Carny Terms

Agent - Operator of a joint.

Alibi - A technique used where the player has apparently won the game, but is denied a prize when the jointee invents a further, unforeseeable, condition of the game. For example, a player may be disqualified on the grounds of having leaned over a previously undisclosed "foul line."

Bally - A free performance intended to attract both tips and visitors to the nearby sideshow.

Blow Off - Rush of customers out of an exhibition.

Bone yard - Place at which employees stay when not working.

Burn the lot - To cheat players with little or no attempt to conceal the subterfuge, in the carny's expectation that the same town will not be visited again.

Butcher - A carnie that will take every penny from a mark by confusing him and then forcing him to pay

Call - The act of yelling out slogans and interacting with passers-by to attract business.

Carny Barker - A guy standing outside the tent touting for business.

Cut-ins- Fee the booked in (not show owned) concessions paid to the electrician to hook up their electricity to the Jenny through a junction box.

Donniker (Honeypot) - Bathroom

Flat - A game that is rigged to prevent wins. Illegal in most US states.

Flash - To stock a "joint" with prizes to make it look "flashy" or ready for business.

Forty Miler - A greenie who is willing to travel, but only short distances from their home base. Also used to describe anyone or anything that is perceived to be fake or phony.

Gaff - To rig a game so as to make it unwinnable

Genny (pronounced "jenny") - A huge generator that powers some or all of the midway

Grab Joint - A food stall that lacks seating for its patrons, who must eat while standing or strolling the midway

Green Help - Employees hired at a new location that are only temporary (a.k.a. greenies).

Hammer-Squash - Used to describe an individual as dumb or stupid (used interchangeably with Larry when used to describe a person).

Hanky-Pank - A game joint that features a winner every time (e.g. a mechanical horse race) or one in which every player wins a prize (e.g. a duck pond or fish pond). The operator's profit comes not from the difficulty of the game but from the cheapness of the prizes relative to the charge for playing.

Hey, Rube! - An exclamation used to summon help by a carny in trouble, either from police or disgruntled players.

Ikey Heyman - A wheel of fortune that can be secretly braked by the carny

-iz or -erza - Inserted between the syllables of words to serve as a cipher or cryptolect.

Jump - Term used to describe the period of time when the carnies tear down, drive to another location, and set up again.

Junction Box - Boxes (usually wooden) set up around the midway to hook up the rides and concessions to the generators. Heavy electric cables are run from generators to the boxes, and each ride or concession has a cable run to it. Only the show electrician is allowed to hook up the electricity, which is covered by a wooden box to protect people from the powerful electricity running through it.

Key To The Midway - An object a carnival worker will ask a younger customer (or new initiate) for when asked for a free game or prize. The idea is that the 'mooch' will go onto the next game and ask for a "Key To The Midway", only to find out that this new carny has one, but can only give it up for some other far-fetched item. This is a form of a fool's errand. Examples of such items include: A cordless extension cord, a bacon stretcher, an underwater lighter, tack glue, a left-handed screwdriver, light bulb grease, purple fuzzy tape, glass hammer, etc. The idea is to have fun at the customer's naïveté. It is said that the Ferris wheel has been known to be called the key to the midway, as no proper midway should be without one. Others call the Jenny the key, as it is traditionally the first thing encountered when entering the midway. The Ferris wheel is sometimes called the "calling card", a title which can be applied to any high ride which is visible from long distances. A Merry-Go-Round or Carousel is also known as the key to the midway by some shows, as it is usually in the center of the midway.

The Kitty - Budgeted amount of finance, regulated by the management of a carnival for purchasing food and supplies for its workers. ("We wanted a new tent, but there's no more scratch in the kitty.")

Larry - Defective

Loc(ation) - Location of a joint or ride as determined by the carnival manager. Usually laid out before set-up.

Lot - The lot is the carnival midway area where the rides and "joints" are set up

Lot Lizard - Describes a carny (usually female) who has multiple sexual partners (also carnys), or one who tends to "sleep-around" or cheat with other carnies on the lot.

Mark - A customer that spends a lot of money trying to win a game. This term was coined because carnies would alert each other to the big spender by marking him some way (usually by patting them on the shoulder with powdered chalk in hand).

