Zippy is known for his enthusiasm for specific words, is given to playing with them in public. Today’s Zippy strip shows our Pinhead drifting happily through six encounters with ball, in the title (In the ballpark) and five times in the text:
(#1) In four idiomatic expressions and then, in panel 3, when we’re set up to expect idiomatic drop the ball ‘make a mistake’, Zippy goes all literal on us by, just, dropping the ball
The four idioms: have a ball, keep one’s eye on the ball, the ball is in someone’s court, take one’s ball and go home. One use of ball ‘formal social gathering for dancing’, followed by three uses of ball ‘spherical object’ in the context of playing games or sports. The effect in the text is to switch from one way of thinking to another: the social gathering image gives way immediately to three game-playing images, and then Zippy gets literal.
Now to look at the lexical resources Bill Griffith is tapping in this strip. But first, a diversion to six actual (game-playing) balls.
Omnikin® Six Balls. From the company’s site:
(#2) Balls on paradeOmnikin Six Balls 18” [AZ: yes, a foot and a half] is a set of 6 lightweight and durable balls of different colours (blue, green, orange, purple, red and yellow). With unique features, they are made with a heavy-duty 100% nylon cover. Because of their design, they will never deform. Their very low inertia (due to their light weight) greatly reduces the risk of injury. They can be thrown and kicked. They are strong enough to sit on as well as use with your feet, hands and head.
Use these safety balls for PE classes and other activities that require 6 different teams, or both small and larger groups of over 30 participants. They are extremely versatile as they can be used for the introduction to traditional sports (volleyball, soccer and some basketball skills). Omnikin Six Balls can play an integral part in many different types of games. More than 20 games have been designed specifically for this product. All these activities allow participants to have fun, learn and expend their energy. One entire class can be involved in many games with 6 different teams at the same time.
To the dictionaries, mes amis! The resources Bill Griffith was working with. First, from NOAD:
noun ball-1 ‘spherical object’ PHRASES:
— the ball is in your court: it is up to you to make the next move: the ball is firmly in the court of the EC Commission.
— ball of fire: a person full of energy and enthusiasm.
— drop the ball: North American informal make a mistake; mishandle things: I really dropped the ball on this one.
— get the ball rolling (also set the ball rolling or start the ball rolling) set an activity in motion; make a start: to get the ball rolling, the government was asked to contribute a million dollars to the fund.
— keep the ball rolling: maintain the momentum of an activity.
— keep one’s eye on the ball: keep one’s attention focused on the matter in hand.
— on the ball: [a] alert to new ideas, methods, and trends: maintaining contact with customers keeps me on the ball. [b] indicating competence, alertness, or intelligence: a woman like that, with so much on the ball.
— play ball: 1 informal work willingly with others; cooperate: if his lawyers won’t play ball, there’s nothing we can do. 2 Baseball the umpire’s command to begin or resume play.
— take one’s eye off the ball: fail to keep one’s attention focused on the matter in hand.
— the whole ball of wax: North American informal everything related to a particular situation; the whole thing: when you’re in a regional manager position, you really have to look at the whole ball of wax | they don’t own the whole ball of wax, especially at this late stage.
noun ball-2 ‘formal social gathering for dancing’ PHRASE:
— have a ball: informal enjoy oneself greatly; have a lot of fun: I had a ball on my fortieth birthday.
noun ballpark: North American [a] a baseball stadium or field. [b] informal a particular area or range: we can make a pretty good guess that this figure’s in the ballpark.
adj. ballpark: [attributive] informal (of prices or costs) approximate; rough: the ballpark figure is $400–500.
Then from the Farlex Dictionary of Idioms:
— take one’s ball and go home: to be so petulant in dealing with adversity, loss, or rejection that one leaves abruptly, often disrupting other participants in the process. The image is of a child who leaves with the ball, thus preventing others from continuing to play the game.
From NOAD, some items Griffith didn’t draw on:
combining form –ball: North American informal used in various derogatory terms as an intensifier: sleazeball | goofball.
verb ball: [with object] 1 [a] squeeze or form (something) into a rounded shape: Robert balled up his napkin and threw it onto his plate. [b] clench (one’s fist) tightly: she balled her fist so that the nails dug into her palms. [c] [no object] form a round shape: the fishing nets eventually ball up and sink. [d] wrap the rootball of (a tree or shrub) to protect it during transportation. 2 North American vulgar slang have sex with.
noun balls: vulgar slang 1 testicles. 2 courage or nerve. 3 British nonsense; rubbish (often said to express strong disagreement). PHRASES have someone or something by the balls: vulgar slang have complete control over someone or something: they’ve got us by the balls, and they know it.
Well, there’s only so much you can do in three panels of a comic strip. Though I like to think of Zippy as a goofball.
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