 PM on August 4, 2005

Response by poster: I'm not sure, ryanrs, but I distinctly remember a girl-crazy Hobbes going "Homina! Homina! Homina!" at one point... I casually flipped through my C&H books tonight, but perhaps I need to look deeper.
posted by Robot Johnny at 7:50 PM on August 4, 2005

For lustful desire, all the cool kids are now using "Giggity," popularized by the character Quagmire from the cult-classic animated series Family Guy.

FYI.
posted by chota at 8:13 PM on August 4, 2005

Are you certain you're not confusing it with hubba hubba? I do recall Hobbes using that phrase more than once.

Both phrases are essentially obsolete, and with their similar sound, I wouldn't be surprised if popular usage is overlapping.
posted by dhartung at 9:33 PM on August 4, 2005

Cool kids and Famliy Guy? Family Guy is for sub-morons and pituitary cases.
For what it's worth, the "homina, homina, homina" was also a recurring joke on the animated show Duckman (always answered with a "I didn't know you spoke Cherokee" or something similar). From Gleason/Carney and the Looney Tunes, I always assumed that it was an old vaudville bit.
posted by klangklangston at 1:19 AM on August 5, 2005

Response by poster: dhartung: Nope, it was definitely "homina" -- which I think is more obsolete than hubba hubba, which I think is in fairy regular use, as far as antiquated expressions go.

klangklangston: I couldn't agree with you more on Family Guy. A complete waste of everything used to create it.

As for "homina homina," vaudeville does seem to be the most likely source.
posted by Robot Johnny at 6:58 AM on August 5, 2005