I've read a fair number of British books, and I know that a Plimsoll line is a line painted on the hull of a ship that indicates how loaded the ship is. Plimsolls as a plural though ... hmmmm. It sounds familiar. Have to try to jog the memory a bit on this one.

TM

Plimsoils, hmm, need clues.

TM, I am so surprised! Good for you-I had never heard of plimsoll before I ran across this! I am so impressed. Kicking up my heels in a happy dance to honor your brilliance! ðÂÂÂ

Cynthia

I do have an idea for plimsolls, and think I detect a hint there, Cynthia.

TM

Ahhh, me thinks I know this one :).

Annette

Ah yes Annette - DI Frost bought plimsolls in an episode about a month or so ago!! I need some too.

We ended up watching Jersey Boys last night. Great fun!! Joyce thought is was about gangsters - lol. Andy tunelessly sang along. It was not my era, but I do like the music now that I don't have to be 'cool'!!

Nancy.

Guess I wasn't sneaky enough for you today. Oh well. Will wait for Bobbie.

Cynthia

Sorry, I've had a busy day.

Haven't seen the Frost episode but putting that clue with Cynthia's clue I might be walking in the right direction.

Sigh. The packers were doing so well, but then it looked like they just lay down and died. Maybe they should take up tennis. Oh well, I still love 'em and there is always next year.

Hi Bobbie! ðÂÂÂ

Cynthia

Sorry for the Packers loss. DH said it was fun to listen to the last few minutes. He keeps track of the various games and often tunes in for those with interesting endings.

Yesterday we walked at the track inside the city sports dome. I had to stop occasionally as my foot has some arthritis. Watching a few plays of the girls' soccer games kept me entertained before walking some more. May need some new equipment to keep me moving.

I have always been curious about the original of the name.

Nancy.

Runners/Sneakers. My grandmother called them sand shoes.

Annette

canvas shoes with a solid rubber sole

Sounds like the ones we used to buy in the mid/late 60s early 70s though I don't remember ever hearing them called plimsolls.

Started a new book, Time's Arrow/Martin Amis, tonight and on the page 5 is the word plimsolls referencing a pair of black boots "power-pack plimsolls".

canvas shoes with a solid rubber sole

Sounds like the ones we used to buy in the mid/late 60s early 70s though I don't remember ever hearing them called plimsolls.

Started a new book, Time's Arrow/Martin Amis, tonight and on the page 5 is the word plimsolls referencing a pair of black boots "power-pack plimsolls".

I had been thinking rubber boots of some kind, but I think old-fashioned tennis shoes would fit the clues even better.

TM

In the 19th century when middle and lower classes in English society were able to go to the seaside by rail, it was easy to make a day trip. However, the sturdy leather boots they wore seemed out of place, so people began to wear simple canvas "sand shoes" (aha, Annette!) instead. The New Liverpool Rubber Co. created a canvas shoe with a rubber sole and a band which held the two parts together. As TM said, a plimsoll line is marked on boats to indicate a safe-water mark for ships entering a harbor and people began referring to these shows as "plimsolls."

They looked like our basic tennis shoes. They were affordable and popular. They were also quite versatile as they were adapted for croquet and lawn tennis and also became used by explorers and the military. Apparently, even the doomed Captain Robert F. Scott had a pair with him. They were found with his remains, although why he thought he would need them in Antarctica is beyond me.

Vulcanization of rubber made the manufacture of these shoes cheaper and faster. For several decades, the manufacturers made their own versions of the casual shoes with different names. In 1916, however, they consolidated under the brand name of Keds.

The term "sneakers" for these shoes came about when Harry Nelson McKinney, an advertising agent, noted that the shoes were virtually silent due to their rubber soles!

So there you have it. Four stars for you all. Thanks for playing and have a marvelous week.

Cynthia

When I was in high school, the cool sneakers were the Jack Purcells by Converse, which, to my surprise, are still being sold. Here in Michigan, we didn't call them sneakers. They were tennies. I don't think I ever knew who the heck Jack Purcell was. Wait, I just looked it up. He was a Canadian badminton champion! I'm sure we didn't know that. Badminton would not have impressed us.

Thanks for the fun, Cynthia. Great question and super clues.

TM

I, too, remember Converse being THE shoe during my teen years. Don't remember if we called them sneakers or tennies. We were a large farm family and I doubt I ever had more than one or two pairs of shoes at a time so shoe fashion wasn't something I gave much attention.

Love the shoe stars, Cynthia ! Thanks for another fun trivia.

Fun!! I remember there being tennis shoes and basketball shoes - girls wore the former and boys the latter, some of them hi-tops. In high school, the cool shoes to have were Adidas!! Never owned a pair of them myself.

Now as to Jack Purcell - funny local (Ottawa) storey: there is a popular park and community centre in downtown Ottawa called the Jack Purcell. All was well and good till an artist decided to do an 'installation' piece to honour him. Well, wouldn't you know, they did some abstract badminton rackets, which is lovely except for the fact the the local Jack Purcell that the park and centre were named for is not the badminton player - lol. Great tempest in a tea pot locally. I've attached an article that might amuse you all!!

Nancy.

Here is a link that might be useful: Jack Purcell

Wonder how anyone involved made such a mistake. Would think someone would have caught it in the planning stage. It's all a racket after all. ;-)

They might look interesting lit up.