Midway - Usually refers to the area of the carnival where the rides are located. Can also be used as a more general term to encompass the entire carnival.
Money ace ($1)
deuce ($2)
fin ($5)
sawbuck/saw ($10)
double ($20)
half-yard ($50)
yard or c-note ($100)
rod or d-note ($500)
large or K ($1000)

Mooch - Same as a Mark.

New - An insult used by carnies, against carnies (newbie). Used in instances where a carnival worker should know better, with the insulter asking "What are you, new?"

The Nut - The sum total (in cash) of a performance, or group of performances. The nut (or kernel) is also sometimes used to refer to the basic operating expense of the joint (including the "patch"). To "make your nut" is to break even, anything beyond that is profit (or tip). Historically, the 'nut' is thought to refer to the wheels of a wagon or carriage; when a carnival or circus set up in a town, officials would take a nut from the carriage wheel to prevent the performers from leaving without settling outstanding bills.

Oats - Stolen money from a concession.

Paul Morgan - A Person that looks they work on the waltzers.

Patch - A carnival employee who pays off the local police or other officials.

Patch money - Money used to induce police officers to turn a blind eye. Also known as juice or ice.

Plush - Stuffed animals to be given away as prizes

Poke - The Mark's wallet is known as their Poke. When a carnie tries to see how much is in a mark's wallet he will "Peek his poke"

Possum belly (sometimes possum gut) - Compartment under a truck or trailer

Possum belly queen or PBQ - Same as Lot Lizard.

Press - A refill on change, typically a bag containing $100.00-$500.00 in quarters to be exchanged for paper money with customers for games like Skee Ball or Skill Dozers.

Privilege - The right of a joint owner to set up as part of a carnival. For his privilege the joint owner pays the show owner an amount which may vary with the size of the joint and the prominence of its position.

Ride jock (or jockey) - Someone who operates the carnival rides (vs. jointee).

Rousty or Roustabout - A temporary or full-time laborer who helps pitch concessions and assemble rides. In the 1930s, American roustabouts would work for a meal and perhaps a tent to share with other workers.

Scratch - The revenue from a concession, or money in general.

Score - Any scratch won by any means, fair or foul.

Sharpie - The opposite of a mark: an experienced player who is wise to traditional carny scams and is skilled at the games themselves.

Shill (or outside man) - An employee who pretends to be a casual player sometimes pretending to win big prizes in order to make the game seem easily winnable. Shills may also stroll the fairground holding a large plush (stuffed animal) bragging about how easy it was to win it. Shills may also rush into ticket lines for sideshows or be the first to buy products for sale so that onlookers will feel less reluctant to do the same.

Slough – To tear down an entire carnival to get ready for the jump to new town.

Slum - small cheap stock

Speak the language - Used as a test to see if someone is really "with it". Many carnies "qualify" outsiders by using the jargon. A string of jargon or carny-talk is spoken to determine if the other person understands. A person who fails the test is said to "not speak the language", indicating "newness". A newbie who is good or looks promising might be said to not speak the language yet, which is more complimentary.

Spinning/flying Jenny or Jinny - Carnie slang for merry-go-round.[3]

Splinter Head - Agent that works in any "game" joint, usually all "joints" are made of wood.

Spring - Open the carnival.

Stick Joint - Homemade wooden or metal booth.

Stock - Game prizes

Straight - A game that is played by the rules

Sugar Shack - A concession or food-stand that sells cotton candy and other sugary treats.

Store - Can mean any joint, but is usually used to refer to a "straight store" where there's a winner every time. The store is basically selling stock, usually slum, for a handsome profit.

Tear down - Dismantling the rides and games so they can be transported to another location.

Tip - Generally has two meanings, depending on context. Old-timers usually mean the crowd that gathers around a caller or mike-man to hear the spiel before the start of the next show, or the crowd that hangs around a joint, watching others play. A more general meaning is any scratch the agent wins from his game as in "I just won a real nice tip from that last mark".

Two-Way Joint - A game that can be quickly converted from a fixed, unwinnable game into a temporarily honest one when police officers come by.

With it - A carny, to identify one another, as in "I'm with it", or "Are you with it"? (With the show).